Latest Store to Leave Was One of the First to Open

The latest store to leave South Coast Village was one of the center’s more popular tenants.

The Belgian Waffle Inn, one of the first businesses to open at the Village, closed its doors Nov. 29. And the disagreements that led to its departure show how differently the Village and its tenants sometimes view things.

Owner Marlo Mueller said the restaurant left because of “a dispute with the landlord.” He said the Belgian Waffle lost its lease but declined further comment.

But Jon Anderson, attorney for the Segerstrom family, which owns the 15-year-old Village, has a different explanation.

According to Anderson, the lease dispute dates back several years, when Mueller refused to move after his lease expired. “We tried to renegotiate with him and couldn’t get together on terms,” Anderson said.

Mueller sued the Village, complaining that the valet parking operation run by another tenant, Antonello Ristorante, was taking choice parking spaces. The Village sued to evict Belgian Waffle, and an agreement was reached to give the restaurant a new lease. Mueller refused to sign because the document required him to use a licensed contractor to make renovations to the eatery, Anderson said.

The dispute went back to court, and Mueller agreed to leave in June, 1983. Meanwhile, Anderson said, the Belgian Waffle’s space was re-leased to an upscale Chinese restaurant, the Emperor’s Fortune.

But Mueller decided once again not to leave, Anderson said. So the Village sued a second time to get him out. “We were worried about losing our (new) lease with the Emperor’s Fortune,” Anderson explained.

Finally, Mueller agreed once again that the Belgian Waffle would vacate the Village, Anderson said. And this time, it did.

“It worked out for the better,” he said. “But to say it was a lease dispute is a pretty incomplete story.”