October 20, 2006
Orlando Business Journal
by Bob Mervine - Staff Writer
ORLANDO — Although only open a little more than two weeks in College Park, big plans already are in store for the Harmoni Artisan Meal Market concept.
John Gabrovic, the market’s managing partner, says he is looking at adding as many as seven more locations of the combination restaurant, wine bar and gourmet market. Next to open is a second Harmoni in Maitland at a new retail center across from the RDV Sportsplex. That location, opening in 2007, will emphasize the restaurant and takeout food component, says Gabrovic.
Beyond that are a third market in the Ravina mixed-use project in Maitland, a fourth in The Rialto, another mixed-use project in south Orlando, and a fifth in the SoDo development on South Orange Avenue in Orlando.
Also in play is an acquisition that he can’t discuss, Gabrovic says — but one that could add additional Central Florida locations.
Says soon-to-be College Park resident Rick Walsh, a Darden executive who knows a thing or two about the food business, “I’m very optimistic for their success.”
The new Harmoni Artisan Meal Market is a $1.2 million, 4,200-square-foot, ground floor store located near the Wellesley, a seven-story, 147-unit building at the intersection of Vassar Avenue and Edgewater Drive.
Gabrovic, a perfectionist with a half-dozen years of restaurant experience, along with his brother, Mark, a chef, and a group of local investors developed the Mediterranean-style market concept and convinced Wellesley developer Jim Kersey they could offer both quality and convenience to the 11,000 residents that live within 1.5 miles of the market.
After opening Oct. 5, Harmoni has quickly caught on with the first few dozen residents in the new Wellesley building as well as nearby College Park residents, says Kersey.
“The street was busy. K (restaurant), next door, was hopping and so was Harmoni,” he says. “It’s a glimpse of the potential of the College Park district’s future.”
Gabrovic, who designed the 100-seat market to sell primarily takeout and gourmet groceries, says 60 percent of the business to date is sit-down dining, with some customers returning for a second meal in the same day.
Carmine Chirico, a lively, wiry Italian, is the store’s personality, answering questions and tracking down exotic foods. “Sure, we could use the local mozzarella and prosciutto,” he says, “but it’s not good enough.”
Menu items include pasta, flatbread sandwiches and plates antipasto.
Twelve wines by the glass from a cruvenet have led to wine sales by the case, Gabrovic says. Fresh kabobs in the meat case didn’t sell the first day, so they were cooked and repackaged — at a higher price — and sold out the next day.
“It’s all about the convenience,” Grabovic says. People are willing to pay for it.”