The Cache River Cafe at 10117 E. 11th St., aka Route 66, in Tulsa, Okla., closed last Friday and is moving to the former Eastland Mall in the city, away from the Mother Road.
The restaurant had been at its Mother Road location for five years. It was a member of the Route 66 Business League of Tulsa and listed in the Route 66 Dining and Lodging Guide, published by the National Historic Route 66 Federation.
Gail Potter, co-owner of the restaurant with her husband Ernie, said they decided to move not long after receiving an offer from an Eastgate Metroplex developer in July. Eastgate is the new name of the former Eastland Mall, which is being redeveloped into more of an office complex. She also said business at Cache River was slow.
“The location (at 11th Street) wasn’t gaining any momentum since road construction finished,” she added.
She said the restaurant will reopen at Eastgate by mid-January. It will be called Potters’ Sidewalk Cafe.
When we drove by Cache River Cafe on Thursday, we noticed there was an Oklahoma Tax Commission notice, pasted on the front door, that the business license had been revoked for “failure … to comply with tax laws.”
Potter professed ignorance when informed about the notice; she surmised it was posted after Cache River had closed. She said she had problems with a previous accountant who wasn’t paying taxes.
A phone call to OTC wasn’t returned.
UPDATE: A spokeswoman from OTC returned the call later in the day. She said Cache River was $38,000 behind in paying sales taxes.
She also said that according to state records, the revocation notice had been served on Oct. 22.
Whether the tax problems will prevent the owners from relocating and opening their restaurant, I have no idea.