Richmond's Hotel Mac restaurant on the market

By Hannah Dreier
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 08/03/2011 03:00:25 PM PDT
Updated: 08/03/2011 05:48:42 PM PDT

Restaurant co-owner Griff Brazil, standing, chats with diners at the Hotel Mac in Richmond,...

Owners of the historic Hotel Mac restaurant are looking to retire and sell their operation in the coming years.
Owners Bill Burnett and Griff Brazil rescued the hotel in 1978 after a fire destroyed everything but the walls. The men used old photos to restore the space, which opened in 1911 as the Colonial Hotel, to its former glory.
The partners are now in their 60s and looking for someone to buy the business.
"At some point we're going to retire," Brazil said. "I imagine in the next few years, we will sell."
A Danville-based restaurant broker approached the partners more than a year ago about listing the property, Brazil said. Their asking price is $500,000 for the restaurant, including the name, license and lease.
"The owners are retiring, but the staff is very stable and the restaurant enjoys very good customer loyalty," the listing reads.
After seeing the listing, Richmond City Councilman Tom Butt sent a message via electronic newsletter this weekend that the Hotel Mac might be "on the block."
Customers have been inundating the restaurant with calls and Brazil is assuring all who will listen that a sale is not imminent.
The broker has yet to bring in an offer and the partners are in no rush to sell the establishment, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
"This place is dear to us -- we've lived here," he said. "It's kind of in your blood, so you keep doing it every day."
The restaurant, a favorite of local power players, is reportedly where the San Francisco 49ers once brought Steve Mariucci before offering him a contract to coach.
Hotel Mac is celebrating its centennial this month with restaurant specials priced at $19.11 through the end of the year.
Contact Hannah Dreier at 510-262-2787. Follow her at Twitter.com/hannahdreier.