Top restaurateur eyeing Sansom Common site

A clothing store and a shoe store will also open to fill storefronts in the complex's second phase. A renowned restaurateur who runs two of Philadelphia's most successful restaurants may soon be working his culinary magic on Penn's campus. Stephen Starr, who owns the Continental Restaurant and Martini Bar and the-newly opened Buddakan in Old City, is in negotiations with the University to lease a space in Sansom Common that has been reserved for an upscale restaurant, according to Tom Lussenhop, Penn's top real estate official. "Stephen Starr takes an exciting and fresh approach to the design and operation of restaurants," Lussenhop said. "We have every belief that we can close the deal quickly," though there has still been no final agreement. Starr said yesterday that he believed the restaurant would be a hit. "With the University's commitment financially, I think it's a safe bet that a restaurant like ours will be a success," Starr said. The former concert promoter and nightclub operator said he has been kicking around a few ideas for the restaurant's food theme -- including "a family-style Italian restaurant" and a "giant conveyor-belt sushi bar" -- but hasn't reached a final decision. While Starr's two Old City restaurants are known for their upscale and expensive menus, Starr says the new restaurant would be more moderately-priced, with dinner and drinks costing about $30 a person. Starr called Penn's campus "underserved for restaurants," and said that the growing success of the $120 million Sansom Common complex -- which has already seen the openings of the new University Bookstore, Xando, Eastern Mountain Sports and Parfumerie Douglas -- and the upcoming Sundance Cinema project on 40th Street is making the University City area a more attractive commercial location. Starr began his career in entertainment when he opened his first nightclub in the late 1970s. Working as a music promoter in the 1980s, he made enough money to open both the Bank night club -- now called the District -- and in 1995, the Continental. Buddakan opened last August. Both are generally considered to be among Philadelphia's best restaurants. While the completed Sansom Common -- which officials said will include two more retail spaces set aside for shoe and apparel stores, the Inn at Penn and Grand's restaurant -- is set to debut this fall, Lussenhop said the new restaurant won't open until later in the year. "The design and development of a restaurant is far more costly an exercise than a typical retail space." Lussenhop said. "We don't expect a restaurant to open until late 1999." The new restaurant will complete the second phase of the Sansom Common project, which, besides the stores and restaurants, will include the DoubleTree Hotels-operated Inn at Penn. University officials released preliminary floor plans for the 256-room Inn earlier this week. In addition to being the new home of the Faculty Club, the Inn will feature four meeting rooms, a ballroom, a fitness center and a gift shop. Set to open in September, the Inn will likely begin taking individual reservations in April, according to Larry Moneta, associate vice president for campus services. While a definite price range for rooms has yet to be established, Moneta characterized the future hotel as "more upscale" and estimated that a typical room rate will range from $160 to $250 a night. The Inn will be a "major asset" for Penn faculty, visiting parents, participants at local conferences and others, Moneta said. The hotel space will also likely come in useful during next year's Republican Presidential convention, expected to bring thousands of people and millions of dollars to the city next summer. Officials said that the retailers already in place in Sansom Common as part of the completed first phase are all performing up to or above Penn's expectations. "In the case of Xando and Urban Outfitters, they are in excess of their projections," Lussenhop said. "It was definitely a good decision to move in," Douglas Marketing Coordinator Mandi Youngs said. "We've adapted pretty well." And Erik Williams, store manager of Eastern Mountain Sports, said he is thrilled with the store's location and success. The new restaurant and other University City inititiatives will likely contribute to continued profitability, he said. "This is such a cool location," Williams said. "We're in the same ballpark as the strongest locations in this area -- and it's only going to build." A newly-installed 23-foot high climbing wall is almost completed inside EMS and will open next Friday for customers with their own climbing equipment. A rental program for people without their own gear will open shortly after, Williams said.

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