Thursday, March 26, 2015

Bar Rescue's Piratz Tavern (Corporate Bar & Grill) To Close

Photo - Spike TV
Piratz Tavern in Silver Spring, Maryland, which was featured on the second season of Bar Rescue has announced that they will close on April 4th due to the bar losing their lease.  Tracy, the owner of the bar, posted the following message on the "The Soul of Piratz Tavern" Facebook group.

"It is with a heavy heart that I have to deliver the sad news that Piratz Tavern has lost it's lease. Our last night will be April 4th. I am trying to keep this information within the family as we really don't want to deal with anymore bullshit from the reality TV world. Thanks to all who worked and played so hard to make the last eight years so great. The memories will last forever!"
The Piratz Tavern episode of Bar Rescue is one of the show's most popular and controversial episodes.   Jon Taffer got rid of the pirate theme at the bar and renamed it Corporate Bar & Grill.  This upset the owners and regulars who wanted to keep the pirate theme, and quickly after Jon Taffer left, they removed all of Bar Rescue's changes and reinstalled the pirate theme.  They sold items from the Bar Rescue makeover and supposedly spent $60,000 to get the bar back to the way they wanted it.  Also the self serve draft beer tables didn't have the proper permits, so they were removed.  Piratz Tavern even posted a Youtube video of them burning the Corporate Bar & Grill sign, and as of today, this video has been viewed over 200,000 times.


After the makeover, the owners and customers were publicly critical of Jon Taffer and his concept, and Jon Taffer felt they were more concerned with being pirates rather than making profits.  Also, fans of Bar Rescue flooded the Piratz's Yelp page to give a bunch of 1-star reviews (over 200 of which have been filtered).  A fan of the bar reached out to Jon Taffer on Facebook about this, and Jon Taffer actually responded to a fan saying he wanted his fans to be civil but also that the pirates brought this upon themselves with the way they acted.

One of the most common questions I get asked is "Is Piratz still open?," and the answer to that question will soon be 'No'.  If you want to get your pirate fix before they close, you have a little over a week to do so.  When they close on April 4th, the bar will be updated as 'Closed' on the Bar Rescue Update Page.


UPDATE - After everyone found out about the closure, Piratz Tavern posted the following on their Facebook page:
"Hear Ye, Hear Ye! Piratz Tavern will open it's doors for the last time on Saturday April 4th. Unfortunately the negative publicity, constant prank calls, vandalism and bogus reviews generated by our unfortunate participation on Bar Rescue have taken their toll. To add insult to injury, late last year Taffer's crew reached out to me again asking that we participate in a back to the bar episode. They promised that it would be followed by a re-rescue and that they would right all the wrong's committed during the first episode. Obviously I don't learn. I believed them. On December 1st we went to the effort to open on a Monday, the one day a week we have been closed for 8 years, with a skeleton staff of former employees who agreed to play the parts. It was basically coerced and staged to be an opening act for a re-rescue. I was told to bring in several changes of clothes to make it appear that filming covered several days. As usual they brought in a bunch of extras to fill the house and we were told what to say and with whom to speak. Throughout the entire shoot the director coached Juciano to curse and say negative things about John Taffer. He referred to me as the "hero", my daughter as the "victim" and Juciano as the "villan". Total bullshit frown emoticon Basically we have been fucked by reality TV again and with know one to blame but ourselves, we have decided not to renew our lease. Just can't take anymore. Director James Agiesta sweet talked me into the deal and then left us behind like carnage, just like the first time. A HUGE thanks to all of you who worked and played so hard to make Piratz Tavern the awesome place it has been for the last 8 years."
So, the bar will be on an upcoming episode of Bar Rescue and they appear to be saying everything was faked in hopes of another makeover.  I guess we will see when that airs...


Here is a preview of the "Back To The Bar" episode that will air on Sunday, April 5th and the clip features Piratz Tavern (video after the break):


108 comments:

  1. Wow, took almost 3 years for that ship to sink!

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  2. I'm not surprised that they are closing...except that they actually lasted longer than I thought!

    Perhaps the Piratz Tavern employees can move to Chicago and work for that self-delusional no-talent hippie woman who owns the Underground Wonder Bar. Or they can move to Council Bluffs, Iowa and find jobs at the O'Face Bar! ;-)

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  3. *cough*KARMA*cough*BITCH*coughcough*

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  4. Ugh! Don't remind me of the hippie whack job!

