Dante’s on Hwy. 50 becomes restaurant from hell for couple
By Carlos Alcalá, Sacramento Bee
Kevin and Nancy Cairns moved to El Dorado County hoping for a piece of heaven on the American River.
They got a taste of hell.
They opened Dante’s on the River seven years ago on an isolated stretch of Highway 50, east of Pollock Pines.
“It’s a beautiful piece of property,” Kevin Cairns said.
But since they opened, they say they’ve been besieged by people who violently demand to use the restaurant bathroom or just do their excretory business in the parking lot. Other motorists pull over to vomit and move on.
“Nobody’s ever offered to clean it up,” said his wife.
As a consequence, Cairns has taken to asking people to leave the lot unless it’s an emergency or they’re coming to the restaurant.
Have some porta-potties installed with money slots on the doors.
That is the wonderful world of our traveling public.
I spoke to the owner of the now closed restaurant/store down the way from Dante’s (my mind is going, can’t even remember its name at this time…st. something). I stopped in to use their restrooms a few times but always bought something when I did. A few times we had soup or chili at the counter and chatted with the owner. Her said her sewer costs were in the $1000s each month because of all the non-customers that used her restroom.
Our physical needs sometimes can’t be planned and that stretch needs a public restroom (but where?).
The Dante’s owner has chased potential customers away from his restaurant because of the chains, cones and signage By looking at this property as I drive by I have wondered how long Dantes could stay open. But, with that said, how can he support the sewer costs of non-customers?
Perhaps Cal Trans could just financially support a store or restaurant’s sewers and restrooms and offer parking lot cleanup. That would be much cheaper than building a rest stop.
When you gotta go, you gotta go!
Install some of those public bathrooms that are all over San Francisco. Pay your money to use the toilet. When you are done, the entire inside is washed out so it’s clean for the next user. Much nicer than porta-potties. The public is served and the business owner, after recovering initial costs, makes some money. Easier on the internal plumbing too. Perhaps Cal Trans could subsidize the purchase price.
Why should they have to install bathrooms on their private property , would you put a portable bathroom in your driveway , let alone putting a stinky pot in front of a restaurant???