When Cunningham was hired, Steve Standlea also joined as director of operations services. This will allow the growing team to monitor its culture very closely. He takes our job as franchisor extremely serious.”īlack Bear Diner’s goal is to get its corporate/franchise growth to a 50/50 split. ![]() “Bruce really cares deeply for the success of not just the corporate diners, but he’s just as concerned and cares about the franchisees. The owners sticking around 104 units later, however, is not.īlack Bear Diner’s owners will never be able to look at a jukebox the same.Ĭunningham says Dean is passionate about the entire business. ![]() This kind of dishrags-to-riches story is pretty common in the restaurant industry. For the ensuing 38 days, the duo worked open to close, for 16 hours a day, without ever cutting a paycheck.įamously, they would raid the restaurant’s jukebox on Mondays and pay themselves in quarters. The first morning of business, Dean sweated away in the kitchen while Manley charmed guests. And when he was 12, Manley had a run-in with a bear that left him with a bear-claw necklace he still wears today. He was the ultimate Mount Shasta local-a coach’s kid who brought home milkshakes from the corner store. Dean, an industry veteran, then had the inkling to open a restaurant. Dean and Manley met in the late 1980s when they decided to build a subdivision together. Some of the tales of Black Bear Diner’s early days explain it best. “We want to see where these values will take us,” Cunningham says.īlack Bear Diner’s homestyle feel extends to its service as well as its food. Twenty-six consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth doesn’t hurt the projection, either.īut throughout this path, Cunningham says, through the ups, downs, and steady flows, Black Bear Diner will lean on its “secret weapon.” After that, Cunningham says the chain will look at 12–15 or so, which represents 20–25 percent growth, year-over-year. ![]() Black Bear Diner has a target of 6–8 new stores in 2018. Cunningham is confident it will do just that. Those efforts will litmus test the brand’s ability to ramp up growth. In 2018, Black Bear Diner plans to enter two new regions-Midwest City, Oklahoma City, and Katy, Texas. Those locations, of which 37 are company owned and 67 franchised, stretch across eight states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington). Having the chance to really take their vision and grow it nationwide, it’s something I’m looking forward to.”īlack Bear Diner was founded in 1995 in Mount Shasta, California. “Very few times in your career do you actually get that opportunity. “Working day-to-day with the founder in a founder-based company is something that’s exciting to me,” Cunningham says of Dean, the brand’s CEO. One was simply chatting with founders Bruce Dean and Bob Manley. There were many factors at play when Cunningham decided to join the 104-unit brand. He held roles at Mimi’s Café, Smoke Modern BBQ, and Smashburger, working his way up from server to executive. The Black Bear Diner, Sequim is open seven days a week from 8am to 8pm for in-house or take-out dining.Craig Cunningham’s experience led him to an early conclusion: Black Bear Diner was a different kind of animal in the restaurant industry. “This feels like the start of getting back to normal,” said Donaghay. ![]() In-house dining had been suspended across the state since the Governor’s decree on March 16th. You’ll have peace of mind knowing you are as safe as possible while eating at the Black Bear Diner.” Today our cooks are back preparing delicious meals, and our staff is serving them with the same cheerful, helpful attitude, except now we are taking all the additional precautions. Free masks are available.īret Wirta, Owner, said, “We have always taken food preparation, serving and clean-up seriously. Customers are required to wear a mask until they are seated. Said General Manager, Linda Donaghy, “We are so excited to welcome back our customers.” According to Donaghay the dining room has all the required social distancing guidelines in place including customer-seating spaced 6 feet apart, party size limited to five, and all employees wearing masks and gloves. (Sequim, WA) The Black Bear Diner re-opened for inside dining this morning under Governor Jay Inslee’s new Safe Start Washington decree. BLACK BEAR DINER RE-OPENS FOR BUSINESS Owner Bret Wirta, General Manager Linda Donaghy and Black Bear Diner staff with face masks prepared safely to re-open the diner for business.
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