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One door closes, another opens for diner
By JOHN REINAN
© St. Petersburg Times, ST. PETE BEACH -- Regulars of the Pelican Diner gathered for a funeral Sunday. Little did they know a resurrection was right around the corner. The stainless-steel landmark, which has stood at 75th Avenue and Gulf Boulevard since the early '50s, will continue operating under new management. That's welcome news for the Pelican's local clientele, which had feared the eatery's demise after longtime owners Ziggy and Helen Radvil sold out. New owner George Calomiris, president of Gulfcoast Development Partners, said Monday that he had reached a lease agreement with two local restaurateurs who will operate the Pelican. "I think it's a great piece of property, and the location and the history of the structure were key selling points," Calomiris said. Rex Butler and Kelly Gerhardt leased the diner. Butler is owner of the Butlers Barbecue in St. Petersburg. Gerhardt is a veteran convenience store operator. Butler said the Pelican provides a perfect opportunity to bring his barbecue to the beach. The business will bill itself as the Pelican Diner Featuring Butlers Barbecue. The diner will be closed for at least two weeks, he said, but could reopen shortly after that with Gerhardt in charge of day-to-day operations. Little renovation needs to be done, Butler said, other than routine cleaning and swapping out a couple of pieces of kitchen equipment. Butler said he intended to open for lunch and dinner only, but the diner patrons and staff made it plain that abandoning breakfast was not an option. "They were quite clear about that," he said with a smile. "So we will try to keep breakfast." The diner has developed a fervently loyal following in its 50 years on the beach. Although stars such as Marilyn Monroe, Joe DiMaggio and Carroll O'Connor dined at the Pelican, regulars like Allen Sferios always counted for more than any celebrity. Sferios, owner of Gulf Beach Cleaners, has eaten breakfast and lunch daily at the Pelican for more than 30 years. He was on his usual stool Sunday morning for the diner's last day of business under the Radvils. "This diner is part of my whole life," Sferios said, before word of the Pelican's new lease on life had gotten out. "I don't know where to go now. I'm lost." Will Jacoby headed out the door with the last batch of Pelican chili in a plastic tub. He got the recipe, too, along with a souvenir menu. "You could come in here and the people would know your name, your face," said Jacoby, a St. Pete Beach resident who has been coming to the diner since the '50s. "It's the last of what I call the true American restaurants." The entire Pelican staff has agreed to keep working for the new management. Most of the waitresses and cooks have been with the diner for more than 20 years. "You work with somebody that long, it's like a family," said Dottie Carolan, a Pelican waitress for 23 years, including 13 years on the graveyard shift when the diner was open 24 hours a day. A steady stream of customers came and went Sunday, each with a story to tell. Lynn Schumacher and Ed Montilla of Tierra Verde first visited the Pelican on their wedding night, 15 years ago. Chicago residents at the time, they flew to Florida for their honeymoon, checked into their motel and went for a moonlight walk on the beach. "Suddenly it dawned on both of us: We hadn't had a bite to eat all day, and we were starving," Schumacher said. "We saw this place and thought, "Why not?' " "We had cheeseburgers and chili, and it was the best chili we ever had." The Radvils said they will miss their friends and customers but that 32 years of running the diner were enough. They sold the place last week to Calomiris for $300,000. "Business is good," said Ziggy Radvil, 67. "But it wears you out. Let the younger people do it." Helen Radvil, 57, said she's looking forward to a less stressful life. "The day my son was born, I was washing dishes in that kitchen. And three days later, I was back making soup. "I don't want responsibility anymore. I want a no-brainer."
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
