East Side Mario's, Ise's Sports Bar set to close, Giant Tiger opening
East Side Mario's and Ise's Sports Bar in Charlottetown are set to close at the end of the month. Together, the two establishments employ about 40 people.
Giant Tiger will be opening up at the University Avenue location in July — after a 10,000 square foot expansion. It will employ 25 to 30 people.
Ben Murphy, chief operating officer the Murphy Hospitality Group, said it was the right time to vacate.
The group has owned a restaurant in that location for close to 20 years. It was originally a Lone Star.
"It's a little bit of a mutual decision between us and Plaza Corp," he said. "They obviously had another tenant coming in with a little more square footage. Also, I think every business runs its course, and we've been in that space for 20 years so it was probably the right time for us as well."
Murphy said he looked for another location for East Side Mario's, but didn't find one with the right space and traffic to warrant reopening elsewhere.
Some of the staff have found work at other businesses in the company, Murphy said.
He said the next big project for Murphy Hospitality Group is the development of a 75-room hotel with a Gahan House on the main floor in Moncton, to open in late 2017.
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