Pubdate: Wed, 18 Dec 2002
Source: Dallas Morning News (TX)
Copyright: 2002 The Dallas Morning News
Contact:  http://www.dallasnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/117
Author: David Schwartz, Special Contributor, The Dallas Morning News
Note: David Schwartz is a Phoenix free-lance writer.

SANDWICH SHOP GENERATES BUZZ

Pot Theme Amuses Customers, but Authorities Aren't Smiling

TEMPE, Ariz. - Chewing a turkey submarine sandwich, Kevin Small can't
help but grin just a little about the joint he picked for lunch this
day.

There are the two 6-foot-long mock marijuana cigarettes that proudly
hang from the ceiling in torpedo-like fashion. The obligatory picture
of Grateful Dead legend Jerry Garcia. A poster from the Cheech and
Chong drug cult classic Nice Dreams.

After all, the 35-year-old salesman said, he can expect nothing less
from a place with the motto: "Where the only thing fried is an
occasional customer."

With locations near two colleges, the marijuana-themed Cheba Hut sub
shops are proving popular eating places for customers in pursuit of
something besides the typical fast-food franchise. They're so
successful that founder and owner Scott Jennings is considering shops
near campuses in Tucson and Flagstaff, Ariz., Fort Collins, Colo., and
possibly Austin.

"We're rocking and rolling," said Mr. Jennings, who was at one of his
stores during a recent busy noontime lunch crunch. "We're still in
business, and business is good."

Since he opened his first shop in 1998, the formula used to court
customers has been the same - fresh food at reasonable prices, and
stick to the theme.

Take the name. Cheba is slang for pot. The shop offers "toasted" subs.
And there are no 6- or 12-inch sandwiches on the menu. Instead,
patrons order nugs, pinners and blunts, terms that describe the sizes
of marijuana cigarettes.

The sandwiches include Jamaican Red (spicy chicken), Acapulco Gold
(barbecued chicken) and Arizona Homegrown (southwest chicken salad).
There are no appetizers here, just munchies such as chips and hemp
brownies.

Mr. Jennings said he is under no false illusion about why people eat
at his shops.

"It's the food," the 33-year-old proprietor said. "The theme is the
bonus. If this was just a gimmick, I would have been out of business a
long time ago."

Mr. Jennings, a December 1993 Arizona State University communications
graduate, said the idea for wrapping his business tightly around
marijuana came from the Cheech and Chong movie. In it, the two open an
ice cream stand with some unusually named flavors and decorations.

But that was Hollywood. Unlike the movie, Cheba Huts do not sell
drugs.

He said he sought his own operation since college, learning the trade
by delivering food for a variety of places. Working for someone else
never sounded all that good.

Mr. Jennings opened his first store on a popular strip near Arizona
State with three credit cards and $15,000 in the bank, working 90 to
100 hours a week. With no money for advertising, word-of-mouth had to
suffice. He vowed to be unconventional.

"A lot of people want to get away from places that are corporate," he
said. "We're definitely not corporate. I don't want drones behind the
counter."

But there are some house rules he enforces: No drug talk. No drug use
on the job.

"I don't want to be a hypocrite, but they can't come in stoned," Mr.
Jennings said. "I need them to be coherent while they're here. This is
a busy place."

Store manager Karyn Jackson said the store attracts a heady mix of
young and old, college students and professionals who come for the
food, music and relaxed atmosphere.

"A lot of people make this place out to be something bigger than it
is," said Ms. Jackson, who has been at the store for almost three
years. "It's not about the weed."

That's not to say there are not critics. They contend that the place
glamorizes drug use and makes a mockery of anti-drug efforts.

Barnett Lottstein, special assistant to the Maricopa County attorney,
said the restaurant's general message is in bad taste.

"Maybe they should spend more attention on making better subs," he
said. "Maybe they should spend more money on ingredients instead of on
a subtle pro-drug message. What it does is ... trivialize the
anti-drug message that most Americans support.

"Drug use is not a joke," he said. "Marijuana use is not a joke."

Mr. Jennings tells critics to inhale deeply and relax. He's not
glorifying drugs.

"All we're doing is trying to put a funny spin on the whole thing," he
said. "No one's smoking any joints in here. There's no harm here."

As for Mr. Jennings, he is, at best, noncommittal about his personal
drug habits.

"All I can tell you is I don't smoke anymore," he said, pausing for a
moment and looking around cautiously. "Or any less."
- ---
MAP posted-by: Richard Lake