Rick White said Tuesday (May 21) he has not yet located a replacement site for his Crystal City Bandana’s Bar-B-Q restaurant, destroyed in a March 6 fire.
White, CEO and owner of the Bandana’s chain of restaurants in Missouri, Illinois, Iowa and Indiana, said he and his staff are searching for “a good match” to replace the site at 103 S. Truman Blvd.
“We are looking at the general area, not just Crystal City,” he said.
White rented the property from GE Capital Corporation. He said he wants to reopen, but doesn’t know when that might happen.
Today (May 22), GE Capital spokesman David Hiott said his company is in the process of demolishing the old Bandana’s to prepare the 47,136-square-foot site to go on the market.
“Right now, the property is being put up for sale,” said Hiott, who handles surplus properties in Missouri for GE Capital. “The building was a total loss.”
Crystal City fire officials reported the blaze began around 3 a.m. at smokers and a wood pile behind the restaurant. The exact cause was not determined, but it was ruled accidental, Fire Chief Tony Bova said.
White offered to transfer all 26 employees who had worked at the Crystal City site to other Bandana’s restaurants. He said after the fire that 14 employees took him up on the offer.