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  5. Another article about this: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/going-out-guide/wp/2015/03/26/pirate-themed-piratz-tavern-will-hoist-its-last-tankard-on-april-4/

    Now, it seems they're changing their tune a bit: Because of all the negative publicity, crank calls, etc., they just can't take it anymore, and are therefore deciding to not renew their lease.......

    Top that off, apparently BR went to do some filming for an upcoming "Back To The Bar" special airing a week from Sunday, and Tracy is saying how they made them open on a Monday, promised them a re-rescue, and to "right the wrongs" of the previous rescue, staged everything, yadda, yadda, yadda.........

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  6. if they didn't want change why do they call BR ? or are they to lazy to do the cleaning and painting

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  7. A true pirate wouldn't wallow in self-pity when walking the plank.

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  8. I was curious how so many seriously mentally ill people stayed out of institutions and found each other.

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  9. A basement bar directly across the street from Piratz Tavern, which had similar hours of operation, has been closed since a fire, a week ago.
    http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/going-out-guide/wp/2015/03/20/what-will-happen-to-the-quarry-house-if-bombay-gaylord-is-demolished/

    If we accept the revised story, that this was a decision to close and not the loss of their lease, how is it Taffer's fault that in the week between that fire and the decision to close Piratz couldn't convert an appreciable number of Quarry House patrons into Piratz patrons.

    It has been my impression since I saw their operation on a Bar Rescue rerun that the principal reason they were able to keep their doors open for as long as they did was the publicity they generated from Bar Rescue. They may not like the bulk of the reviews they received from visitors who wanted to check out their bar after seeing it on Bar Rescue, but if you read the complaints of those actual visitors there's nothing there you can blame on Taffer.


    A second visit from Bar Rescue? Really only necessary if you want the free make-over, because the other lessons are pretty much a constant:


    1. This place is a dump! Clean this place up!
    2. Your drinks suck! Make better drinks!
    3. Your food sucks! Make better food!
    4. Your service sucks! Give better service!
    5. Your leadership sucks! Step up to the plate!


    (Oddly, in creating a five point synopsis of Taffer's counsel, I find myself using more exclamation marks than I would normally use in a year.)

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  10. I'm willing to bet that since since they weren't savvy enough to tag the post for "friends only" and their secret got out, they decided to change their tune about the reason, and lay the blame entirely at Taffer's feet.

    You know, I get the appeal of wanting to play pirate. I used to belong to a Renaissance guild, whose motto was "Nobles by day, Pirates by night!" And I would have some sympathy for them if they had done one of two things: 1) Actually tried to operate as Corporate Bar & Grill for at least a couple of weeks, or 2) opened during lunch even after they went back to Piratz. Hell, they could have even taken a page from my old guild slogan and been Corporate by day, and Piratz by night! By not even trying to take so much of a sliver of that lunchtime business, it becomes obvious that all Tracy wanted to do was "Be a pirate", and the money be damned!

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  11. Interestingly, Sara from Second Base posted a comment on the Piratz Facebook thread expressing sympathy, saying "we fell for it, too." Interesting, since Sara came off pretty well in both Second Base episodes, IMO.

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  12. I live in walking distance of Piratz Tavern and regularly patronize other bars in Silver Spring (that's Silver Spring, singular! There is ONE silver spring that the area is named after) and around D.C. (Silver Spring is on the border with D.C. and has its own Metro station). I've never been a Piratz Tavern fan but have had many friends through the years who have so I've had drinks there with them. First off, never believe anything on TV 100%. It's edited in a way that is supposed to be entertaining for the viewer and flattering for the main TV personality. It's not edited to be factual.
    With a concept like Piratz Tavern, that bar was always going to be a niche. That being said, the actions taken in the Piratz Tavern "Bar Rescue" episode were seriously flawed. Silver Spring is a major job center in the D.C. region. The two major white collar employers are Discovery Communications and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (a sub-agency of the U.S. Dept. of Commerce). The office workers in those two organizations tend to be science and tech-oriented. They tend to rage against "corporate" imagery like the makeover in the "Bar Rescue" program. They also tend to wear, slouchy, casual clothes to work rather than business clothes like those of us who work downtown (D.C.). In truth, the actual corporate lobbyists just down the street on K Street would balk at a "corporate" bar as it would hit too close to home for them.
    While the owner of Piratz isn't blameless in this sad chain of events, she has a point about the serious damage that appearing on an episode of "Bar Rescue" did to her struggling business. I just don't get why she agreed to film another episode after had bad experience the first time around. Please enjoy your TV show but recognize that it's entertainment so don't necessarily take its side of the story as gospel.

