Banquet hall, theater and restaurant–the Martinique/Drury Lane complex at 2500 W. 95th St. in Evergreen Park fills multiple roles for patrons from city, suburbs and beyond.
With a grand ballroom that seats up to 1,000 people and several smaller rooms, the Martinique Restaurant hosts “anywhere from 15 to 20 weddings a weekend,” said Mike Nix, the general manager.
“There’s a lot going on. There are a lot of aspects. There are several businesses going on,” said Ray Lazzara,who has owned the business with his brother, John, since 1988.
Ray Lazzara oversees the food and beverage side; John Lazzara is in charge of the theatrical operation at the Drury Lane Theater.
“There are three facets to the theater,” John Lazzara said. Productions include musicals and comedies for adults, plays for children ages 3 to 11, and concerts featuring popular performers such as Debbie Reynolds and Bobby Vinton.
It’s important to take the pulse of customer preferences, John Lazzara said. “Mainly, our customer base is senior citizens,” he said. “Basically, now I know my market.”
The most difficult part of his job, he said, is “picking shows. You are what you pick.”
Show choices also affect the restaurant business because many customers come for dinner and a show, he said. “Honestly, we bought it for the banquet business,” he said, but the theater was a drawing card too.
He has a background in music–he was a music major before switching to marketing. “It was like I had to go back to school,” he said, “do a lot of reading, a lot of traveling.”
Lazzara decided to intensify the marketing, bring in more stars and diversify the offerings.
“I try to mix it up,” he said, noting that two of this year’s concerts feature entertainers new to Drury Lane, Don Ho and Keeley Smith.
Still, he keeps the audience firmly in mind.
“Our customers want to see stars,” he said.
Plus, the theater-in-the-round-style stage gives the audience an especially close look. “It’s almost like seeing the stars in your living room,” he said.
“We’re an Equity theater, so the quality is high,” he added. “Last year, our theater won six Jeff Awards, the Chicago version of Broadway’s Tonys.”
Prices are reasonable, he added, noting that subscribers can see three shows for $50. (Subscription prices for dinner and a play range from $34 to $46, depending on the time. Groups of more than 20 senior citizens get discounts of $3 a ticket.)
Lazzara added an ice show with an international cast of skaters in 1994: He writes, produces and directs the show with collaborator Richard Porter.
The ice show “transcends all ages,” Lazzara said.
The success of the annual show justifies the work needed to transform the theater space into an ice rink, he said.
The first row of seats is removed and crushed ice is spread over a mat through which freon is pumped. A Zamboni is used to keep the ice smooth.
The brothers, who bought the business from original owner Tony DeSantis, have made some changes, including building a white-brick wedding chapel and retaining a resident minister. But Ray Lazzara said that they have maintained the ambience of what he calls a “special-occasion kind of place.”
The chapel, which opened in April, accommodates couples who want to have their ceremony and reception in one place.
“It’s a significant savings,” Lazzara said. “It’s all done. [The bride and groom] just show up and get married.”
The brothers spent $2.5 million on renovation, maintaining the elegant atmosphere of crystal chandeliers, burgundy and gold carpets and velvet draperies.
“We have a downtown feel without the downtown price,” Lazzara said. “We try to fit that niche–that’s been the hallmark here for 40 years.”
A high-volume business keeps prices reasonable, he said, but couples seeking reasonable prices still want a more upscale atmosphere and menu, with special touches such as champagne and strawberries and a choice of dinner entrees.
“It’s changed a lot from the chicken, beef and mostaccioli days of 20 years ago,” he said.
Other special occasions include parties for political workers, police and fire department retirement parties, showers, graduation parties, and fashion shows, he said. Customers come from a 40-mile radius, and the Martinique often is a stop on the class trip for graduates of small rural schools.
Much of the business is repeat, Lazzara said.
“We have mothers and daughters both married at the Martinique,” he said. “We’re on the third generation of people coming for children’s theater.”
The Lazzara brothers began their restaurant career in the early 1970s with an Oak Lawn pizza place, then branched out in 1975 when they converted an old Shakey’s Pizza in Burbank to a theme restaurant called Annie Tiques. (The restaurant now is a banquet hall.)
The Martinique/Drury Lane complex is their most ambitious venture to date, and it has done well, they said.
They invested money locally and improved the property, they said, and achieved theatrical recognition.
The business provides a “significant” amount of tax revenue to the town, said Jim Sexton, Evergreen Park village clerk.
Moreover, more than 200 people living in the areaare employed there, he said. “It’s really put us on the theatrical map,” Sexton said. “It brings a lot of upscale people to town. [The Lazzaras] bring us a lot of culture.”
“We have a great rapport with the community,” John Lazzara said.
Ray and John Lazzara have been named Evergreen Parks’ Business Men of the Year 2000.
“For as long as they have been in our community, they have been very supportive of Evergreen Park,” said Robin Fullarton, executive director of the Evergreen Park Chamber of Commerce.
In addition to supporting the town, their Martinique/Drury Lane complex attracts people to Evergreen Park, she said. “They have such a nice facility that they’re bringing in a lot of people.”
The Lazzaras were honored Oct. 20 at the chamber’s Harvest Ball, which was held–where else?–at the Martinique.
