Kals Corp., which does business as Avenue Steak & Lobster at the Dusit Beach Resort Guam in Tumon is scheduled to reopen on Feb. 23, after closing nearly three years ago.
The restaurant – known for its certified angus beef steak and live lobster, among other seafood – shut down on March 20, 2020, when COVID-19 reaching Guam.
KallingalMagi Kallingal, president of Kals Corp; told the Journal, “At that time, we thought we were going to be back in two months or maybe three months. Nobody had any idea that this was going to last so long.”
Kals Corp. also operates the Marina Grill in Hagat. That restaurant reopened a month after its March closure in 2020, but only offered takeout at the time, Kallingal said. The situation for Avenue Steak & Lobster in Tumon was different. “The restaurant closed down completely, because there were no tourists,” she said. “It was like a ghost town.”
Kallingal “held on” to the restaurant, despite making no money during the COVID pandemic. She paid rent to at the property, which she said federal funds and local government assistance programs helped her to do.
What prompted the re-opening was the restaurant’s previous success, she said. “We were doing really well before the pandemic,” she said. “So, I'm hoping that we can have this place like the way it was seven years before we closed. … “We had locals and tourists alike and a lot of repeat customers.” Avenue Steak & Lobster first opened in 2011, according to Journal files, and Kallingal and her late husband, Thomas, bought the business in 2013, having previously operated restaurants.
Local residents always enquired about Avenue Steak & Lobster, Kallingal said. “… my customers at Marina Grill asked me, ‘Oh, when are you going to open?’ That gave me the enthusiasm to open it back up.”
The restaurant had 20 employees, prior to ceasing operations. On Feb. 23, Avenue Steak & Lobster will re-open with a staff of 14, most of whom are returning employees.
The Avenue Steak & Lobster is located at the Dusit Beach Resort Guam in Tumon. Photo courtesy of Avenue Steak & Lobster“We're not going to be 100% open like before,” Kallingal said. “Before we were open for lunch and dinner, seven days a week.” Instead, she said, “We’re only going to be opening for dinner time for four nights. “We're just going to see how it goes, before we can go back to the whole operation like before.”
Customers can expect new items on the menu as Chef Lingo Quichocho, former owner of Kitchen Lingo in Hagatna, will cook for Avenue Steak & Lobster. “He's joining us so he's going to add specialties to the menu,” she said.
Avenue Steak & Lobster will open for dinner from 6 to 9.30 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.
Kallingal said, “I'm really excited – at the same time, apprehensive – because of the low number of tourists, but I'm hoping for everybody's support so we can keep it going.” mbj
