By Julie BUTCHER

Last Saturday afternoon, Glendale’s mayor, Ara Najarian, with other councilmembers, nearly a dozen corporate executives and managers, and 30 or so of the newly-hired servers, bartenders and other “team members,” officially opened the Studio Movie Grill, an upscale movie center at 128 Artsakh Ave., anchoring the city’s Arts & Entertainment District.

“On behalf of the City of Glendale, I’d like to congratulate Studio Movie Grill on its opening in Glendale,” Najarian said. “Studio Movie Grill’s move as an anchor tenant onto Artsakh Avenue is a great addition to our up-and-coming Arts & Entertainment District and provides another quality venue to add to the diversity of programming we envision for the District. A movie theatre can very quickly invigorate a block or shopping area, and Studio Movie Grill will be doubling down on this by offering full-service dining options, as well.”

The movie center is the 33rd nationwide that the founders have opened.

“I have wanted to bring the SMG experience to Glendale since we opened the doors and welcomed guests to our first SMG over 20 years ago. We want to provide our new neighbors with additional economic and outreach opportunities,” said Brian Schultz, founder and CEO, Studio Movie Grill. “At the core of SMG’s mission is a desire to leave a positive wake in the communities we serve. We want residents, visitors and people who work in the area to make SMG Glendale their go-to spot to see great films and enjoy good food and fun with family and friends.”

The company opened the Glendale spot, its fourth in Southern California (joining Downey, Monrovia, and Redlands) with a soft opening on Oct. 17. The combination multiplex includes a full-service restaurant and full bar. The Dallas-based company reports spending more than $5 million to renovate the nearly 60,000 square feet of space vacated by MGN 5-Star Cinema to build the new 10 screens and 780 custom heated and cooled luxury recliners that come complete with service buttons, telescopic table lamps, and chilled cup holders in convenient seat trays. A restaurant-quality menu with food made fresh on-site daily is also available.

Servers Ali and Adriel expressed their excitement at Saturday’s “film-cutting” ceremony, explaining how serious the company is about promoting the new location.

“Universal is going to do its openings here,” they said. “’Star Wars!’ Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to be here in November!”

General Manager Nolan Kreager will helm the new Glendale SMG, which is expected to employ between 150 and 200 workers, approximately 40% of whom work full-time.

“We want to be part of the community. We practice conscious capitalism,” Kreager explained. “We do special needs screenings after major movie releases. Families need that kind of break. [We offer] reduced rate tickets for the adults, free for the kids.”

To preview the Studio Movie Grill (SMG) menu, visit https://www.studiomoviegrill.com/menu/glendale. The public parking structure at the corner of Wilson and Artsakh offers free parking for the first 90 minutes.

  Julie BUTCHER