Staff report

Fletcher’s Kitchen and Tap shuttered its Crestwood Court location last week.

The restaurant, which opened in 2007 at the former Houlihan’s location, closed its doors Sept. 27.

Owner Derek Betz told the Call the restaurant had been trying to negotiate a better lease with mall owners, “but it just didn’t work out.”

Betz lauded Crestwood Court’s ArtSpace — a community for local artists, musicians and performing artists that opened in 2008 — but said a sharp drop in the mall’s retail tenants negatively impacted his restaurant.

The mall had more than 80 tenants when Fletcher’s opened, but now most of its retail spaces are vacant, Betz said.

“It’s just been harder and harder to make it go,” Betz said. “We loved our patrons over there. We had a nice group of regulars. But business was down, the place was too big and our sales were too low.”

Fletcher’s anchor location, in Belleville, Ill., has been doing three times the business as its Crestwood restaurant with about one-third of the space, Betz contended.

Of Fletcher’s Crestwood customers, Betz said, “We appreciated their patronage. We apologize that things didn’t work out.”

Fletcher’s was the mall’s only remaining restaurant. Its food court is empty. The Pasta House Co. closed its doors as a regular restaurant in June to become a banquet room. A Chevys Fresh Mex restaurant closed last fall after 15 years in business.

Clarification

Bread & Honey Bakery opened in August in Crestwood Court near the former Pasta House Co. restaurant.