Schlotzsky’s/Party Mart officially opens

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Van Wert’s new Schlotzsky’s/Cinnabon restaurant and Party Mart convenience store officially open today, and Ottawa Oil Company co-owner Janel Kruse said she is excited to bring a new eating and convenience store concept to the city.

Kruse said she and her brother, who operate 21 convenience stores in northwest Ohio, were looking for a food option to add to a new Shell service station and Party Mart convenience store they were planning to build in Van Wert to replace an older existing facility.

“There were not a lot of food items along (U.S.) 127 at the time, so we thought it would be a good idea to put a food franchise in our store,” Kruse said.

They were also looking to purchase an adjacent property owned by The Kenn-Feld Group that had previously housed the Kennedy-Kuhn agriculture implement dealership. Doing so would allow them to operate the existing Shell/Party Mart location while the new facility was under construction. Kruse said it took a couple of years, though, to complete the purchase of that property.

Kruse said she and her brother, who purchased the Shell station from CW Service of Coldwater in 2002, also decided they would like to do something different in the new facility.

“We thought maybe we should also try to find our own food franchise and run it ourselves,” Kruse said, noting that they had previously leased space to food franchisees in several of their other Ottawa Oil Company convenience stores.

Kruse said she was researching healthier food franchises on the Internet when she came across a restaurant operation and called them about a franchising opportunity. That company didn’t partner with convenience stores, but suggested Kruse talk to Schlotzsky’s, which did offer convenience store franchises.

“My brother, Dale, and I went to Texas to talk with the company,” Kruse said, noting that after they tried the food, they were sold on bringing a Schlotzsky’s to Van Wert. “The food was really good.”

Kruse said Schlotzsky’s, which styles itself as a “fast casual” restaurant, rather than a fast food operation, offers its signature sandwich, The Original, along with other sandwich options, pizza, salads and pasta. The sandwiches and pizza are made with fresh-baked bread, which she said is similar in concept to Panera Bread. Schlotzsky’s also partners with Cinnabon to offer its rolls and pastries at Scholtzsky’s locations.

The restaurant, which opens at 10 a.m. today, also offers a 40-seat dining area that includes an entrance into the Party Mart convenience store. Hours for the restaurant are 6 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 6 a.m.-9 p.m. on Sundays.

Kruse said the convenience store also has some new wrinkles over the current Party Mart location, including a craft beer area where customers can purchase a selection of craft beers and a drive-through bay on the east side of the convenience store.

The Shell service station also offers two canopied areas, one for passenger vehicles and the other for semis and recreational vehicles.