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Welcome to Northwoods Business Watch

Good location helps business grow

BY HEATHER SCHAEFER
Business Watch Staff

     Unlike a lot of entrepreneurs in Wisconsin, Eddie Shabani is growing his business northward.
     The owner of the new Friendship House Restaurant in Rhinelander owns three other restaurants located north of Highway 29, and he likes it that way.
     Shabani, a true American success story, loves the friendliness of the Northwoods residents— and he wants to feed them.
     “This is a good town and I like it. There are very friendly people here, they’re fantastic,” he said.
     Shabani’s first two restaurants are in Wausau (he’s been doing business in Marathon County for 12 years, he said) and just last year he opened a third restaurant, also called Friendship House, in Eagle River.
     Shabani is aware that two other restaurants, El Tapatio and Wendy’s, were unsuccessful at the Lincoln Street location but he is optimistic about his restaurant’s chances.
     For one thing, the Highway 17 bypass has brought growth, and additional traffic, to that side of town.
     “Pete Tenderholt, a wonderful man with a big heart, encouraged me to come to Rhinelander (and open a restaurant),” he said. “I had it always in my mind that this would be a good spot with the bypass, the hospital, the YMCA, the police station (the Oneida County Law Enforcement Center) nearby. I think this area is going to grow up in the future and we are not far from that growth,” he added.
     So far, things look favorable, Shabani added. During the restaurant’s first week of business, crowds were large and enthusiastic, Shabani said.
     “I would like to thank all of the people who have given us a chance, to allow us to have our door open,” he said.
     To be sure, those first customers saw a very different restaurant from what they remember.
     Shabani has made significant changes to the restaurant’s interior, adding all new fixtures, in an attempt to add warmth and comfort to the dining experience.
     In fact, comfort, is the watchword of the Friendship House. Shabani says he wants customers to feel as if they are eating at their own dining room table when they eat at Friendship House.
     Traditional favorites, ribs, fish fry, mashed potatoes, etc. are staples of the menu and the waitstaff prides itself on being extraordinarily friendly.
     “We want you to walk in and it will seem as if we (the waitstaff) have known you for 20 years,” he said.
     Above the cash register at the Friendship House Restaurant you will find two paintings, both prominently including American flags.
     This is no coincidence.
     Shabani, an immigrant from Albania, Macedonia, is proud of his adoptive country and doesn’t mind showing it through his decor.
     Shabani settled in Chicago 20 years ago and went to work with his father (who came to this country in the 1960s) in the restaurant business, eventually striking out on his own after a few years. He very proudly notes that all three of his children were born in this country and is grateful for the opportunity he found here.
     “This is why people come to this country, here you have all the tools (to be successful), then it is up to you to use them,” he said. “I love this country very much.”

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