"Well, it appears that the Citrus Grill is now permanently closed.This is a cautionary tale if there ever were one. This restaurant was immensely popular and successful for years, but within six months or so of being sold to a new owner, it 's closed.Restaurants are not only about the food. People return to a restaurant because of the way it makes them feel. The Citrus Grill, under the former owners, who founded the restaurant, was always a place that made you feel welcome. The food was excellent, but that 's not the only reason I ate there around 200 times. The food wasn 't the reason my brother chose to meet me there for lunch, even when his cancer treatments left him unable to eat. We went there because the former owners CARED about the customers, and it showed. At least one of the owners was always there. I mentioned this once to one of them and she said, No one is going to take care of your business like you. A restaurant is most definitely not a hands-off type of business.During a visit a short time after the restaurant changed ownership, I asked the server if any pie was available. I was told that the pies were now store-bought and no longer homemade. I asked, Didn 't the new owner buy the recipes, too? I was told the pie recipes were indeed sold with the business, but the owner said he was too busy to bake the pies and had decided to buy them instead.The new owners almost immediately changed the decor. They removed all of the photographs, knick-knacks, etc., and replaced them with different things. Problem is, that changes the way the restaurant feels. The owner saw fit to hang a college diploma behind the counter for all to see. (Pro tip: keep your ego wall in your office.)The menus were changed a while back. Gone was the personal message from the owners. Gone was the folksy style.The last time I visited the Grill was about three weeks ago. It was lunchtime and only one other table was occupied. I mentioned this to the server, who admitted that business was very slow. I asked if the owner was there and she said, He comes in about once a week. Why would someone buy a successful restaurant and proceed to change so much about it? Some change is expected, of course, and I went back to the Grill several times after it changed ownership. Unfortunately, even though the staff was the same, and the food was the same, the soul had already left the body. Leadership begins at the top and you can 't lead when you 're not there.RIP Cindy."
