2005-09-24 - The Okanagan Saturday

Cactus Club Opens Its Doors

The highly-anticipated opening of the trendy Cactus Club restaurant in Kelowna is on Monday.

The highly-anticipated opening of the trendy Cactus Club restaurant in Kelowna is on Monday.
“I hand picked this location,” says franchise owner Andy Latchford.
“This busy corner (of Highway 97 and Banks Road in the Central Park Power Centre) is prime, and Kelowna is a great city for our upscale casual concept.”
Latchford spent his summers as a kid in Oyama and has an affinity for the Okanagan.
He’s the Chief Operating Officer for Vancouver-based Cactus Club, which has 16 corporate and franchise eateries in Vancouver, Calgary, Victoria and Nanaimo.
So, Latchford made the franchise for Kelowna a reality.
The 170-seat restaurant features Palm Springs architecture and funky décor, leather seats, artwork and lighting.
There’s a 70-seat lounge with oval-shaped bar and 40-seat patio with fireplace and fountain.
“We want to be your affordable luxury,” says Latchford.
“We’ll appeal to a wide demographic that wants quality food at a good price point in a contemporary atmosphere.”
Latchford sees his main competition in Kelowna being Ric’s Grill, Joeys’ Global Grill and Loung and Moxie’s.
The opening of the Cactus Club fills out the Central Park power centre, which started development a few years ago with Home Depot and now includes Wal-Mart, Home Outfitters, Winners, HomeSense, Peir 1 Imports, Mark’s Work Warehouse, Starbucks, Urban Barn, Bowring, Payless Shoe Source and East Side Mario’s.
Developer Staburn Property Group of Vancouver has now moved n to Westbank, where it will develop another power centre anchored by Home Depot.