I was logging into the Surfas website this morning and saw a notice on the webpage that Surfas, one of the greatest restaurant suppliers in the Southland, is ceasing its web presence and directing customers to CulinaryDistrict.com.

According to the site, all of Surfas’ current offerings will be available thru Culinary District as well as an expanded offering. I visited the Culinary District website and at the top it says it is part of the Surfas Group. I’m not sure if some kind of buyout took place or if the Culinary District is a Surfas funded project. On the Surfas website there is a banner alerting their customers that a Culinary District is opening in Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas.

So I took a stroll in CulinaryDistrict.com and everything Surfas carried is available for sale, including all the Surfas branded materials. The site is a bit more interactive it feels fast today, but lets see if it keeps up with demand. So the first thing I did was to compare pricing. Most of the items I checked were priced cheaper at CulinaryDistrict.com than on Surfasonline.com.

Interesting.

Even shipping is cheaper. I did an experiment and purchased the same Global 8″ Chef Knife from each store. I chose the same shipping method and the cost to ship from Culinary District was cheaper as well as the cost of the knife.

One thing I won’t be able to enjoy is the UPS Ground shipping meant overnight shipping for me since I lived in Southern California. I hope their retail operations in Culver City is continues to stay strong. Surfas has been a staple in the business in California since 1937 and has been in Culver City since 1947.

UPDATE: The Culinary District is the idea of Les Surfas (Owner of Surfas) and his wife Diana, an Arkansas native. They had been formulating a plan for a smaller gourmet grocery and restaurant supply store in Arkansas for many years. “It was something in the back of our minds while we developed our new store in California,” he said. “We wanted to scale it down.”

Both Les and Diana share a love for old buildings and historic districts – so opening the Culinary District was clear for both of them.

The new store will be located in Hot Springs’ Hamp Williams building, in downtown Hot Springs. The Surfas Group is managing the renovation of the 50,000-SF building to restore it to its original 1920s grandeur.