A different Tale begins
Paul Clinton
The Tale of the Whale may be closed, but it’s tale isn’t over yet.
Brothers David and Doug Salisbury have bought the ailing
restaurant and say they’ll relaunch it in the spring as a
contemporary, waterfront destination for dining and banquets.
“Our goal is to basically step it up a notch,” said David
Salisbury, who runs two other local eateries with his brother. “With
a new name and new look, it’s going to be a new restaurant.”
The once-buzzing local favorite closed out almost four decades of
serving seafood and steaks to locals and tourists from all over
Southern California when it quietly shuttered its doors in April.
With high hopes and a prime view of Newport Harbor from the upper
and lower dining rooms, the Salisbury brothers plan to open the
Harborside Restaurant and Grand Ballroom at the pavilion in May.
Over the past decade, crowds had dwindled at the Tale of the Whale
as the restaurant’s owner gave up plans to refurbish its
deteriorating interior.
Details of the new restaurant are still being worked out, but the
Salisburys are now developing the menu, interior design and layout of
the spacious 20,000-square-foot restaurant.
David Salisbury said Harborside will retain the nautical theme,
but will steer away from the darkly muted steakhouse feel of Tale of
the Whale for “soft tone” colors.
Future patrons will be able to order staple dishes like crab,
lobster, shrimp and steak. The Salisburys also say the menu at
Harborside will be different from their other local eateries --
Newport Landing and Yankee Tavern.
Many of the entrees will be priced below $20, Salisbury said.
However, the new owners hope to retain some of the historic flavor
of early Balboa Village. The pavilion itself -- the first building in
Balboa -- was built in 1905.
In the early-1960s, 35-year-old Bill Caouette opened the Tale of
the Whale in the pavilion. Caouette struck a deal with Phil Tozer,
who owned the pavilion and Davy’s Locker for many years.
The Balboa Pavilion Co., the current owner, holds the Salisburys’
lease. Company officials had pleaded with Caouette to upgrade the
deteriorating restaurant for a decade. As a result, they’re delighted
to have a new tenant.
“It’s long overdue,” said Bob Black, the company’s vice president.
“As Bill got older, he was getting tired and didn’t want to put the
money into it.”
In a partnership deal, the company and the Salisburys have agreed
to share the expense of renovating the restaurant. The two said they
expect to spend upwards of $500,000 and as much as $1.8 million.
The restaurant’s revitalization comes at a time when village
business owners and the city have been pushing to upgrade an area
that has fallen on hard times.
Both hope to cut down on the number of vacant storefronts.
“It’s one of the shots in the arm for the village,” Mayor Tod
Ridgeway said. “The world has kind of passed that area by ... The one
thing about commercial areas is they must reinvent themselves every
10 years. If they don’t, they’re destined for failure.”
* PAUL CLINTON covers the environment, business and politics. He
may be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail at
paul.clinton@latimes.com.
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