Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza parent launches fast-casual conceptSammy’s Woodfired Pizza parent launches fast-casual concept

The parent to the Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza & Grill chain has launched a new fast-casual concept, called Table 89, in Las Vegas.

Like the San Diego-based company’s core brand, Table 89 will serve a few pizzas, but the menu will also include a selection of globally inspired small plates, soups, sandwiches, pastas and salads served in an order-at-the-counter format, with prices starting at $8.

Sami Ladeki, owner and chief executive of Ladeki Restaurant Group, who founded the casual-dining Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza chain in 1989, said it was time to take a step into the fast-casual segment.

“It seems to be what people enjoy,” Ladeki said. “It’s cheaper and it’s not a lot of work for them, especially if they have children.”

It’s not the first time Ladeki has attempted a fast-casual restaurant. He once tested an express version of Sammy’s, but too many customers were frustrated that the entire Sammy’s menu wasn’t available at the limited-service outlet, he said.

As a result, Table 89 will be its own brand, “so people don’t walk in expecting to get the same thing they’re used to,” he said.

Table 89 will be its own brand. Photo: Ladeki Restaurant Group

In addition to a few wood-fired pizzas, the eclectic menu includes dishes like Thai shrimp salad, goat cheese and tomato flatbread, a grilled steak sandwich with watercress and horseradish aioli, and a shrimp and tofu bowl with vegetables and noodles in Thai yellow curry sauce. A kids’ menu is available. Table 89 also offers a few craft beers and wine.

The average check is $8 to $11, and the restaurant is about 3,200 square feet.

Ladeki Restaurant Group operates 16 Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza locations, and three more are franchised in airports or casinos. The company also owns the Roppongi Restaurant & Sushi Bar in La Jolla, Calif.

Ladeki has also been tweaking its 25-year-old core brand with new variations. In Henderson, Nev., and in Sacramento, Ladeki has opened Sammy’s Restaurant & Bar, which offers a more upscale menu.

In addition to the pizzas, those units also serve dishes like lamb shanks and crab cakes. A bar is at the center of the restaurants, and in Nevada the restaurant has a small casino.

Ladeki said he isn’t planning to open more pizza restaurants for now, though he added, “Never say never.”

If Table 89 does well, it may become a growth vehicle for the future, he said.

“We want to see how it works out,” Ladeki said. “You have to keep changing. You know how it is in the food industry, you can’t keep sitting there letting the world go by you.”

Table 89 will serve a few pizzas, but the menu will also include a selection of globally inspired small plates. Photo: Ladeki Restaurant Group

Contact Lisa Jennings at [email protected].
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