Thursday, March 20, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Mercury

Music: Not just for breakfast anymore

Skillet Cafe joins the music scene

By Brock Radke

Things have been very different at the Skillet Cafe since Stan and Sharon Maynard took over. Since the couple has assumed ownership and operation of the little local breakfast hangout at Charleston and Valley View, it has become, at different times, a rock concert venue and a garage.

The rock concert stuff can be attributed to the Maynards' 22-year-old son, Zack, who works at the Skillet as a cook. The garage part, however, was not his fault. On two different occasions within the span of two weeks in November, traffic accidents caused cars to slam into the building. The worst crash happened Nov. 26, and injured six people inside the restaurant.

About the same time, when Zack Maynard asked his parents if he could stage a small show with his band the Shaker Heights Opera Company, they said it was cool as long as he didn't destroy the place. It seemed like a simple request. "They've been totally supportive and cool about everything," says Maynard.

What started out as a one-time show blossomed when friends of the band who turned out for the concert asked to participate. Now, a few months later, Maynard is running two to three shows a week in the evenings when the restaurant is closed. Even more surprising, the relatively tiny building has hosted regional touring acts and not just young local bands.

"I never thought it would get this busy," Maynard says. "We've got something happening every week in March."

On a good night, a Skillet show will attract up to 250 people, an impressive draw for an odd-shaped place operating solely on word-of-mouth advertising. The bands tend to bring some diversity as well, from punk to harder stuff to indie rock.

"It's a really old building and it has kind of a weird design," says Maynard. "We have to be creative, stack some booths and make it as wide as possible to get everything in. But it's a really laidback process. Just set up and go."

Maynard and his posse of organizers, which basically includes friends and other Skillet employees, are in the process of getting licensed to sell tickets in advance and applying for a noise permit. They're also saving up to buy a better P.A. system, but the Skillet crew doesn't seem to be planning to challenge the Huntridge just yet for all-ages supremacy.

"When we're not enjoying it anymore we'll cool it down a little," Maynard says. "Until then, we'll keep it rocking, though. Right now we're getting a lot of referrals. Bands are talking to their friends out of town, and sometimes bands come into town and go to Balcony Lights looking for a place to play, and they tell them about us. We're contacting some bigger bands also."

Between crafting omelettes and booking concerts, Maynard and his mates aren't+++ getting a lot of time to relax and nurture the thing that got it all started, his band the Shaker Heights Opera Company.

"No, we haven't had a lot of time to play and practice," he says. "It's hard to keep it balanced. The Skillet demands a lot of work and attention, and we all help out."