Last modified: Saturday, March 11, 2006 9:46 AM PST Jessica Hilton | argus observer Later this month the Ontario Golf Club will provide a snack bar for hungry patrons after the closure of Mr. Louie's Grill. Ontario Golf Club undergoing changes JESSICA KELLER ARGUS OBSERVER ONTARIO The Ontario Golf Club is changing its food arrangements with the closure of the club's restaurant. Mike Arocha, who ran Mr. Louie's Grill at the golf club, closed the restaurant, which had been open for two years. He informed city officials he would be unable to complete the third year of his lease agreement with the city. Arocha said the contract with the city officially ended within the last week. Arocha said while he enjoyed running the restaurant, it did not live up to expectations. “It really wasn't working out financially,” he said. “It really wasn't making the money that we were hoping that it would. It was nice and fun while it was going but it wasn't enough to make me leave my regular job.” Arocha said he was sorry the restaurant was unable to stay open, and even though it created jobs for three other people, the unstable revenues were unable to offset the time it took away from spending with his family. Arocha said he was thankful for all the people who supported the restaurant while it was open and City Manager Scott Trainor, who he said helped him as much as possible. With the closure of Mr. Louie's Grill, food services will now be provided by Ontario Golf Club personnel in the pro shop, manager Chuck Tate said. Rather than a restaurant, he said, food services will be provided in the form of a snack bar. The plans, however, are in limbo at the moment, Tate said, as he is in the process of getting his food and liquor license so the snack bar can open. The Ontario Golf Club is modeling its snack bar after a successful snack bar at the Riverbend Golf Course in Idaho. “All the foods are self-served, and they will be fast and easy to prepare, very convenient and simple for us to operate,” Tate said. “That's a key part.” The food, however, will be filling and will include “nice and hearty hot dogs,” Tate said. A selection of sandwiches, chips, beverages, candy and gum will also be served. The Ontario Golf Club has arranged for beer to be provided through Echanis Distributing, Tate said. Revenues from the snack bar will be recorded as food sales as part of pro shop sales, Tate said, and a percentage of the gross sales will go into the city golf course maintenance fund. “Our primary goal is to keep labor costs under control and provide convenience for the people who play golf out here,” he said. The snack bar will be convenient, Tate said, because golfers will be able to “grab a sandwich, chips, drink or hot dog and be back on the golf course in five minutes,” Tate said. He said he thinks the arrangement will be preferable for the local golfers who want speed and convenience when getting a bite to eat during the day, rather than sitting down for a full meal. Tate said most golf courses are shying away from having restaurants in favor of snack bars, or are converting to snack bars, with the exception of private clubs. “It just has not been economically feasible or practical to maintain a full-service restaurant,” Tate said. “It all comes down to personnel costs and the size of the crowd that wants to eat there.” Catered meals, however, will still be available for large groups, Tate said. He said the golf club has arranged for catered meals with Larry Matsumura of Matsy's to provide catered services. A meal has already been catered through Matsy's, for the ladies golf association who meet at the Ontario Golf Club monthly, Tate said, and served 40 to 50 people. Tate said the snack bar is due to open the weekend of March 18. Jessica Keller is a reporter for the Argus Observer. She can be contacted at (541) 889-5387, Ext. 415 or by e-mail, JessicaK@ArgusObserver.com.