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  13. Everything you say is 100% true, and you can't say enough about the "Corporate" makeover being a complete set-up for reality television entertainment purposes. But, saying the owner "isn't blameless" is letting her off easy. Piratz before and after Bar Rescue was really a terrible terrible bar. It doesn't excuse Taffer for essentially using them with no intention of making a viable concept, but Piratz lasting even one year in business baffles me.

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  14. I think nearly all of us agree that name change was one of Taffer's rare misses. However, that is a relatively minor consideration. I'd have more sympathy for Tracy if she had at least tried to run Corporate B&G for a couple of weeks, or even if she opened Piratz for lunch and tried to slice off a tiny bit of the lunch crowd.

    While I don't agree with the stupid stuff social media has enabled the ruder elements of our society to do (bad yelp reviews, crank calling, etc.), I still hold Tracy and her crew largely responsible for their misfortunes.

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  15. Wow, my respect for her just dropped like a bucket....Interesting side note: in looking at her page, I see a couple pictures of her with someone who looks like Gary and (presumably) her kids. I guess her and Gary are involved/married?

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  16. @Cavin, you say "...she has a point about the serious damage that appearing on an episode of 'Bar Rescue' did to her struggling business...."

    In looking at the online reviews, good, bad and indifferent, her bar received a huge amount of traffic based upon curiosity -- could it really be as bad as Bar Rescue suggested -- with far too many patrons concluding, "Yes, it could -- and it is." Without the attention generated by Bar Rescue, including the ability to play victim to patrons and supporters, it seems likely that the bar would have closed a lot sooner.

    We have two versions of the rescue -- the televised version, and the "Who are you going to believe, me or your lying eyes" version on the Piratz Tavern website. While we can certainly take the Bar Rescue narrative with a grain of salt, and it does not appear to be in dispute that some aspects of the TV account were misleading (e.g., Piratz reports that the chef brought in at the end of the show, with what seemed like an implication that he was found by Bar Rescue, was hired shortly before the rescue occurred), the Piratz version seems to me to wallow in far too much self-pity and to reply too heavily on denial and hyperbole.

    I think it's wildly inaccurate to suggest (as @Gabe did) that Taffer "essentially us[ed] them with no intention of making a viable concept" -- other than in the details, the rescue seemed to position them for strong success. It was the absence of pirate details that caused the owner to revert the bar, not the proposed business model.


    @David, Piratz did experiment with lunch business a year or so ago, apparently without success. I suspect that has to do with the business being a mismatch for what the area workers wanted in a lunch -- good food, served quickly, as opposed to slower service, lesser food, and a pirate theme.

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  17. Based on its website, Piratz did experiment with lunch service about a year ago.

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  18. I went and looked. Where did it say they did that?

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  19. Cavan, while you have some salient points here, trying to paint Discovery / NOAA workers as having some kind of hipster culture which would make them allergic to the makeover is not one of them.


    You're basically trying to hand-wave away criticism of Piratz here by saying the branding would turn everyone away, it wouldn't (and it didn't). Same with the 'damage' of free publicity. The extra traffic is what let her limp along up until now. I really don't know where the 'Taffer had no intention of giving them a viable concept' comes from either. The owner had a viable concept given to her, she just decided that playing dress up was more important.


    So, the market decided, and good riddance.

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  20. They could work at Wonderbar, but since there's no customers, they wouldn't make any money

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  21. Could you see them actually having enough money to lease another place? I can't

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  22. Bunch of wackos...seems the former owner wants to blame everyone but himself for the bars closing. It was a losing proposition to begin with. Pirates? oh for petes sake. Maybe at a kids birthday party but not for grown ups. Man up and grow up dude. You won't succeed anywhere until you change the attitude. Everything that went wrong starts with YOU.

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  23. ha! Have you ever been to the Wonder Bar? That place is going to outlive the cockroaches. I've played there at 2am to a packed house. Don't believe everything you see on TV, friends.

