Caroline Morales, ABC 10

(EL DORADO HILLS, CALIFORNIA) July 15, 2022 — Denise and Mike Hountalas, the owners of the Purple Place Bar and Grill, purchased and renovated the restaurant in 2006. The Purple Place quickly became a beloved restaurant for many El Dorado County residents and those passing through the area.

“We grew the struggling business into a successful community gathering place while we employed multiple generations of families and local high schoolers,” Hountalas wrote in a statement to ABC10.

After the restaurant took down its neon sign earlier this week, the community was left wondering about the fate of the restaurant.

“Unfortunately, negotiations with our landlord have been difficult and the terms she has proposed have not been reasonable,” Hountalas said. “We remain hopeful that we will be able to come to terms but, while negotiations continue, we decided it was prudent to remove the Purple Place neon sign and place it in storage for safekeeping.”

ABC10 reached out to the landlord of the Purple Place but had not heard back from them by the time of publishing.

Hountalas said their desire is to execute a new lease with their landlord, which would allow them to operate at their current location.

According to Hountalas, the Purple Place is open for normal business hours as they continue to work diligently to stay at its original location.

“We remain hopeful that we will be able to come to terms but time is rapidly running out,” Hountalas said. “We are grateful to the community for their enormous show of support now and over the many years, we have operated The Purple Place.”

The community turned to ABC10, hoping to save the Purple Place.

“We are devastated,” El Dorado County resident Judy Bates said. “We have lived in the community for 20 years and want it to stay open.”

Residents say over the years, the Purple Place has become an iconic space for them to celebrate birthdays, the end of the year, and everything in between.

“I can’t even imagine it not being here. It’s a landmark.” Daniela McJimsey said. “It would be absolutely devastating to lose it.”

To Our Wonderful Community, The Purple Place is open for normal business hours as we continue to work diligently to…

See Video Report 

Posted by The Purple Place Bar & Grill on Wednesday, July 13, 2022:

It has come to our attention that our landlord has been posting incorrect information on social media regarding our decision to remove the Purple Place sign from the facade of the restaurant this week. We had intended to keep this a private matter between us and our landlord, and we will not engage with her on social media, but we felt it was necessary to post this statement here on our FB page in order to set the record straight.

When we bought The Purple Place business in 2006, we acquired the trademark right to “The Purple Place” name under the express terms of the purchase agreement. We have sought the legal opinion of two attorneys who have both confirmed that we are the legal owners of the trademarked name “The Purple Place” and have the exclusive right to use and promote it. We are prepared to take whatever action proves necessary to maintain and protect our trademark rights.

Our desire is to execute a new lease with our landlord which will allow us to continue to operate at the present Purple Place location. Unfortunately, negotiations with our landlord have been difficult and the terms she has proposed have not been reasonable. We remain hopeful that we will be able to come to terms but, while negotiations continue, we decided it was prudent to remove the PP neon sign and place it in storage for safekeeping. When we have a new lease in place, we will reinstall the sign.

We are grateful to the community for your show of support now and over the many years, we have operated The Purple Place.
Thank you.

#savethepurp