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WAYNESVILLE — A local prominent business family has announced plans to buy and reopen the Der Dutchman restaurant.
Kyle Fields, a spokesman for Fields Family Enterprises, said his company is in serious negotiations to buy the land where Der Dutchman once stood on U.S. 42 and hopes to reopen a similar family-style restaurant in its place.
“We’re cautiously optimistic we can get this done,” Fields said. “We have big aspirations for the property.”
Fields Family Enterprises is a family owned and run company that operates a variety of businesses, mostly medically based, in Waynesville. The company’s businesses include Fields and Waynesville Pharmacies and it plans further development of its central location along 415 S. Main St., near U.S. 73.
The company was founded by Jim and Ellen Fields, who are Kyle’s parents. In 2010, their pharmacy was named the most innovative in the country by Drug Topics Magazine.
The Der Dutchman restaurant, a popular regional draw, was destroyed in October by a kitchen fire that caused $1.5 million in damages. Officials with Dutchman Hospitality Group Inc. said the restaurant was not profitable enough to reopen.
Fields said the plan to reopen the restaurant was both philanthropic and profit motivated.
“Over half of the people who worked there were or are patients and patrons,” Fields said. “The Dutchman was a big loss for the community and a valuable asset to the city. We believe bringing it back will help the economy of Waynesville.”
Fields said his family was working with Greg Zemore, the former general manager of Der Dutchman, to develop a plan for the restaurant. The kitchen of the restaurant will have to be rebuilt.
The former Carlisle Gifts store, also owned by Dutchman Hospitality Group Inc. and located adjacent to Der Dutchman, would be turned into an office space for Fields Family Enterprises.
Fields’ plan was met with cheer and congratulations at Waynesville council meeting Monday night.
“This is great news for the community,” Mayor Earl Isaacs said.
As negotiations are still going on for the purchase, Fields could set no time line for the business’s reopening. He was unsure what the new restaurant would be named.
Officials with Dutchman Hospitality Group Inc. did not return phone calls about the possible sale.
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