Club hopes to hit jackpot with poker tournaments
Staff reporter
Carolyn Anderson, owner of the Coneburg Inn in Peabody, was looking for a way to bring in more customers.
She has been an owner of the private club and restaurant for nearly four years and, like other businesses, was experiencing a decline in retail sales.
Her son, Tom Grossnickle, and two of his friends have played poker with an organized group in Wichita. Anderson decided it was worth a try in Peabody.
Anderson hopes the tournament will bring in more customers who will eat and drink while watching or playing in the tournament.
The first Texas Hold'em Poker tournaments were at 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m Nov. 13.
"We didn't have a very big crowd," Anderson said, "but we're changing a few things around to maybe improve that."
Instead of two tournaments, there will be one tournament every Saturday at 7 p.m., Anderson said.
There are three tables for eight players each available for the tournament.
Prizes are $30 and $10 gift certificates to the Coneburg Inn. State laws prohibit cash prizes, entry fees, or cash wagers, Anderson said. Colored chips are used for "wagering" points with the top winners receiving gift certificates.
Anderson cited several reasons for a decline in sales.
"You have to advertise to keep your name out there," Anderson said. "When sales began to decline, I had to cut back on my advertising. That really hurt me. People forgot about me and the business and quit coming."
She advertises when she can on a county level but says she wishes she could do more.
A declining economy also is to blame, Anderson said. Layoffs, higher fuel costs, and uncertainty has affected her business.
"I haven't raised my prices in several years," Anderson said. "I'm looking at maybe having to do that after the first of the year in order to offset rising food costs on my end."
Cutting back hours of operation also has been a way for Anderson to save money. The business now is open from 4 to 11 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday. The business does stay open later if there are customers, Anderson said.
Anderson said she can't compete with the larger poker tournaments in Wichita but thinks she can offer a smaller venue for local and area people who may not want to play in large tournaments.
"There's an organized group in Wichita that plays for points toward a Las Vegas trip," Anderson explained. "I don't see any advantage (for my business) to belong."
The group is willing to assist Anderson in organizing tournaments but at a cost.
There is an initial membership fee of several hundred dollars, Anderson said, and the organization would charge her to come to Peabody and setup the tournaments. In the end, the poker club members still would have to play for the Las Vegas trip at the Wichita establishment.
Anderson said it was interesting who came to watch and participate in that first tournament.
"There were some older women who came that first night," Anderson said. "I think it's because for so many years, poker has always been a man's game, played in the back rooms of bars and pool halls. It's not that way any more."
Reality television has changed the stigma of gambling and card playing with celebrities playing the game and high stakes poker being televised.
The game isn't complicated, Anderson said, but the best way to learn it is to play it.
Liquor-by-the-drink
Anderson said she had contacted the City of Peabody after the election to inquire what the process would be to allow individual liquor sales with a license in Peabody.
"I was told they weren't sure and would have to check into it," Anderson said. She said wished the Peabody City Council would act quickly because her liquor license has to be renewed in mid-December, Anderson said.
The annual fee for a Class B Private Club License is $1,000 per year, the same as a liquor-by-the-drink license.
However, Anderson said if the city council doesn't act soon, she'll have to wait another year before applying.
"I'll have to go ahead an apply for my regular Class B license and pay the $1,000," Anderson said, "before my current one expires."
When asked why she couldn't get her Class B license now and get the other when the council passes an ordinance to allow it, Anderson said she would have to come up with another $1,000 and it would take the state months to reimburse her for the first $1,000.
Marion County voters approved liquor-by-the-drink in restaurants with a minimum of 30 percent food sales in the Nov. 2 election. However, each individual city has to make adjustments in their laws in order to allow the change within city limits.
Currently, anyone may eat and drink beer at her restaurant but only members who pay an annual fee are allowed on the private club side to have a mixed drink or glass of wine with dinner.
If and when the city passes the necessary ordinances to allow liquor-by-the-drink, Anderson said she hopes it will improve her business.
