Fritz's is closed and so is Long John Silver's both for the same reason
The trail hasn’t come to an end for Fritz's Wagon Wheel Restaurant, as some have feared. But neither is the wait over.
The full-service restaurant and bar at 2709 S. MacArthur Blvd. – a feature of the Springfield dining scene for 84 years – has been closed since early July with no explanation.
Owner Joe Bart said this week the familiar brick building with the blue-awning is getting a refresh while new staff is recruited.
“(The closing ) isn’t permanent. That was never our intent,” said Bart, who cited staffing shortages as the reason for the temporary closure.
“My brother asked, ‘When are you getting Fritz’s back open?,’” said Bart, who has owned the restaurant for three decades. “‘As soon as we get the people,’ was my response.
“It’s not about business. We’ve had to turn people away because we don’t have enough tables. But just one person calls off (work) and it’s turmoil.”
Staffing shortages are an anomaly for Fritz’s Wagon Wheel where staff have regularly counted their tenure in decades.
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“People used to come to us (wanting to work). We’d get eight to 10 applications a month at each business,” said Bart, who also owns The Northender liquor store. “I haven’t got 10 (applicants) in the last three years.
“You can’t afford to have someone retire or get sick and keep operating.”
Bart said he aims to be serving Fritz’s signature prime rib, lobster tail, and walleye dinners once again by mid-October. All gift certificates will be honored.
Fritz’s Wagon Wheel – which throughout the decades also has been known as the Wagon Wheel Restaurant – has been at the same MacArthur Boulevard address since 1999.
Prior to moving into the former Shoney's building, its home was 1531 Wabash Ave.
That’s where Louella Easton first opened Easton's Wagon Wheel in 1939. Fritz Havrilka added his name to the establishment when he purchased it in 1969. His wife Nancy picked up the reins in 1982 when Fritz was fatally shot by armed robbers after closing the restaurant one Saturday night. Bart purchased the restaurant from Nancy in 1993.
Staffing shortages also are behind the temporary closing of the Long John Silver's/A&W establishment in Clocktower Village.
“This location is temporarily closed for re-staffing and training and will reopen once we complete this process,” area supervisor Tosha Fenski wrote via email this week about the business at 1030 Clocktower Dr. The fast food establishment's last day of operation was Aug. 7.
Fenski said a re-opening date has not been set.
The temporary closure on Springfield’s west side isn’t supposed to affect Long John Silver’s east-side restaurant at 2929 S. Dirksen Parkway in the Capital City Shopping Center.
The A La Carte column highlights restaurant openings, closings, renovations and relocations, as well as personnel changes and business news. Natalie Morris can be reached at (217) 737-7254 or by email at natalie.sjr@gmail.com.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Staff shortage cause Fritz's and Long John Silver's to close doors
