The shocking pink is a dead giveaway: Floyd’s Diner is coming to Brentwood Bay.
Petr Prusa, who owns and operates three of the breakfast-and-lunch restaurants in the capital region — all of them painted bright pink — will open a fourth in early November in the former Sassy’s Restaurant on the high-profile corner of West Saanich Road, Keating X Road and Benvenuto Avenue.
The pink “is kind of our identity,” Prusa said Wednesday. “One customer asked me if it has anything to do with Pink Floyd, but no it doesn’t.”
It was the colour of Prusa’s first Floyd’s downtown. The pink — along with nostalgic murals of Marilyn Monroe, Elvis or Charlie Chaplin — just seemed to stick. Prusa also has Floyd’s Diners in Royal Oak, James Bay and Langford.
Prusa said he signed a five-year lease with the land owner for the 110-seat restaurant in Brentwood, though redevelopment plans for the site are being considered.
The most recent proposal to Central Saanich council includes a mix of apartments, short-term rentals, food and retail for the site.
If redevelopment plans proceed, there are options in the lease to continue operating as initial phases are built, Prusa said.
Sassy’s was a popular eatery operated by owner Cory Porter for 43 years — first as part of the Smitty’s breakfast chain before it was renamed in 2012 for a young family member who passed away from a rare disease.
Porter, 73, retired and closed the restaurant in August.
Prusa said opening a new Floyd’s Diner in a tight hiring climate — and so soon after the pandemic punished so many restaurants — is “either brave or stupid,” but he feels confident the new location will be successful.
He said Brentwood Bay is under-served for restaurants as the population builds and tourism rebounds.
“We’ve seemed to weather the storm quite well,” said Prusa.
Staff from the Royal Oak location are being promoted to managers for the new location and others are being hired this week.
Prusa said Floyd’s has an advantage over others in that his diners only operate from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., giving employees regular daytime hours. “We have this pool of great people,” he said.
Interior renovations are being completed over the next several weeks, with new stainless-steel food stations in the kitchen and interior painting and decorating. The company is also awaiting some permits and liquor licensing approvals, with an opening date set for Nov. 1.
Prusa’s long-time muralist, Paul Archer, is also expected to add art to the building.
For the record, Prusa said the distinctive colour of the diners is officially called “Heart-break Pink.”
dkloster@timescolonist.com
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