Nevada’s restaurant industry is the fastest growing in the country. The National Restaurant Association is projecting an 8.1 percent sales growth in Nevada for 2007, compared to the national growth of 5 percent. That raises the Silver State’s restaurant revenue to the $4 billion mark, a nice piece of the $537 billion annual national pie. Add to that, too, a projected Nevada restaurant job growth of 25 percent by 2017 (second only to Arizona’s) and the picture’s clear: Our restaurant sector is heating up fast.

And a healthy percentage of that heat is happening across business lunch tables.

Ready to lunch

By noon, The Grill at Quail Corners is packing them in. Clusters of hungry executives hover by the host stand. Reno bankers and Realtors pound each other on the back. It’s Monday, and it’s been awhile since they’ve seen each other. But they’ll see each other again, no doubt, as the week wears on. This is the place.

“Some of my customers come in three, four times a week,” says Sam Francovich, co-owner with Diane Francovich, of The Grill.

But the building’s location is the real key to making the lunch business pay off, he says. And he thinks The Grill’s location is “fantastic … because it’s right in the middle of a complex of doctors, stockbrokers and bankers.”

The Grill does about a third of its business in lunches, though at first glance, it looks like more than that. And Francovich affirms the impression: The Grill serves more people at lunch, but the higher tabs ring in at dinner, when the pace is more leisurely and a glass of wine accompanies the grilled salmon.

The sporty set

Not all restaurants go after the same fast crowd. David’s Grill & Sports Bar at The Resort at Red Hawk in Sparks provides a relaxed atmosphere — execs ensconced in sports memorabilia — to its lunch clients. The bar is separate from the dining room, says Al Karsok, Red Hawk vice president of food and beverage, and that helps to keep the noise down. “We have two types of business lunchers,” he adds. “They are those that want a leisurely experience where they can discuss all aspects with each other, and those that have 45 minutes to eat, make a decision and go.”

David’s Grill targets both crowds. It has a private room that seats up to 10 for those who want seclusion — a popular spot for quick meetings or for that lunch when a group wants to unfurl a blueprint across the table.

The lunch business runs at about 35 percent to 40 percent of David’s Grill’s overall business. And of that, Karsok estimates that 80 percent comes from business lunches, the rest from resort golfers. But not much from drinks.

Alcoholic beverages, popular with the golf crowd, is a rarity these days around a business lunch. It’s an “iced tea crowd,” says Karsok, though late afternoon business meetings loosen up a bit.

The Capitol crowd

Adele’s Restaurant and Lounge in Carson City is one restaurant that is bucking the trend of the one-hour lunch rush. At Adele’s, lunch moves at a dignified pace.

Clients at Adele’s spend time on their lunches — 1-1/2 to 2 hours average. “Let the fast-food nation do their thing,” says Charlie Abowd, executive chef and co-owner with Karen Abowd. “We’re a dining establishment with food prepared to order and presented in elegant style.”

Apparently, the more genteel pace appeals to many business folk. Adele’s owns the top-tier lunch niche at the Capitol. About 30 percent of its business is done in lunches. And of that, Abowd estimates that 50 percent is business dining and 40 percent leisure. That other 10 percent, he says, is the “in-and-out” crowd. And Adele’s can meet those needs as long as the patrons warn their