Montana portions: Restaurant veterans open new venture
If diners leave the new Montana Club restaurant in Kalispell hungry, the owners won’t be happy.
Co-owner Bob Powell of Missoula said he and his business partner Nick Alonzo are Montana guys who are passionate about the quality and quantity of their meals.
To have diners still hungry after finishing a meal is unacceptable, Powell said. So “we serve Montana portions.”
To help ensure that people are satisfied with their serving portions and quality, much of the food served at The Montana Club is made from scratch, Powell said, including croutons, sauces, gravies, soups and pizza.
“The prep guys are in here at 5 in the morning getting ready,” he said.
The two men, both Missoula natives, have been in business together for more than two decades. The new Kalispell restaurant is their fourth Montana Club in the state — they own two in Missoula and one in Butte.
They also have owned Nickel Charlie’s in Kalispell for about 13 years.
Powell’s mother is from Kalispell and he began visiting Kalispell as a young child. “We love Kalispell,” Powell said. “What’s not to like about it? It’s a great community.”
Alonzo and Powell anticipate being in Kalispell about one day a week. “We’re hands-on guys and like to be in our restaurants,” Powell said. “It’s only two hours away.”
The owners’ fondness for Kalispell and the opportunity to obtain the land near the intersection of Main Street and First Avenue West made the decision to build and open a Montana Club in Kalispell easy, Powell said.
The location has long housed a restaurant, Powell said. The Sawbuck Saloon, a restaurant, casino and bar, had been at the site for 14 years.
“This was a great location where a successful business had been located and we thought it would be a perfect spot for a Montana Club,” he said. So they began the process to open the new restaurant more than a year ago.
The restaurant is designed to resemble a mountain lodge with an abundance of wood, high ceilings, big windows and decor that reminds visitors of mountain streams and wooded areas.
The Montana Club includes a full-service restaurant, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Housed inside also is a lounge and casino.
Menu offerings include steaks, pizza, seafood, sandwiches, burgers, salads, pasta and children’s meals.
“We like offering a lot of choices,” Powell said. The menu lists 10 cuts of steak, 13 salad entrees, 13 types of burgers and eight pasta choices, to name a few.
Breakfast options range from five types of signature scramblers to a $4.95 early-bird special of eggs, hash browns, toast and a choice of four breakfast meats. Granola, fruit and omelets are other options, along with many egg, pancake and waffle choices.
Alonzo and Powell value their relationships with customers and with their employees.
They hired about 80 people to staff the Kalispell restaurant and brought in a management team of people who have worked for them at other restaurants.
“We’re super happy with the employees. They all bring a good work ethic, like most Montanans,” Powell said. The two owners like the fact that Kalispell is home to Flathead Valley Community College, which offers a culinary arts program. Working at The Montana Club “is a great job” for those students, he said.
Powell and Alonzo are both community-minded and support local groups and projects, including such ventures as Little League teams.
“We hope to be here a long time,” Powell said of the Kalispell business venture. In the not-quite two weeks since they opened, they already have seen plenty of repeat customers, which is especially gratifying to Powell. He appreciates and welcomes customer feedback and wants many regular customers.
The Montana Club opened its doors at 1301 S. Main St. on July 20. The restaurant is open daily from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The bar and casino remain open until midnight Sundays through Thursdays and until 2 a.m. weekends. Take-out orders are welcome at (406) 260-4401.
Reporter Shelley Ridenour may be reached at (406) 758-4439 or by e-mail at sridenour@dailyinterlake.com.