With the company founded 27 years ago, “I think we have all the details honed in now where we’re really ready to go,” said Studio Movie Grill chief executive Brian Schultz just before the theater at 128 N. Rows of futuristic-looking recliners - outfitted with cooling cup holders, blue lights and a red button to call a waiter- line the 10 auditoriums of the national dine-in theater chain’s location in the heart of the city’s art and entertainment district. The new Studio Movie Grill, the 18th location for the Dallas-based chain, has an interesting business model: Go into a somewhat down-at-the-heels space, hire young locals, give them handhelds and wide smiles, dim the lights and roll credits.“I’m waiting to blast off,” a tech-focused film festival founder said during a tour of Studio Movie Grill’s downtown Glendale location grand opening on Thursday. Studio Movie Grill, the shiny blue box stuck on the back of the decidedly unshiny, half empty University Mall, is challenged with what every restaurant-slash-movie theater faces: How do you get folks their food while not disrupting everyone once the feature has started? Studio's answer: Take the orders quickly and bring all the food together before the film begins. It is melting, rapidly, while my seatmate tries to hurry through her flatbread. The devil's in the details, and in this case the wicked one would have to be back-stroking in the Frozen Hot Chocolate ($6), a blend of hot cocoa, vanilla ice cream, Ghirardelli fudge and shaved chocolate. Studio Movie Grill is nice but not for me, or anyone with discriminating taste in the moviegoing experience, not what they're eating at the time.Ĭontact Steve Persall at or (727) 893-8365. Whispers help but still carry, and servers hustling stooped through aisles like Wimbledon ball boys is a different sort of bothersome. Then there's the other hand, with fingers impatiently tapping while good service and its unavoidable distractions continue after the show begins.

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