Sunday, March 11, 2012

piratz tavern re-opens to full house (updated)

UPDATE: In the comments, Piratz Tavern waitress Poppet (who has served me several times over the past 3 years) offered her account of what really happened on Bar Rescue:

For the record. I am one of the tavern staff who has been there for over 4 years. I was involved in the whole bar rescue nightmare from begining to end. Bar Rescue provided NO TRAINING! That is a lie for tv. The only thing they did was remodel the space. Even that they did badly. Many of our service issues were due to previous empolees who are no longer with us. The rest of us are doing everything possible to improve tavern on our own
If you have not been for a while, or had a bad experiance in the past, please give us a try again. We have greatly improved due to a dedicated careing staff. These improvements are due to us and HAVE NOTHING TO DUE with Bar Rescue.

We're hearing from several sources that local bar Piratz Tavern is back in business after shutting down and being remodeled by reality TV show Bar Rescue two weeks ago.

Photo by Joshua Lynsen.

Yesterday afternoon, Twitter user Joshua Lynsen announced that the bar would reopen at 5pm and posted this photo of the logo for Corporate Bar and Grill, the bar's new name, adorned with a eye patch. A few hours later, he posted another photo of a packed bar, complete with servers dressed as pirates and wenches.

Chris Burroughs, another Twitter user, told us he went to Piratz and "had a great evening of grog and steak on a stone," while friend of JUTP Chip Py saw the bar open while leaving the Quarry House and took these photos of happy waitstaff and customers back in their element. "Piratz lives!" he texted me.

Corporate Bar and Grill's logo has an eye patch on it to signal the return of Piratz Tavern. Photo by Joshua Lynsen.

Piratz Tavern Back Patio
Piratz Tavern's back patio, seen from the parking garage across the street.

It looks like some but not all of the original pirate decor has returned. In the back patio, the cannons, hanged pirates and other decorations are gone, while the remaining tables, chairs and thatched-roof bar are piled together in a big mess. Looking down from the Bonifant-Dixon parking garage across the street, I could also see someone working, though I wasn't clear what he was doing.

I'm glad to see Piratz Tavern coming back. There are other factors that make it hard to open and run a bar in Silver Spring or anywhere in Montgomery County, but as many of our intrepid commenters point out, the best way to stay open is to have a good product. Piratz needed the help, and even if the owners decided not to keep the new look Bar Rescue host Jon Taffer gave the bar, they and their staff will benefit from the training and advice given by the show the added publicity of appearing on a reality TV show. [Scroll up to see our correction -ed.]

Hopefully, Piratz will be able to keep the grog flowing for a long time to come.

7 comments:

jag2923 said...

Certainly hope they've learned a lot and will be a much better "tavern" than the weak, 3 beer excuse they were before. Wish them the best. Really hope they and Society aren't disappointments.

Annie said...

It was incredible to be back at the Tavern Saturday. A great, lively crowd, including big party for a returning soldier, made for a fantastic evening. The magic is back, and we can once again escape the ordinary.

Unknown said...

Piratz Tavern has always been a great hangout. Far from a "3-beer excuse." Improvements were necessary, but location and the county's bizarre liquor laws can't be fixed by a reality TV show. The proof is in the pudding, and that the place was packed this past Saturday night speaks volumes about the loyal clientele and how they feel about the theme, the food, the beer, and the service. And that a soldier returning from overseas specifically called the Tavern from Afghanistan to ask to hold his welcome home party there should be enough to quiet the nay sayers. Besides hundreds of regular pirate customers can't be wrong. Do YOU want to tell them they're wrong?

poppet said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dan Reed said...

Thanks for setting us straight, Poppet. I'm glad to see Piratz is back open and I look forward to seeing what y'all have done to make it better.

jag2923 said...

They had more than 3 beers? Not by many.... I don't expect the place to rival Quarry House or any real bar, but it certainly was dysfunctional to enter a "tavern" that had a selection worse than my personal fridge and a children's play area as the first thing you see. Hopefully the ship has been righted (see what I did there?) and the place will flourish. Pointing to 1 re-grand opening night means exactly nothing as far as long-term viability, Unknown.

DTSSER said...

Great news! I love Piratz (and all you Piratz haters can go walk off a plank). I'm looking forward to seeing Poppet and the crew, throwing back some cannonballs, and playing games in the patio during this beautiful spring (in March?) weather.