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  24. I'm surprised they were open as long as they were.

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  25. So where are all the Jack Sparrow wannabes going to go to drink grog. Their Facebook page talks about people finding their spouses at that bar. Looks like all the nerds are going to go back to looking for love at the conventions.

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  26. strangely satisfying and yes, shamefully, I laughed out loud because of the attitude of the owner in the first place. It appears pirates have run aground once again.

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  27. They're removed the content, but they still have a 'lunch' page,
    http://piratztavern.com/lunch/

    If you go to the very bottom of the comments for this YouTube video:
    https://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=OEFUc_Lpv-Q
    You'll see a post where Tracy Rebelo announces that they're open for lunch.

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  28. I have no doubt that the general concept Taffer created was viable. There was a basement bar directly across the street from Piratz that was able to make money with similar hours. There are restaurants all around Piratz that are able to make money selling lunch. It's easy enough to take the memo pads off of the table and, even if it annoys Jon Taffer, rename the bar -- they did that, anyway.

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  29. If I were Rebelo, I would go to Kickstarter and see if she can find enough people who love pirates and/or hate Jon Taffer to give her the start-up money.

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  30. I dedicate the following to Jon Taffer & the B.R. crew. Tracy & Piratz crew I got two words for you; SUCK IT!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsaTElBljOE

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  31. It's apparent that the regulars are upset, and their FB page has nothing but "we'll miss you" posts, but the fact remains that the theme was outdated and just not working. Yeah, they stayed open awhile, but new customers and people who may have spent more money were not attracted to that atmosphere. The owner had her mind made up that the concept wouldn't work, because she didn't want to try and make a go of it. She had it in her head that her Pirate idea was the best thing ever. Kudos for doing something original (I guess), but there was no way that place would survive long term and be really profitable. The fact that they made it this long is shocking.

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  32. I want to say that the immature behavior on social media was uncalled for. That I do understand. The rest of the blame lies squarely on the owner and her poor decision making.

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  33. Considering you used the DX catchphrase, maybe this version might be more appropriate.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OgNyzJJcng

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  34. Nah I prefer the real song compared to Punks version. But I think we're all in agreement Tracy & her co-horts got what they deserved. The only one I feel sorry for is her daughter. Hopefully she found a way out. What kills me w/ a number of these owners is their supidity /stubborness. Now I can be one of the most stubborn guys on the planet but if a man like Big Jon came across the country to help me set up a bar I'd listen to him, take notes, ask a ton of questions re: everything an owner needs to know, (stuff most don't know like P&L statements and other paperwork I never heard of before BR) learn everything I can from the man.

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  35. Maybe we could get Jon and Tracy to perform a duet of this one? Tweak the lyrics a bit, have the proceeds go to charity....
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPudE8nDog0

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  36. I thought it was just way too extreme to go from Piratz to Corporate. I think taking something like that new Patriot House one to something closer to Corporate would've been much more realistic. Piratz still needed to be fun and pirate-y, just maybe not so over the top. "Ahoy matey" to "suits and ties" just wasn't going to work.

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  37. so is the family stuck in moms basement for ever now LOL

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  38. Maybe if the pirate decorations weren't so cheesy and cluttered looking (think the rescue of the zombie place with the rescue from $1 store Halloween to cool zombie decorations) and more cooler pirate or more subdued(combo of corp. and pirate ) maybe it may work-oh well.

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  39. Good point, the cheesiness of the before look definitely did not help. I'm not sure if they could have "un-cheesed" it enough for it to do better.

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  40. I couldn't agree, more! The same thought occurred to me. "Pearls before swine", and, frankly, I'm DELIGHTED to see some of these places FAIL. Taffer's "cut" must be HUGE that he willingly wades through so much rank swill and frustrating egomaniacs. Taffer is a SAINT!

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  41. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 5, 2015 at 5:55 PM

    Arg Matey, break out the rum. Didn't see the first time but will watch the new one tonight

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  42. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 5, 2015 at 8:29 PM

    Wow. I am watching the original makeover episode now. It's little wonder that this operation to remake this business failed. This women wanted to be a Pirate and was unrealistic about her situation. I have never seen someone this delusional outside of a mental institution. $900K in debt, serving drinks that you would only buy one of, and living in her mother's basement with her husband and daughter.

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  43. Based on her inability to spell I'm not surprised she just doesn't get it.

