Kraze Burgers says the multi-year construction project on Bethesda and Woodmont Avenues across from Barnes and Noble has reduced foot traffic around the Row, and that store sales ultimately dropped by 50%. Several businesses have previously complained about the impact of the project on parking and sales traffic. In contrast, Kraze Burgers says its new stores at Westfield Montgomery Mall and Tysons Galleria "did outstanding numbers last month."
The company is proceeding with rapid expansion plans. They have recently signed leases at BWI Marshall Airport, in NoMa in the District, and in Herndon. Kraze is in negotiations with several other retail centers and airports in the region, a spokesperson said yesterday.
One additional piece of news, is that the company expects its Kraze Bethesda, LLC bankruptcy case to be dismissed in the coming weeks. That entity is separate from the rest of the Kraze Burgers company. The landowner of the former Kraze Burgers space is not Federal Realty, and the building is not technically part of the Bethesda Row development.
If you have a Groupon left over from the Bethesda Row location, Kraze says you can redeem it at other locations, which also include Lansdowne, Germantown and Barracks Row. The spokesperson said Kraze Burgers has seen a spike in customers across all locations through the Groupon promotion.
12 comments:
Groupon sent an email saying the voucher was redeemable at the Mobtgomery Mall location but when we went there they said no, sorry. Groupon gave me a refund but what a pain in the butt
I guess it's buyer/holder beware for those Kraze Burgers Groupons, then. Anybody else have that problem at the other locations?
Kraze Burger is full of it. Yes, Zen Tara Tea is gone and a places between Woodmont and Wisconsin are having issues with the construction.
But the rest of Bethesda Row ain't suffering.
Kraze's problem was it had a kitchen that regularly activated the fire alarm and finally forced them to spend big bucks on renovation. I doubt the next restaurant tenant in that space will have much trouble at all in that location, even with the construction.
Hard to trust a restaurant that so desperately pushes out Groupons, then doesn't even let customers redeem them.
I don't buy their excuse. How did all the other nearby establishments survive? Through offering a good product at a good price.
Groupon deals are almost always bad for the business, sold to them by a pushy salesman who promises the world. It kind of irks me when someone posts a bad Yelp review over a Groupon dispute with no sympathy towards how the business got screwed over in the end.
Kraze has a quality product. The construction took away a lot of parking.
Problem was they were selling crappy burgers to a high end clientele. Won't be surprised if they do better at a mall or an airport.
Lack of parking hasn't hurt Panas or Potbelly's or Taylor Gourmet or Vapiano.
Plus, when construction is done, there will be more parking than Bethesda Row will ever need. If the Purple Line works as planned, there should be a serious look at how useful it is to have two public parking garages within two blocks.
If Fed Realty is serious about transit-oriented development, they'll support that.
I park over on Edgemoor whenever I go to Bethesda row. It is not a bad walk at all and I don't have to deal with the ridiculousness of Garage 57.
@anonymous - I sympathize with businesses having trouble with Groupon, but realize that there's always a choice. It's just like running a marketing campaign, specials, happy hour or other promotion. They weren't "forced" to use Groupon - so any Groupon related issues are part of their decision to use them. It belongs in a Yelp review, just as a happy hour special that wasn't honored or other does as well.
@anonymous - I'd hardly call Kraze "crappy burgers" - I found them quite enjoyable. Maybe not your cup of tea, but those are some harsh words that doesn't seem really well deserved.
They have a good burger. Better than Five Guys.
Sales are definitely way down across Bethesda Row stores along Woodmont Avenue due to the Lot31 construction and a shift of pedestrian traffic to Bethesda Lane.
Kraze Burgers has a good, upscale product and great sides. Their problem was the burger craze ending, lots of competition for the lunch dollar in this area, and difficulty of their landlord- Lenny Greenberg. Check out his record with tenants. I feel sorry for any biz that will go into that location and dealing with that particular landlord.
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