Hampered by a plummet in Trent Drive Hall's student population from nearly 300 to 67, Grace's Cafe may soon desert the increasingly vacant dorm to share space with Uncle Harry's.
Jack Chao, Grace's owner, said he plans to discuss the possibility of re-opening in the back of Uncle Harry's grocery store this month with Auxiliary Services officials. The University hopes the potential move might also help the Central Campus store's struggling revenues.
"I see it as a win-win situation," Chao said. "A student will come in for lunch and pick up a gallon of milk on the way out. Or maybe they'll come to shop and then grab a sandwich."
Chao estimated it would cost $120,000 of renovations at Uncle Harry's--including replacing the deli with a full kitchen and student dining area--before the Chinese restaurant could move in.
To assess the project's feasibility, Jim Wilkerson, director of Duke Stores, and Jim Wulforst, director of dining services, are writing a report to consider potential price structures at Uncle Harry's, Central Campus renovations and the ramifications for both Central and Trent.
The report should be ready Oct. 14 and the decision hinges on its findings, said Joe Pietrantoni, associate vice president for auxiliary services.
"We can either help Grace's financially [through subsidies] or we can consolidate it with the grocery store," Pietrantoni said. "But we just have to wait to decide if it's a good move."
Losing almost three-quarters of last year's Trent residents prompted Chao to propose the move in late August. Chao said he is unsure when the relocation would occur.
"If we had a choice, then we would prefer not moving," he said. "But with numbers as low as they are, we have no choice but to leave.... We're just hoping we'll be able to stay the whole year at Trent."
Earlier this year, Wulforst offered Grace's top priority in moving to the West-Edens Link. But the requirement of staying open 24 hours a day made the offer impossible for Grace's, said Grace's manager Lih Mei Chao.
Approximately 200 people visit Grace's per day--down almost 50 percent from last year. Despite the drop, leaving Trent would be difficult because of the restaurant's popularity in the dorm and the small amount of space available in Uncle Harry's, she said.
"A lot of the students have told us, 'If you don't stay, then we won't stay,'" Chao said. "They're happy to have us, and we're happy to have them, just like a family."
Junior Abdulla Fakhro, who lives at Trent, sighed after hearing about the possible move. "Good change?" he asked. "Hell no. I guess it's better for them, but one of the good things about living here is having Grace's."
Wilkerson cited increased efficiency--and thus lower labor costs--as a primary reason for moving Grace's to Uncle Harry's. "The theory is that there would be people operating Grace's for relatively long amounts of time, and that these same people could check out Uncle Harry's grocery customers, stock shelves and unload trucks," he said.
Because of Uncle Harry's lack of profits over the last few years, the University has discussed closing the grocer. Although expenses have decreased, an "uncontrolled addition of vendors" has cut revenues at Uncle Harry's, Wilkerson said. The grocery store operates on gross profit margins of 24 percent and grosses between $800,000 and $850,000 annually.
"There is nothing left for us to do at Uncle Harry's," Wilkerson said. "We've made price changes, altered product selection, given away T-shirts--we've done just an enormous amount of things to try to spur more business here."
Relocating to Uncle Harry's might be best for Grace's, said junior Cliff Chow, who lives on Central and lived at Trent last year.
Senior and West Campus resident Chequet Ching said she would go to Grace's just as much if it were on Central. "But it might be bad for Grace's because then they'd be farther form the Medical Center," Ching said.
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