After an uncertain several months, the ownership group of Crossroads Deli in Minnetonka has sold the business, and it will remain open.
“It’s been in the works for a while, but we finally found someone who wanted to operate the restaurant,” said Jamie Heilicher, part of the family who owned the business since it opened in 1996. “That’s what we’ve been trying to do and so it was hanging up the sale; We’ve had all kinds of opportunities to sell it to developers that were just going to tear it down and build apartments on it. But we’ve been trying to avoid that and to keep the legacy going.”
The restaurant, the land it sits on, and all the recipes of Crossroads were purchased by Alex Gomez, who is part of a group that owns about 30 restaurants, including El Loro and Racks Sports Bar & Grill. Gomez closed on purchasing the deli on March 7 and took over the next day. They have rehired all of the employees. On March 11 he was in meetings all day with staff as he learned about the deli.
“Their intent is to keep it as Crossroads,” Heilicher said.
The original ownership group of Crossroads was Amos Heilicher, Daniel Heilicher, Norman Pink, Kevin Hill, and Scott Hill. Amos and Daniel were brothers, and Jamie is Daniel’s son. The Heilicher family and Pink, a cousin of the Heilichers, financed the creation of the restaurant and brought on the Hill brothers to run the restaurant. Kevin Hill ran the Circus Pizza restaurants that the Heilichers and Pink owned for many years before the family sold them back to Chuck E. Cheese when that company moved back to the Twin Cities.
Jamie Heilicher said that Scott Hill had a career as a chef, and had been at Golden Valley Country Club previously. He said the Hill brothers were looking for a restaurant opportunity together.
“The family decided to put them in business, give them a piece of the action, and open Crossroads,” he said.
The decision to sell comes as the Hill brothers are in their 70s and “need to retire,” Heilicher said. The Hills are being kept on as consultants for a short time.
“Danny and Amos passed away some years ago, and Norman just passed away this past spring,” Heilicher said. “And Kevin and Scott were looking to retire. And we were looking to find an operator.”
The legacy was important to Heilicher as they went through the process of looking for a buyer.
“The legacy of having a restaurant that’s part of the family and part of the fabric of the community was important,” he said. “We couldn’t continue to operate it without Kevin and Scott.”
Heilicher said the struggle for legacy, family-owned restaurants is that when the family decides they are done, the restaurant closes. Some of the difficulty comes because the landlord and the restaurant operator are two different people.
“The lease is difficult, you can’t get any money for your restaurant because they have to negotiate with a landlord that usually isn’t cooperative to keeping it going under the previous agreements,” he said. “It’s hard enough to make money with a restaurant, let alone trying to accommodate a landlord that wants a lot more rent for their location.”
In the case of Crossroads, the landlord and restaurant operators are one and the same.
“We were able to sell the real estate with it so that the buyer has more control,” Heilicher said. “And in today’s world, most restaurant operators are not real estate people so they don’t have the wherewithal to buy the real estate.”
Heilicher said that the combination of their real estate prowess and bringing in the right people to run the restaurant operations over the years has proven to be the secret to their success.
“That has been the success for a number of restaurants that we’ve been involved in over the years is to own the real estate and own the operation,” he said. “You have more control, and that’s why a lot of restaurants go out [of business]. They’re just renting space, and when their leases come up and their lease rate goes way up, they can’t justify it they can’t make enough money.
“One-off restaurants are very difficult to keep going for an extended period of time.”
Very happy to hear that Crossroads will continue: the community appreciates it
Thanks to the Heilicher Family for making the effort to find a buyer to operate the restaurant and keep it open.
We will Miss the Hill Brothers, but Happy They can now enjoy a much Deserved Retirement! Thankyou for all you’ve done to keep Crossroads, a Favorite of ALL who’ve been able to Enjoy it. We Love this restaurant and glad it’s legacy will continue. Congratulations to the new owners and Thankyou!
We will miss all the memories we had at crossroads with Kevin and Marilyn Scott and Norm, wonderful hospitality. Love that it will continue as crossroads. Congratulations to the new owners. And special hugs for The Hill’s and the Heilicher’s on their next journey
Bring back the Rueben chowder!!!
I Loved visiting in Minnesota and eating at The Crossroads Deli and restaurant.
Thank you to the Hill brothers for your wonderful business. Keep making your famous key lime pie, my personal favorite
Congratulations on your retirement and a special goodbye to Kevin and Marilyn Hill.
Lamb shanks in borscht!
Kevin, Thank you for all the years of love and memories at your table!!!!
After 15 years in Northern California my wife and I returned to Minnesota. There were a few good deli restaurants but until Crossroads it was difficult. Crossroads is best for eat-in and at home. Best bread in all the land. Thank you to everyone who gave us the great years. We hope it continues. If quality and people remain… we will remain regulars. For us it has nothing to do with Jewish faith except admiration and pleasure. One of ten best restaurants of my 80 years. Note that my total retirement just brought me close to Crossroads as a bonus for finding second to last resting place. You guys glow!
Glad to hear the food will not change. My dining friends were sorry to lose Lone Spur.
Sad to see a Jewish deli be sold to a conglomerate that no longer has ownership with a link to the Jewish community. The article say the new ownership’s intent is to keep it as Crossroads Deli. Plenty of owners have intent but intent is far different than a guarantee. Something tells me the eventuality is it will become another El Loro. For this native east coaster, it’s sad that we’re on the way to being left with one deli, Cecil’s.
I hope the Challah and the chicken soup stays the same. I do hope they make some much needed improvements while staying the same deli style.
I was hoping this would be made a Kosher restaurant. I’m guessing not?
Scott and Kevin Hill, along with Marilyn and Brandon, have done an incredible job making Crossroads Deli a success. It is one of the most difficult businesses to operate successfully, but for almost 20 years, with Scott running the kitchen and bakery, and Kevin running the front, they have done it extremely well. They employed many, and created lots happy customers who love their deli and restaurant. We wish you all the best in your journeys going forward!
Jimmy and Helain Pesis
Jamie and the Hills. A big thank you for allowing your wonderful Deli (and Dr Stu’s borscht) to continue.
If the new owners dont keep their promise to keep the restaurant as it has always been they will lose all the loyal customers and that means a lot of revenue will vanish! We really dont need another Mexican restaurant, consider the Twin Cities already has plenty to choose from.