On Schweinhunds
I don’t usually do this, but since many of you have been patiently waiting for new projects on Central in ABQ, I thought I would give a detailed account of what went down behind the scenes.
After moving Vinny a block east, we planned to open a brewery we were tentatively calling Schweinhund at 1828 Central, our OG Vinaigrette location. This was part of a larger plan for amping up the commercial district, that I had pitched to our landlord in 2022, with a series of creative, cooperative concepts that responded to the demographic changes in the neighborhood due to Automatic Rapid Transport and the pandemic, as well as larger technological shifts affecting how we eat and use restaurants today. Because I love creating and designing restaurants, I wanted to operate them.
The plan centered around moving Vinaigrette from 1828 to 1720, adding two new adjoining concepts (Tiny’s and Pickleballer—btw this part still happening), and then creating a beautiful, food-driven brewery, gastropub and beer garden at 1828 Central. I still love that space. All the really cool things about that building—the big exposed trusses, the reclaimed pine floors, all the trees, the wisteria vines crawling along the fences—were uncovered, added or planted by us. It sounds cheesy to say, but I really do pour my heart and soul into our restaurant projects, so I get pretty attached to the spaces. But, I also knew that it was time for a change. It needed a whole lot of repairs, and new life as a different concept. One I hoped to create.
Our landlord, Jay, loved the overall plan, and the brewery concept especially. So, we got started on the first part of it—renovating 1720 and preparing to move Vinaigrette. I think we both assumed that we would figure out the details on additional spaces and deals in a way that worked for both of us, because we had always gotten along well in the past. I assumed that Jay understood it would be crazy for a small, independent restaurant company such as mine to assume all the risk of investing in multiple buildings in a single neighborhood owned by someone else. I never intended to do it all by myself, or to assume all the risk. I thought it would be a team effort, and that we would come to agreements that respected all the work, time, energy and money we were intending to put into the nabe, not to mention what we already have done.
Jay’s concerns had more to do with the timing, since it is no good for landlords to have vacant spaces not earning rent. But almost right away, it was clear that the timeline we hoped for was not possible. Our permit took almost eight months to be approved—unheard of, in the old days, in ABQ. When we finally began construction, we had a bunch of operational strife and management turnover at Vinaigrette that complicated matters. Jay was upset with the delays, but this had kind of been my point. Unforeseen complications always occur in restaurants—we are used to it. Because we tenants are kind of like risk eaters—no matter what happens to us globally or individually, we still owe rent. Jay wanted me to sign more leases, but I felt like he wasn’t hearing my concerns.
In the months right before we opened in the new space, Jay did some things that made what was already going to be an incredibly challenging opening even more difficult. While I don’t think it was intentional, the result was that we had almost no time to set up and train in the new space before we opened for business. This hurt guest experience during crucial opening months and hampered our ability to finalize Tiny’s and Baller. It also made clear to me that continuing with other projects we had planned would not be in our best interest. Jay and I could not come to an agreement that worked for both of us and I lost faith that he would be fair on future deals, when he seemed to be doing the opposite on this one.
I am bummed we couldn’t make it work, but I also have to do what is best for the whole company. There are a lot of people that make their living and depend on my making smart choices. And this was not the partnership I thought I signed up for.
I know that being a landlord is no picnic. Managing multiple tenants must be like herding cantankerous cats. And, landlords have banks to answer to, returns to make. I really do appreciate the help and support I have received from landlords over the years. However, I also believe that the whole landlord-tenant relationship needs an upgrade. A redesign. The feudal roots of the word seem to seep into LL’s attitude toward tenants, the inherent bias in the legal document itself, and sometimes even they way they talk to us. It’s like they really take that whole “lord” thing super seriously.
I understand that our LL has found a new tenant for 1828 and I am sure they are awesome. I hope they love and care for the space like we did. What is most important to me is the overall health of the neighborhood, and a new strong tenant will be good for everyone. In the meantime we are focused on streamlining operations at our new space, and crushing two new concepts that I think the neighborhood will enjoy.
