FREEDOM OF SPEECH

CHEBA HUT TO OPEN IN GREELEY IN FEBRUARY

By Sharon Dunn | Greeley Tribune
Published: December 2008

A Fort Collins-based sandwich shop hopes to spread the love - all the way to Greeley.

Cheba Hut, originally started in Arizona and now with headquarters in Fort Collins, should open a restaurant in February on the north side of the University of Northern Colorado.

The sandwich, sub and munchie shop will be in a 2,600-square-foot building at 1645 8th Ave., which most recently housed a tattoo studio and a handyman service.
Marc Torres, general manager for Cheba Hut in Fort Collins, said Cheba owners had been wanting to locate in Greeley for the past two years.

"We've had a lot of people come here from Greeley just to get sandwiches, so we knew it would be successful," Torres said. "We knew Greeley was kind of an untapped market.

"It's an awesome spot down there. We've never had an opening that had so much response. We're getting e-mail on the Cheba Web site. People are stoked we're coming up."

The corner the shop will open on is a block that has been tapped for revitalization for some time, especially since the former longstanding and popular Dairy Queen left that corner in September 2006. In March 2007, Chipotle Mexican Grill came into the block at 807 17th St., in the former Columbine Bowling Center, and brought a bit more commerce to the area.

The forthcoming Cheba Hut comes as welcome news to Ron Ibsen, a partner in the University Center LLC, which owns the building that houses Chipotle next door. Ibsen has seven spaces in the former bowling center and said the new sandwich shop will help drive traffic.

"I'm glad to see something happening there because empty buildings don't make an area look too good," Ibsen said. "When we have new things going in there, it will foster other people looking at that area."

Scott Jennings, a former sub sandwich delivery driver, started Cheba Hut near Arizona State University in Tempe 10 years ago; he's since franchised the business in eight locations through Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico. In Greeley, Jennings Investments LLC paid $230,000 for the building. Torres said the company is spending a lot of money to refurbish the building, which originally was a car garage.

"We've pretty much had to gut it," Torres said of the remodel. "But we saw the building and the potential."

Cheba Hut stores are typically located near colleges. Torres said there also are plans next year for a franchise on Denver's 16th Street Mall.

Torres will manage the Greeley location, which will employ 14 to 18 people. He said the stores do things different, offering customers a mini-vacation when they walk through the door.

"We're just about the love here," Torres said. "We want it to be a real relaxed, enjoyable experience. We do things a little different and pride ourselves on these personal interactions. We have great food, and that atmosphere is really cool."

The shop sells traditional sub sandwiches, salads and "munchies," touting a homemade touch on all recipes. The Greeley store also will sell beer and wine when it opens, and could later add more alcohol choices. One of the garage's original rolling doors will remain to allow the Cheba Hut an outdoor patio.

"We have fun here and I think our customers definitely see that," Torres said.

Cheba Hut should open in February at 1645 8th Ave. in Greeley.