Keeping the Eastside Alive. 4 local pubs with 4 new owners keeping it Mom & Pop.
Bye Bye Bad Habitz, Hello MRT
Pictured Left To Right Diana Freeman (manager), Taco (Kitchen Manager) Mr. Richardson (owner).
The Milford/Goshen pub Bad Habitz has changed hands and done a 180 on top of a double back flip. New owners Mr. & Mrs. Richardson decided to take the rowdy dance club and reopen it as a right proper restaurant. Remember original owner George? Well, George built the pub up on good grub and now the Richardsons have brought it all back home again.
Local griddle & grill master “Chef Taco” was brought back. Taco’s gone all out to impress the patrons too. Surf & Turf, Prime Rib, Hand Cut Steaks & Shrimp dominate the dinner menu again. Taco fires it up bright and early every Saturday & Sunday for MRT’s breakfast specials. In-between he’s worked out a 5 day lunch special menu that will have Frischs sweating bullets. Open Faced Turkey & Roast Beef, Meatloaf & French Dips all served with potato & vegetable and all under $6. Plus, Chili Spaghetti & Garlic bread for $4.75. There’s also Chicken or Tuna salad with cottage cheese or coleslaw for $5.50. Taco’s got it all goin’ on and something for everyone. The kitchen is open 11-10 7 days a week.
The focus is on family dining but the entertainment is not taking a back seat. MRT’s is featuring great bands every Saturday. Fridays still belong to Hey Mr. DJ due to popular demand. The Rusty Van Band (an EV fave) is there every Thursday for RVB’s Super Jam. So they’re off to a great start right out of the gate on featuring good entertainment. Plus they now have their Sunday liquor license. A huge 42’ deck out back is being drawn up now and more positive changes are coming. Mr. Richardson says “We wanted to give the community a nice place to come back to again.” We agree and so do the cops. The Richardsons met with the local departments and they agreed to back off the pub and give Mt. Repose Tavern a fresh start at creating a community friendly popular pub. That’s just as it should be too. Now, we have to convince the foolish residents to stop with O’Charlies and Applebee’s already. Mt. Repose Tavern can do any dinner they can do bigger, better and with far more quality. Stop giving money to people outside the eastside and just stop by & say hi to the good folks at MRT’s.
Bartenders Buy The Boss Out.
Have you ever wished you could buy the place you work at and do everything your own way? That’s exactly what happened at the Anderson Latitudes Cafe.
Bartender Sam Khoury and his brother “Cory” have been working in the restaurant biz for many years. They’ve mired through the ridiculous corporate bull sh#t at Fridays, Apple Bee’s & Max & Erma’s. They were almost victims of a vicious brainwashing plot by Cheeseburger in Paradise (scary folks). They’ve came to work to locked doors at Micheal G’s & Shells and worked various stints at local pubs trying to find a place that made sense. Sammy finally found it at Latitudes when it first opened and he’s been there ever since. He likes it so much, Sam and his brother actually just bought the place.
Sam is still running the bar and Cory is heading up the GM position (along with 13 other titles). The whole fam is pitching in too. Mom & sisters are hand sewing the new curtains as we speak, uncles & cousins are crafting new booths and nieces and nephews are working hard to help by pestering everyone else who is actually working by screaming to their obnoxious game boys (the younger generation is simply hopeless). Just kidding, they are all working hard.
Don’t get the wrong idea, the Khoury’s liked Latitudes as it was, they plan to keep the fundamentals basically the same. The biggest changes will come in the form of new private seating, a semi-secluded lounge area, updated rest rooms and all new decor.
The original menu is fully intact and soon there will be several family recipes added. The one thing you may notice about the menu right off is the prices. The Khoury’s have new (huge) financial responsibilities to honor so they’ve had to nearly double the previous menu prices. Ha! Again with the kidding, the new menu will feature the same popular dishes from before with new cheaper prices! Hear that? Same great food, new great food and all around cheaper prices.
Entertainment is staying top notch and in fact more entertainment is being added (check the guide section for the updated schedule). We can’t wait for those family recipes to hit the menu, we tried several at the anniversary party and they were the star of the show!
Here’s a perfect example why you should never trust that corporate clown manager who keeps telling you “Keep working hard here and someday you could run your own store.” Screw you! You motherless machine. he Khourys own their own store because they refused to wallow in your mire and base their goals on your lies. Amen guys! You showed the machine heads just how to do it right, to do it Mom & Pop, to do it family style, to do it without selling trash for cash. The ball is totally in your hands now, let’s see you crank it up and take 50% of your corporate competitor’s sales. If we see a for sale or lease sign on Carraba’s front window we’ll be right there to throw tainted eggs and yell “Piss Off” at the ex-GM as he slinks back to his Cadillac! Help the Khoury family keep Latitudes alive by stopping by.
