Arizona restaurants outpace national average
Staff reports

Arizona’s food service sector in 2007 is projected to rack up sales topping nearly $8 billion, according to a recent report from the National Restaurant Association.

In addition, the food service industry in the Grand Canyon state is growing 2.6 percent above the national rate.         

Some area restauranteurs said those figures are in line with what they have observed here in northern Maricopa County.

“I think the future of the restaurant business is good,” said Doug Stavoe, owner of Carefree‑based Blue Sky, an upscale coffee and wine bar that also serves food.

Stavoe said the area’s robust tourist industry, coupled with more people opting to dine out, are the reasons the statistics are on the rise.

“People always have money to go out to eat. You’ve got husbands and wives who both work ... . They like to reward themselves to go out to eat after a long day of work,” he said.   

Cave Creek restauranteur Bill Whitmore attributed the growth of the restaurant industry to the climate and population growth.

“It’s about the weather. People love to go out and do things in our beautiful climate,” said Whitmore, who owns the Cave Creek Roadhouse.

Though he did not give a dollar amount, Whitmore said his eatery’s sales are up 20 percent over 2005 sales.

Whitmore built the restaurant from the ground up, opening for business in April 2005. The restaurant attracts a diverse clientele–from bikers and cowboys to families and retirees.

“The trend will continue,” he said, adding population growth in the Phoenix metropolitan area is another factor in the rise in restaurant sales.

“Our population is also growing in excess of the national average. Everyone is moving to our beautiful slice of heaven,” he said.