By Scott Wuerz
swuerz@bnd.com

BELLEVILLE --- When the Pasta House Co. closed its downtown restaurant last month, the city lost it's last upscale, sit-down franchise restaurant.

The move has left city leaders and business operators wondering why numerous independent eateries dot the biggest town in the metro-east while the chains have decided to set up shop elsewhere.

"This is a town of more than 42,000 people," said Chris Mayer, owner of Nonna's Family Restaurant at 4508 W. Main St. "You would think it is a place chains would be interested in. But for some reason they chose to locate in much smaller towns, populationwise, that have major shopping centers and interstate highway access.

"People from Belleville tell me all the time that they get in their cars and head to Fairview Heights when they want to go out to eat, not even knowing what restaurant they plan to go to," Mayer said. "They know there are so many choices that they can just figure it out when they get there."

While franchise restaurants that feature table linens and meals with appetizers, entrees and deserts brought to your table by a server have disappeared, Belleville still has several chain fast-food and casual sit-down restaurants including Denny's, Hardee's, IHOP, McDonald's, Pizza Hut, Steak 'n Shake, Taco Bell, Wendy's and White Castle.

Mayer said his restaurant, which is the former site of a Ponderosa franchise steakhouse, has done well in its first three years.

"We're still here," Mayer said. "We're doing better than ever. We would love to add a private room to the building so we could do more banquets and our catering business is exploding."

Sarah Steinlagge, who owns Maxwell's Restaurant at 923 W. Main St. with her husband, John, said she isn't sure why franchise restaurants aren't interested in Belleville. But she said it's probably better for her establishment that they aren't.

"It's a struggle to be in business against the chains," Steinlagge said. "If an Applebee's in Fairview Heights isn't doing good the first six months of the year, there are hundreds of other Applebee's bringing in the money to keep things going."

In 1988, according to the company's Web site, Applebee's had 54 restaurants. Now, the company has more than 1,600. For each of the past 11 years, Applebee's has opened 100 or more new restaurants, and the company estimates the development potential to be at least 2,300 restaurants in the United States.

That expansion has included restaurants in Fairview Heights, Shiloh and just a half mile from Belleville in Swansea. All the restaurants serve Belleville residents. But none of the restaurants are within city limits to generate sales tax revenue for municipal coffers.

Applebee's officials did not return calls seeking information about how they decide where a new restaurant will go.

But chain restaurants, unlike mom and pop operations, have to do expensive marketplace studies of potential new locations if there is not an established, successful restaurant nearby to serve as an example, according to Mayer.

"I think the chains have protocol and feasibility studies they have to go through," Mayer said. "Traffic and car counts are what they look at. It's easier to build where there are other similar places because there definitely is a synergy when you have several restaurants located close together.

City Economic Development Director and Planner Mike Malloy said restaurants are a great source of tax revenue for the city, plus they bring people to town and expose them to other things the city has to offer. That's why landing chain establishments has been a major goal for the city, Malloy said.

"We're close on deals with several of them," Malloy said. "I think, once we get one of them, others will follow."

Mayer agreed.

"Once one comes, I think the others follow," Mayer said. "I would be absolutely surprised if they don't come to Belleville eventually."