White Spot Returns to Edmonton

[jon]

While they tend to bill themselves as a breakfast restaurant, is a normal evening menu still offered? Sorta like the other ones.

Just spoke to someone at the local IHOP and he said they offer the full menu that you see on-line at ihop.com

I took another look at their menu, and he seems to be correct.

[gordo54]

The rights holder for IHOP in Western Canada is headquartered in Lethbridge... look for a second Edmonton location,
a new Lethbridge outlet, and also Calgary on the horizon... overall, the brand will be re-energized across the West...

[freqfreak2]

From the Journal:

A few quick biz notes: White Spot, that iconic British Columbia family restaurant chain, is returning to Edmonton after a couple of years absence. While there is a location in Leduc, Edmonton Pirate Pack lovers will be pleased to note White Spot will open soon in the Sheraton Four Points Hotel at 10020 12th Avenue SW. There used to be a White Spot at Southpark Centre on Calgary Trail but it changed to an IHOP.

http://blogs.edmontonjournal.com/2012/02/29/business-comings-and-goings/

[jon]

Having just completed some exclusive Investigative Reporting earlier this afternoon for RadioWest.ca, I can report the following.

The White Spot is very close to opening, with booths and tables already installed. I suspect Grand Opening will coincide with that of the Sheraton Four Points Hotel. The White Spot is a stand-alone restaurant but located on the hotel's property. Although a bit of a walk, the location is a minute's drive from South Edmonton Common.

The IHOP continues to do very well. Seniors, high school kids, and parents with young children dominate the clientele.

The 5 Guys location across from Lowe's in South Edmonton Common is part of a series of adjoining businesses right beside Calgary Trail (Highway 2 to Calgary). The entire structure is still fenced off with blue construction fencing, and there appears to be quite a bit of work yet to do.

Neither White Spot or 5 Guys has any signage that indicates an opening date.

I spoke too soon. The Starwood (owner of Sheraton) web site says March 29th is the first day you can book a room at the new Sheraton Four Points. I was also surprised to learn that Edmonton already has a Sheraton Four Points at 7230 Argyll Road, the latest renaming of a '70s hotel near the entrance of the Sherwood Park Freeway.

Assuming White Spot doesn't open until March 29th, the delay could hurt them if 5 Guys is open by then. At least, if my mother is any indication. Her favourite burger was White Spot's. Until 5 Guys opened in Sherwood Park.

[jon]

The new location opened on Monday. Since we had a lunch hour seminar nearby, we were there at 1:15 pm today, and the interior is very nice, though they may well have used the booths from the previous White Spot.

The hotel to which the White Spot is attached does not appear to be open yet, even though yesterday was the scheduled day to open: they were accepting reservations for last night at the beginning of the month.

[jon]

Just got some interesting background from the manager of the new White Spot. It marks the first White Spot that is attached to a hotel. But it almost didn't happen.

Originally, a franchisee was going to open this location, but they pulled out at the last minute. Normally, that would have meant someone else would have approached the hotel and together they would have agreed upon a restaurant "brand" that the new owner would have obtained a franchise license for.

Instead, White Spot head office decided to continue where the franchisee left off, and opened it as a corporate-owned White Spot.

All White Spot locations in Alberta are corporate-owned. That is not really saying much, as there are only four in Alberta.

There is, however, a single Triple-O's in Alberta. And it is franchised. The White Spot-owned chain is described on their web site as "All situated in a retro cool diner and drive thru". Nonetheless, Alberta's only location is a kiosk in a food court in the basement of the Royal Alex Hospital just North of Downtown Edmonton. They get hammered by the neighbouring Tim Horton's even though their prices are lower. I really don't know how they survive.

[groundwave]

... Nonetheless, Alberta's only location is a kiosk in a food court in the basement of the Royal Alex Hospital just North of Downtown Edmonton. They get hammered by the neighboring Tim Horton's even though their prices are lower. I really don't know how they survive.

I've patronized the Alex location on a few occasions. Triple-O's mid-day (11 AM to 2 PM) lineups are nowhere as long as those next-door at Tim's, but there always seems to be a customer or three perched at their service counter during that period. Given the size of the kiosk (the entire service counter spans about six feet), that would seem to be about all they can accommodate anyway. As for their grub, I can honestly tell you, they serve the best tasting fries I've ever encountered. Real potatoes with nary a hint of that dreaded, bland fast-food greasiness. Their burgers are very good - I'd rate them far higher than most. But these fries... man those fries!

As for the secret of "survival," an explanation of sorts may lie in how that particular location efficiently restricts it's business hours to only the busiest part of the day. Unlike retail mall courts that coerce tenants to be up and running during all "open" hours, or a stand-alone location fighting an all-hours competitor down the street, the hospital court has a far more relaxed business environment. As far as I've been able to observe, the Alex Triple-O's (in addition to some of it's neighboring tenants) is only open from around 11 AM to 5 PM. While that only makes for a six hour business day - those are bound to be six relatively profitable hours. On the other hand, Tim's is open much later- until 9:00 PM, well into and through a much softer time of the day. From a business perspective, it seems plausible that they're effectively subsidizing those less-profitable, slow late-day hours by charging comparatively higher prices overall.