Cortez Kitchen changing hands

Customers generously supported the restaurant staff last Friday night.

BY LESLIE LAKE SUN CORRESPONDENT | llake@amisun.com

CORTEZ – If there’s one bright spot to the news that longtime waterfront staple Cortez Kitchen is closing its doors, it’s that it has brought out the good in people.

Last Friday, social media discussions reported the restaurant was closing on Sunday. That news brought in a packed house on Friday night, along with the generosity of customers to support Cortez Kitchen staff who found themselves soon out of a job.

Cindy Lipke, a waitress at Cortez Kitchen for the past 18 years, expressed concern about her next employment.

“It’s off-season, and I’m turning 65 years old in October,” she said. “It’s not going to be easy to find another job.”

A waitress who asked not to be identified said that the staff of nine people hadn’t been paid in a number of weeks.

Musician and singer Eric Von performed on Friday night, and during his break, he took to the microphone to ask customers to help.

“People here may be losing their jobs,” Von said. “I’m donating my tips tonight to the servers and my parents (Jane and Rocky von Hahmann) are matching up to $900 in donations. If you can help, it would be greatly appreciated.”

Von put the contents of his tip bucket into the mix and within minutes had raised more than $2,100 from customers, who lined up to donate to the Cortez Kitchen staff.

“When people get the rug pulled out from under them like this, it’s absolutely awesome to see that there’s a community that can come together like this to help people out,” Von said. “When you guys come together there’s nothing we can’t do as a community.”

The Cortez Kitchen building at 4528 119th St. W. is owned by John Banyas, who also owns the Swordfish Grill and Tiki Bar next door. The building has been rented by Joe Oelker, who owned the restaurant business.

Banyas said he will take over the restaurant’s operations and reopen it under the same name in a month or two after remodeling, retaining the open-air atmosphere and outdoor music.

“I’ve been wanting to take the place over for a couple of years,” Banyas said.

Oelker will pay the workers, Banyas said. Oelker, formerly of Ohio, purchased the Cortez Kitchen restaurant from Peter Barreda.

“I’m retiring. That’s about it,” he said on Saturday. “I believe Sunday is the last day.”

One regular customer expressed disbelief and disappointment Friday night about the closure.

“My husband saw it on Facebook today and he called me at work to tell me,” she said. “I thought it must be a joke. I was devastated. There really is no other place like this.”