Sandwich shop owner fulfills his dream
By CARL MARIO NUDI
There is nothing common about the Clubhouse Sandwich Café.
From its location, to its menu, to the owner — all are unique and help distinguish the restaurant from others.
The tiny sandwich shop off the lobby of the Crusader Building, 323 10th Ave. W., Palmetto, has been open since July 2016 and has built a loyal base of customers.
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Clubhouse Sandwich Café owner, David Murray, has more than 20 years in the food business and developed a menu to reflect his “idea of a classic sandwich on steroids.”
Owner David Murray, 45, opened the Clubhouse after working for more than 20 years in the food business.
“This is the first time I’ve owned my own business,” Murray said.
He came to Manatee County from Albany, N.Y., in September 1994 after checking out California.
He did not like the idea of living on the West Coast because he could not get used to the time difference there.
“You’re not supposed to watch Sunday football at 10 in the morning,” Murray said. “You watch football at 1 p.m.”
So, with a couple of friends living in Manatee County, and having visited them before, he decided to try to make his mark in Florida.
Murray liked Florida because it was more laid back, but he was mostly thinking about the better opportunities here.
His first job in Florida was in graphic design because that was what he studied in New York.
The Clubhouse club sandwich is a customer favorite.
One of the several sandwiches served at the Clubhouse Sandwich Café.
One of the several salads served at the Clubhouse Sandwich Café.
But within months he was working at The Sandbar Restaurant on Anna Maria Island.
“I always enjoyed cooking at home,” Murray said.
After a while, he started working at the Anna Maria Oyster Bar on 14th Street West and moved into management.
Murray worked at the Oyster Bar for more than 11 years, then he took a management position at the Riverhouse Reef & Grill, just south of the Clubhouse on the Manatee River.
But like many Americans, Murray was ready to be his own boss.
“It was always my dream to have my own place,” he said.
That opportunity came when a friend was constructing a commercial building on Lena Road in western Manatee County, and he offered to invest with Murray in opening a restaurant out there.
Unfortunately the county zoning laws would not permit a restaurant in that location, so Murray asked the friend if he was interested in investing in another location.
“He was willing to do it,” he said.
By chance the space in the Crusader Building, which was previously a sandwich shop, came up for lease at the same time.
“The lease sign was up for only two days and I jumped on it,” Murray said.
Getting his restaurant up and running was not as rushed as finding the location though.
The Clubhouse Sandwich Café is located in the historic Crusader Building, 323 10th Ave. W., Palmetto.
“The menu has been something I’ve been working on for years,” he said. “I knew it was going to be a sandwich shop, and the space limitations here dictated what I could serve.”
But Murray’s plan was not to open just another sandwich shop.
“I was staying with my idea of a classic sandwich on steroids,” he said. “Everything is fresh made, from the sausage to the dressings to the smoked meats.”
The Clubhouse is almost a one-man operation.
Murray runs the day-to-day operation by himself, taking the orders, making the sandwiches or salads, serving the food and collecting the money, but he does get a hand from a close friend, who helps with the prep work.
Marketing of his business has been mostly word-of-mouth until recently.
“I joined the Manatee Chamber of Commerce in December,” Murray said. “It’s necessary because you feel like other Chamber members will look out for each other.
“They also can help spread the word about a new business,” he said.
Murray also gets some help and advice from a couple of former Anna Maria Oyster Bar co-workers, Sean Mullaney and Fred Hurley.
Mullaney and Hurley also branched out and opened their own restaurant in Largo, the Roosterfish Grill.
Until his business is profitable, Murray has been working nights at the Roosterfish Grill after closing his place at 2 p.m.
“All the money I make at the Clubhouse goes right back into the business,” he said. “Hopefully I can get this place to pay for itself and become successful.”
And Murray said there are signs of that success because business has been increasing over the months he has been opened.
“At the very least it seems more consistent with the same customers returning,” he said.
Some of those customers are within steps of his sandwich shop.
The employees of other businesses in the Crusader Building have become regulars, as well as some of the more than 150 employees of world headquarters of It Works! across the street from the Clubhouse.
“They have been very supportive,” Murray said.
Diana Higgins, engineer and owner of Dianiun Engineering in the Crusader Building, across the hall lobby from the Clubhouse, sometimes gets her lunch there.
“I like it. It’s convenient and the food is tasty,” Higgins said. “I get the chicken noodle soup often. And I like the turkey on marble-rye sandwich.”
When her husband, Brad, comes to have lunch with Higgins, he always gets the club sandwich, she said.
And of course Murray’s service was a big draw.
“David is a very nice guy,” Higgins said. “And really good with the customers.”
But Murray said he thinks it is his food that keeps his customers coming back.
Along with a menu board of breakfast and lunch items, he stocks a refrigerator full of 119 varieties of beverages.
And soon Murray will be adding to his breakfast offerings of chicken and waffle sandwiches, scotch eggs and homemade parfaits a pulled-pork breakfast burrito.
And to his lunch menu, a fruit and nut salad will join such items such as Reubens, the Clubhouse club and chef salad.
“Plus, I’m adding a special Italian hoagie you won’t find anywhere else,” Murray said.
The future of the Clubhouse looks good, he said.
“I like to think I will have a chance to get involved in catering of small gatherings or meetings,” Murray said.
He wants to be able to provide sandwiches and salads to groups of around 15 people.
“I’ve done some,” Murray said. “But I want to do more.”
The motivating factor that keeps Murray striving to improve his business is the satisfaction of his customers. “I enjoy the look on the people’s faces when they try one of my sandwiches,” he said.
The Clubhouse Sandwich Café, 323 10th Ave. W., Palmetto, is open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The phone number is 941-479-4011
For more information and to view a complete menu, visit the Clubhouse Facebook page at www.facebook.com/clubhousesandwichcafe/
