Former king of eateries now has lone operation
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 30/11/2008 (6340 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
ONE-time restaurant king George Tsouras is now down to one operation.
Tsouras, who used to head up the Branigan’s chain, closed the Longhorn’s Texas Steakhouse at Garden City Square on Leila Avenue last week.
That leaves Tsouras with only Beachcomber’s at The Forks.
"It was strictly an economic decision," Tsouras said. "There was no business there."
The new millennium hasn’t been kind to Tsouras. He entered with nine restaurants — six Branigan’s across the city, the Remington’s Seafood Steakhouse and Barba Yiannis at The Forks, and a seventh Branigan’s in Grand Forks.
In 2003, Tsouras closed the Barba Yiannis and the Branigan’s at Polo Park. In 2004, he closed the Remington’s at The Forks and then placed the chain’s flagship, Branigan’s at The Forks, into bankruptcy, although the restaurant remained opened and operated by a trustee. Later that year, the St. Vital Centre closed the Branigan’s there.
To the dismay of many creditors, Tsouras was able to regain control of the flagship Branigan’s at The Forks through another family-controlled company that same year.
Tsouras later rebranded the Branigan’s at The Forks into Beachcomber’s and converted the Leila restaurant into Longhorn’s.
Tsouras was planning to rebrand the one remaining Branigan’s, at Kildonan Place, into a Longhorn’s but then abruptly closed it in January.
The Leila Avenue restaurant gained notoriety this summer during the Taman inquiry when it was disclosed that, as a Branigan’s, it had been a favourite get-together spot for Winnipeg police officers from the North End division. The inquiry also learned that restaurant staff had lied to investigators, dramatically downplaying the amount of drinks some officers had consumed the night before Crystal Taman was killed by an off-duty police officer who drove his truck into her small convertible as she waited for a traffic light on Highway 59.
aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca