Keeping up with the Gilford business carousel

In the past year, two established restaurants have relocated and one has closed, resulting in a kind of "musical chairs" involving a few well-known Gilford businesses.

Waldo Pepper's made the first move, leaving The Weirs and relocating to 1457 Lakeside Avenue in a renovated building that had previously housed Nader's Auto World. That business didn't survive the move for long, though.

But another restaurant, The Lakeside, was happy to move in to that location. It's one of three restaurants owned by partners Susan Becker and John Cronin. They also run The Eggshell in Loudon and the Circle Restaurant at the Epsom traffic circle. All three locations offer affordable, family-style dining.

The Lakeside isn't a new business. It's been serving breakfast, lunch and dinner for five years the plaza at 1 Gilford Place on Lake Street.

"When our lease ran out, we decided it was better visibility over here," said Becker.

Becker found that customers returned at a high rate once they tried her food, the problem was attracting them in the first place. She said, "Everybody, when they walked through the door, said 'we never knew you were here... even when people told us you were here, it was still hard to find.'"

Customers won't have too much trouble finding the place now, though. It's along a busy stretch of Lake Shore Road (Route 11) as it passes through the commercial heart of Gilford. The Lakeside is situated near Lowe's, Shaw's, and Hannaford, and is on a major thoroughfare for people traveling between Laconia and points east.

They've been open at the new location since early December. "It's going very good already," said Becker. Soon, she hopes to acquire a license allowing her to offer beer and wine to her customers. Many customers have requested booths and counter dining, and she'll add those soon, too.

To her loyal customers, Becker extends an invitation to visit the new Lakeside, just down the road and around the corner from the old location. "I think they'll like this location better," she said.

Back at 1 Gilford Place, another established Lakes Region business has found a new home.

Peter Burr has been in business for himself for nearly two decades. Most of that time was running Cheapo Depot on Court Street in Laconia, a discount goods business.

In July, Burr — who refers to himself as "Packrat Pete" — rented out his old store and moved to his new location in the Gilford Place mall.

With the new location, he decided to change the name to "Savings Depot."

The new depot, Burr said, is brighter, easier to keep clean, and is bigger. The additional space allows for more room between aisles, so shoppers can use carts. He's also able to accept "quality, pre-approved consignments."

Like Cheapo Depot, shoppers at Savings Depot will find items in just about every category imaginable. The common denominator is that Burr is able to sell his inventory at a lower rate than the competition. "There's just about something for everyone," he said. "You can't beat our prices on anything."

Savings Depot will continue to offer "Senior Day" on Wednesdays, when senior citizens enjoy a storewide 10-percent discount. Burr is also continuing to operate a franchise of Budget truck rentals out of his store. He said his old customers should look for the new location on Lake Street, next to China Bistro and across the street from the Margate Resort.

Burr has more plans cooking, too. In the same mall, he's planning to open "Boomer's," a tavern catering to the tastes of those 35 years old and older, those looking for a quiet, casual and "mature" nightlife scene. He thinks it's just the thing the Laconia-area is missing, and Gilford Place is just the place for it.

"This location is superb — this whole complex needs to be brought back," he said.