The ongoing evolution of the old JC Penney building at 3029 University Ave. will continue unabated in “late September or early October” as Palm Springs’ LGBT-friendly Wang’s in the Desert Pan-Asian eatery is set to open a brand new restaurant in the historic North Park location.
Big Lots was the last retailer to conduct business from the building, closing three years ago, while the famous department store closed its doors in the mid-1970s after operating from the location since 1942.
Once open, the 12,000 square foot restaurant will provide 60 much needed new jobs in-house, in addition to the not inconsiderable follow-on business for the San Diego food industry and local community.
Although the restaurant will have a mezzanine overlooking the main dining area, owner Joel Herzer says that, at least initially, only the downstairs section will be open, with seating for around 150 patrons. Once the upstairs is made available, there will be room for between 200 and 250 total customers.
While the menu is “more Pan-Asian than Chinese,” according to Herzer, the Wang’s in the Desert Palm Springs menu offers a taste of the culinary delights on offer with such mouth-watering dishes as Chicken Lettuce Wrap with water chestnuts, pine nuts and a plum vinaigrette, Orange Peel Beef, Panko Crusted Spicy Sweet and Sour Fillet of Chinese Perch and Hunan Beef using sliced Angus beef with mushrooms, baby corn and broccoli, in a spicy oyster soy sauce.
San Diego, says Herzer, had always been a target for a restaurant with North Park in particular being “up and coming” and the JC Penney building offering an optimum location.
“A lot of our guests in Palm Springs have homes in San Diego,” he said, and the new restaurant presented such a “great opportunity.”
Wang’s in the Desert has enjoyed eight successful years in Palm Springs, something that Herzer believes a Wang’s North Park restaurant can emulate, with a more contemporary approach to Pan-Asian cuisine than its established Chinese-oriented neighbors and offering Wang’s tried and tested combination of “service, staff and food.”
Wang’s in the Desert has a Web site that features a section on Wang’s North Park, wangsinthedesert.com.
