My Daddy's Cheesecake to construct new building

My Daddy's Cheesecake is on the move again. After just under three years at La Croix Village on Route W -- which came after years of operating on Main Street downtown -- the owners are expecting to break ground on a new building within the next couple of weeks.

Wes Kinsey, who owns the business with partners Kevin and Susan Stanfield and Bill and Peggy Stanfield, tells me that their new spot will be on Broadview Street, across the street from Dexter Bar-B-Q.

The 5,500-square-foot building will sit on more than an acre of property. Kinsey said they hope to move in sometime in June.

"We needed more space," he said. "We wanted a better location and additional space for dining."

Kinsey said the Route W spot was a good "steppingstone" but just wasn't the best location for a restaurant/bakery.

"It gave us a chance to grow and take on some projects we couldn't have taken on downtown," he said. "But we're just too far off the beaten path."

One of the projects he was talking about was the contract with the Dierberg's grocery chain in St. Louis. My Daddy's Cheesecake has an exclusive, open-ended contract with the chain's 21 stores.

"It's a big part of our business," he said. "They move a lot of product. We go up there once a week with a truckload."

At the new building, My Daddy's will reopen its banquet room, where meetings and other special occasions can be held. The room will be powered with PowerPoint and wireless Internet. They also plan to have a big plasma-screen television there, too.

The additional space will also mean a lot more display area, Kinsey said, and the addition of new products. It will also mean My Daddy's Cheesecake can combine all its offices into one building, instead of being spread out at La Croix Village.

The new building will also be the prototype for a potential My Daddy's franchise. Kinsey said they are also nearing an announcement for a My Daddy's in Tennessee under a new owner.

* New Panera Bread to open soon: It's an interesting idea. Let's just see how it works.

The new Panera Bread Bakery/Cafe is scheduled to open the week of Dec. 19, depending upon if the weather allows construction to finish. The new bakery/ cafe is at 3219 William St. in front of the Holiday Inn Express.

But the manager of the existing Panera at the mall provides an interesting new piece of information: The Panera at Westfield West Park is going to stay open.

"We're going to go month to month for a while until will see how business is going to go," said manager Penny Held.

Could it stay open indefinitely?

"It's possible," she said.

Held will be the manager at the mall Panera while a St. Louis manager, Rob Gardaphe, has transferred down here to manage the new store, she said.

Held said the new store will employ about 100 people, some of whom will be shifted from the existing store. The new store will have a drive-through, a fireplace, wireless Internet and more items on the menu, she said.

"It's going to be really nice," Held said. "There's going to be a comfy, cozy corner. People are going to really like it, I think."

* Restaurant, learning center: Gerald and Belen Lichtenegger, who own the Asian grocery store Global Trading on Broadway, have shed a little light on their plans for the strip mall that they bought from restaurateur Su Hill earlier this year.

The strip mall at 1315 Broadway is across the street from Global Trading and used to be home to Manee Thai and, after that, Cafe Azu.

Belen Lichtenegger said they plan to put a restaurant into the same spot where Manee and Azu were, but she said they haven't decided on the concept yet. For the rest of the spots, she plans to relocate her learning center there.

Belen Lichtenegger does ACT and SAT test prep as well as some math programs. She also wants to teach several foreign languages there, such as German, Japanese, Chinese and Arabic. She wants another section of the center to focus on teaching computer skills.

"There's a real need for foreign language," she said. "Nowadays, with business, it's more global. If you want to become a CEO and you don't know a foreign language, forget it."

Lichtenegger said that they hope to firm up their plans on the restaurant after the holidays and hope the learning center gets rolling sometime next spring.

• Not junk, antiques: A new antique store has opened at 521 Broadway, and owner Shawn Mitchell wants people to know this upfront: "We don't have junk, it's not a junk store," he said. "It's a real store with real antiques, most of which are more than 100 years old."

Mitchell Antiques Ltd. is owned by Mitchell and his mother, Bobbie, who has been in antiques for the better part of four decades.

Shawn Mitchell said the store will feature antiques and collectibles, including jewelry, and Asian, Victorian and other types of antiques. There will be glassware, some furniture and other small items, he said.

It opened Dec. 1, so I'm a little late in telling you about it.

Deal with it.

Scott Moyers is the business editor for the Southeast Missourian. Send comments, business news, information or questions to Biz Buzz, 301 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63702-0699, call 335-6611, extension 137 or e-mail smoyers@semissourian.com.