Uncle Sam’s Sent Packing and The Shaffers Set Up Shack.
Uncle Sam’s out in Batavia (on 276) has been taken over by the Shaffer family. The pub’s new name is The Shaffer Shack and that’s where you’ll find the Shaffer clan on any given day or night. Dad Ron Shaffer has already built a new stage, took out the booths, added extra tables, cleaned and spruced inside and out and he’s still busy. Mom Sharon has been busy booking bands, organizing finances & vendors, getting the kitchen in gear, tending bar and schooling youngster Ronnie Jr. on what it takes to make it in the bar biz. Ronnie is going to need to learn on his feet and fast. The old owners left much to be desired and the Shaffers have their work cut out for them to counter act the damage done to the pubs reputation. The whole family is on a mission to impress the patrons with a new experience and a new friendly attitude. The local yocals have been banned and any new ones that wander in will join the blacklist quicker than a preacher reaching for free fried chicken. No exceptions.
The old menu was exhausting so they have a new simple pub grub menu. Big burgers (hand patted 1/2 pounders), chicken wings, tenders, fries, cheese sticks and the like. Instead of trying to sell ribs or Salmon they are focusing on what matters most to the local patrons, good friendly service, live bands and bad ass beef burgers. Simple as that. Well not quite just that.... they also have the pool and horseshoe tournaments and the big outdoor parties too. Bottom line is the pub is now owned and operated by a family that gives a sh#t, a family that’s put a lot on the line in the hopes of creating an income by providing local people with a place they can come hang out and have a good time without the problem of stupid drunks or red neck idiots screwing it all up for everyone. The whole family has pride in what they are doing and it shows.
Speaking of shows, in the coming weeks you’ll see Dallas Moore, Kenny Welch & Sidewinder just to name a few. They’re even looking to book Dan Varner, Midnight On Vine and as many other top local artists as they can afford. If you agree with what they are doing, go show your support by stopping by for a burger and a beer. You might just find that The Shaffer Shack is just your kind of place.
The Lake Is Still The Lake.
Pete Baker has owned Bakers in Fairfax for 3 score and 5 years. He says “It’s always gave me a good living”. He bought a pub in Mt. Carmel and also named it Bakers (Pub). One day someone came in offered Pete a sum that he couldn’t say no to and away went the Mt. Carmel pub. After taking 6 years off in semi-retirement Pete was feeling anxious about getting back in the business. When he was offered the opportunity to purchase the locally legendary bar The Lake he wasted no time buying it.
Pete Baker may be on the deed but The Lake is still The Lake. Pete plans to simply clean, spruce and re-organize. “I’m keeping everything basically the same... I don’t have any plans to change or do anything drastic... I pretty much have the same bartenders and same prices as before... I’m cleaning up a lot and organizing everything to be more efficient” Pete obviously believes in the old “KISS” saying or Keep It Simple Stupid. What the hell is wrong with that?
All you die hard Lake fans and fanatics can breathe easy, you don’t have to worry about walking in to suddenly find a new Megatouch or Golden Tee taking up your designated beer stool spot any time soon. You will still find the familiar faces nested in the little log cabin that time forgot. They will still be drinking Budweiser, High Life and Jack and still willing to share their company with all good souls who care to join the party.
We’re relieved to say the least. Rumor had it a large corporate company had their beady little eyes all over it and if they had bought it we would have another vicious bloodsucking gorilla planting his fist smack down on our block, feverishly tapping into a plump Eastside vein and siphoning more of our precious Eastside income to some other state, or country even. Luckily, it was just Pete, a local resident and business owner. What a relief. Pete spends his money here on the Eastside so feel free to support him all you like. Thanks Pete, you spared The Lake from inevitable corporate demolition and preserved a little piece of local history (so to speak). It certainly has it’s charm.
We apologize (half-heartedly) for the offensive (hopefully) manner in which we refer to just about all corporate commercial chains. It’s just that we feel they are responsible for local economic strife regardless of the national economic climate, good or bad. They divert millions of dollars a month straight to their corporate headquarters which few if any are in our area (Lee’s is based out of Newtown). Eastsiders must make every effort to spend as exclusively as possible at Eastside owned businesses if we are to preserve any local economic stability regardless of who’s in the oval office. Now or 50 years from now.
