The restaurant dates back nearly 100 years in the Museum District. (Mike Platania photo)
The Franklin Inn has changed hands for the second time in less than 10 years.
The restaurant at 800 Cleveland St. in the Museum District was sold last week to Thomas Jenkins for an undisclosed amount.
Jenkins, a Hampton native who’s lived in Richmond for the last 35 years, said he’s leaving a career in the trucking and transportation industry, and that The Franklin Inn is the first restaurant he’s owned.
“I just wanted to try something new outside the transportation industry,” Jenkins said. “I’m getting close to retirement age and this is something I can afford to do. So I decided to go ahead and give this a go.”
Jenkins bought the business and its equipment on Oct. 23 from Steven Gooch, who had owned the eatery since 2015.
Gooch had purchased the Franklin Inn from local realtor and entrepreneur Bedros Bandazian, who opened the restaurant in 2011 and still owns the building. Jenkins said upon closing the deal he signed a new lease for the space.
Gooch, through his Juno Restaurant Group, still owns nearby restaurant The Stables at Belmont and its offshoot, The Stables Market in Libbie Mill.
Gooch said in January he also took a job as CEO of local medical practice Virginia Ear, Nose and Throat Associates. Having that new priority motivated him to look to sell The Franklin Inn.
“I had a great run of just short of eight years with The Franklin Inn and I am very pleased with all we did, and frankly that we even survived the COVID years,” Gooch said in an email. “But there are things happening at this time which make it clear that I am no longer the best owner for it to thrive and be all it can be for the neighborhood.”
Filament Business Advisors’ Dan Scherotter and Jason Savedoff represented Gooch in his sale to Jenkins.
Jenkins said nearly all of The Franklin Inn’s staff stayed on following the sale. He credits them with helping him hit the ground running last week.
“We closed (on the purchase of the restaurant) last Monday during the day, and we opened Monday night. We got our ABC license like, five minutes before 5 p.m.,” Jenkins said. “It was really the staff. I was pulling my hair out that night, I owe them a big thank you. But we’re up and running now.”
Though The Franklin Inn dates back to the 1930s, its space has hosted a handful of other concepts over the years, including The Corner Cafe and Cleveland Street Deli.
Jenkins said he doesn’t plan to make any major changes and that the menu will mostly stay the same with classic American fare.
“There’s going to be a few additions here and there – slight changes but nothing really significant,” Jenkins said. “It’ll be the neighborhood watering hole it’s always been.”
The restaurant dates back nearly 100 years in the Museum District. (Mike Platania photo)
The Franklin Inn has changed hands for the second time in less than 10 years.
The restaurant at 800 Cleveland St. in the Museum District was sold last week to Thomas Jenkins for an undisclosed amount.
Jenkins, a Hampton native who’s lived in Richmond for the last 35 years, said he’s leaving a career in the trucking and transportation industry, and that The Franklin Inn is the first restaurant he’s owned.
“I just wanted to try something new outside the transportation industry,” Jenkins said. “I’m getting close to retirement age and this is something I can afford to do. So I decided to go ahead and give this a go.”
Jenkins bought the business and its equipment on Oct. 23 from Steven Gooch, who had owned the eatery since 2015.
Gooch had purchased the Franklin Inn from local realtor and entrepreneur Bedros Bandazian, who opened the restaurant in 2011 and still owns the building. Jenkins said upon closing the deal he signed a new lease for the space.
Gooch, through his Juno Restaurant Group, still owns nearby restaurant The Stables at Belmont and its offshoot, The Stables Market in Libbie Mill.
Gooch said in January he also took a job as CEO of local medical practice Virginia Ear, Nose and Throat Associates. Having that new priority motivated him to look to sell The Franklin Inn.
“I had a great run of just short of eight years with The Franklin Inn and I am very pleased with all we did, and frankly that we even survived the COVID years,” Gooch said in an email. “But there are things happening at this time which make it clear that I am no longer the best owner for it to thrive and be all it can be for the neighborhood.”
Filament Business Advisors’ Dan Scherotter and Jason Savedoff represented Gooch in his sale to Jenkins.
Jenkins said nearly all of The Franklin Inn’s staff stayed on following the sale. He credits them with helping him hit the ground running last week.
“We closed (on the purchase of the restaurant) last Monday during the day, and we opened Monday night. We got our ABC license like, five minutes before 5 p.m.,” Jenkins said. “It was really the staff. I was pulling my hair out that night, I owe them a big thank you. But we’re up and running now.”
Though The Franklin Inn dates back to the 1930s, its space has hosted a handful of other concepts over the years, including The Corner Cafe and Cleveland Street Deli.
Jenkins said he doesn’t plan to make any major changes and that the menu will mostly stay the same with classic American fare.
“There’s going to be a few additions here and there – slight changes but nothing really significant,” Jenkins said. “It’ll be the neighborhood watering hole it’s always been.”
a classic!