One of the valley’s most popular lunch spots is reopening after a three-year hiatus.

The Betty Rock Café, which became a Jackson Hole hot spot during its tenure, will open its doors again sometime in late February or early March, said Marc Hirschfield, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Anise.

The cafe will have the same location, same menu, same owners and same comfortable, casual atmosphere as the original, Hirschfield said.

The cafe’s reopening comes at a time when many local businesses are struggling with slow sales during a national economic downturn. Nationally, consumer spending dropped in December as incomes grew at their slowest pace in five years, news agencies reported Monday.

Jackson Hole has not been immune to the economic slump. Teton County sales tax revenue dropped nearly $150,000 in January of this year compared with December 2008, a sign that spending has slowed in the valley. January 2009 was slightly stronger than January of 2008, however, according to the county treasurer’s office.  Hotel reservation numbers have been down by some 20 percent this year.

Molly Frobouck, who owns e.leaven with husband Hunter and their partner Eben Dorros, said their downtown breakfast and lunch spot has done well this winter, partly because of a reinvention of the restaurant’s identity and a location change. But like other local businesses, they have had to trim budgets, including staff reductions and menu condensing.

“We are clearly still feeling the slump and are figuring out ways to get through it, “ she said. E.Leaven moved to its new location downtown in May 2008. It was previously known as Kashman’s and occupied the Betty Rock’s location from November 2007 to April 2008.

Despite the dreary economic news, Hirschfield was positive about the Betty Rock’s chances of a successful relaunch in a tough economy.

“If this year is our worse year, then I think we will be in good shape,” he said.

The original Betty Rock opened in 1995 in the first floor of 325 W. Pearl Ave.

The cafe was named after a term Hirschfield and his friend conjured up for “chicks we thought were hot” in 1988. The name was coined as Hirschfield and his friend stood in line at the Town Cinema, just across the street from the original Betty Rock location, to see Julia Roberts star in Pretty Woman.

The Hirschfields closed the cafe in January 2003 to raise their family, “among other things,” Hirschfield said. The couple is also one of the founding owners of the Rendezvous Bistro on West Broadway.

The business was sold to Jim Rice, the owner of Sidewinders, who ran the cafe under the same name until 2006. The Froboucks opened Kashman’s cafe in the same location in November of 2006.

Months later, the owners of the property proposed redeveloping the building and the adjacent Painted Buffalo Inn into a four-story, multi-use project that would include a luxury hotel, parking, retail space and employee housing. The Town Council passed the master plan for the proposal after much public debate. Opponents of the development said they feared it would change the landscape of downtown Jackson.

In the spring of 2008, the owners of Kashman’s were told the building would be torn down. The owners moved their restaurant in May 2008 to 175 Center St., renamed it e.leaven, and expanded it to include catering and a bakery.

The redevelopment of the Painted Buffalo and 325 W. Pearl Ave., was postponed this summer as the economy began to decline, Hirschfield said. The developer, SR Mills, has not submitted a final development plan to the Town Council. The master plan’s approval is valid for five years, meaning the owner may continue using the property as is.

In October, the Hirschfields decided it was time to reopen the Betty Rock, which as their first restaurant, never really left their hearts, he said.

“We are more chill this time about it,” Hirschfield said. “It’s not as precious this time; we’ve learned a few things along the way.”

So, will the reopening of the new Betty Rock be a threat to local establishments trying to hold on in a rough economy?

“All competition is good competition,” Frobouck said.

When it opens in a few weeks, the Betty Rock Cafe will serve only lunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Saturday. In the summer, the cafe will open seven days a week.

Popularity: 30% [?]