GILROY
– Golden West Restaurant, which moved from its longtime Pacheco
Pass location to make way for the
”
power
”
retail center under construction, is getting a second chance
from new owner Martin Corona.
By Lori Stuenkel
GILROY – Golden West Restaurant, which moved from its longtime Pacheco Pass location to make way for the “power” retail center under construction, is getting a second chance from new owner Martin Corona.
Corona officially took over the restaurant in early July at its new location at 40 Hornlein Court, in the Garlic City Club building just off Monterey Highway between Sixth and Seventh streets.
Golden West’s former owner contemplated selling the restaurant about two years ago, when he learned that the property he rented for the restaurant was being sold.
Corona, who has been with Golden West for 10 years as a chef and manager, saw his chance to make his lifelong dream of owning his own business come true.
“All my life I’ve worked two jobs so I could own my own business,” he said at the restaurant, straightening a hot sauce bottle so the label faced outward. “I’ve worked 24 years in the restaurant business, and I decided I’d like to own my one. I bought it with my own saved money, my piggy bank.”
But Corona’s version of the American dream is a work in progress.
“It’s not enough to have a restaurant here and a house,” Corona said. “It’s getting to work at 6 a.m. and working until 10 p.m., just trying to work hard, and pay my bills off and work for my family.”
Corona came to Gilroy from Mexicali, Mexico, 23 years ago seeking a better life. Now, at the age of 40, he boasts not only the restaurant but a wife, four daughters and a house he purchased three years ago.
“In my country … and in South America, everybody immigrates for a better life,” Corona said. “I think everybody comes from the same thing: starting from the bottom and getting something much better.”
Corona recognizes some hurdles the restaurant will have to overcome to flourish at its new locale. The capacity of the restaurant is half what it was at Pacheco Pass, and truckers – a major portion of its clientele – can no longer park their rigs at the smaller location. The Pacheco Pass location was just off highways 101 and 152 and had a large parking lot for multiple trucks.
Construction along Monterey Highway blocks street parking spaces as well as a parking lot entrance.
The restaurant should be more visible from Monterey as well, Corona said. He plans to buy a bigger sign for the front of the building or to place near the street.
But Corona is optimistic that he and Golden West will be a success.
“Maybe in a little bit I’ll be able to open a second restaurant, move to a bigger location, expand the hours,” he said.
Golden West used to be open 24 hours a day, but Corona has reduced the hours to 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.
He has kept everything else about the restaurant the same, from the menu selections to the menus themselves.
“I haven’t done much advertising,” he said. “I’m a little short on money right now, because I bought this with my whole savings.”
Golden West’s previous location is now the site of the 450,000-square-foot Gilroy Crossings Center, where a Target will open in October. The remaining retailers, including Fuddruckers restaurant, Barnes & Noble, Kohl’s and Mimi’s Cafe, are scheduled to open in Spring 2004.