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  44. I had the same feeling. That' s why some of the bars close. They make it their personal playground, not a business!

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  45. People keep saying "The fact that they made it this long is shocking", no it isn't because they were over $900,000. in debt. Any business can stay open as long as they can continue to be in debt. What everyone needs to remember is that they weren't succeeding as a Pirate themed restaurant, so if something doesn't work you change it. If Corporate didn't work, change it or get out of the business.

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  46. This delusional "Lady" lies and lies. She said Gaffer filled the bar with fake customers? Only 2 people came in for Taffer, ate, and left. Over an hour noone else comes in? Looks like you lose again. You did t even give the Corporate Bar time to fail. It was in business less than a day. Dump the Loser Husband/ boyfriend, what ever he is, get a job at McDonald's and get a one bedroom apt for u and your daughter. U sleep on the couch. It will beat your mom's basement. Also. That loser needed no coaching from Taffer crew how to swear (or fail at life). Your so stupid u can't even fix ur life

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  47. So just saw this in the Back to the bar episode and decided to look it up. Um okay. So they wanted Bar Rescue to help them make changes, but don't want to loose the theme or anything... they already had a reputation. It's always best to get away from said reputation. Also... It looks like when they changed it back, they didn't change much, and it was just as tacky as before... How is that better in any way than what Taffer had chosen to change?


    And of course they made themselves the victim. Okay so they get some trolls as a result as of the show. Not that big a deal, but annoying and stupid. I hate trolls. But what about people who actually went there and left a review for it afterwards? If they can't even keep people happy and coming back, why are they the victims?

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  48. Closing the day before the Back to the Bar episode airs. Hilarious.

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  49. On Back to the Bar, Taffer pronounced Piratz an "Epic Fail"!!!

    I'm honored!! lol

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  50. If you watched the "Back to the Bars" episode, then you saw how Moonrunners turned out to be one of Jon's successful rescues. The owner was stubborn and constantly in battle with his sister, regardless how much of the drama was manufactured for television. However, by his own admission, he followed Jon's advice, kept his changes (with some minor tweaks) and look at how great they are doing. As an FYI, I have a cousin who lives in Garner....she and her boyfriend went to Moonrunners a couple of weeks ago. After their experience she put a post on FB saying the place was packed and that Jon Taffer would be proud...

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  51. It's obvious that she is just dick whipped by her sexual fantasy with the guy she is with who's obviously younger than her. Get over it and ditch the leach!

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  52. This woman refuses to take responsibility for her failure. The old concept failed, they kept the new one for 1 day then reverted back to the same concept that failed before. That is the definition not of insanity but stupidity.

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  53. This lady is mentally ill. I would never go to a Pirate bar. "Do you want to send your daughter to college, or be a pirate?" How deranged to u have to be to choose "Pirate"

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  54. Taffer did not understand the owner she said that she escaped the corporate world and Taffer renamed it The Corporate a slap in the face of the owner!!

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  55. You cant teach a idiot plain and simple. If your concept is not working time to move ON. Taffer gave this bar a new beginning but they wanted to play pirate . Just go's to show you some people have no business running a bar. Don't blame Jon because your a moron who went back to a failed concept the next day. You showed em ey Jons styling your in ma mas basement .

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  56. they want to blame bar rescue but really i think they did it to themselves and wouldnt have stayed open anyway long.but when do delusional ppl ever get it?

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  57. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 5:20 PM

    Scary stuff. They knew that the Pirate theme was a money sucker so they let Jon remodel and hit a homeroom on the grand reopening andhe's a good cook" de good money. But they were stuck to their hobby, the Pirate life, so they destroyed everything Jon did, likely the reason they stayed in biz is they sold off the high dollar stuff Jon gave them.
    15k people close that could have come for lunch or an after work drink at a Corp bar OR A PROVEN LOSER with a pirate themed restaurant where the cook doesn't know shiite about cooking. Why is he the cook? Because he's the owners husband, not because he's a decent cook.
    This was sad. To watch a person self destruct and try to blame it on Jon after just ONE DAY, that appeared to be a real winner of a day, and go back to the Pirate theme to finish losing the rest of her meger net worth.
    I watched both episodes and when I saw that the owner had no shame for what was served. And then the cook/husband was upset because "he's a good cook. " And the Titanic was a great ship. You knew before it was done that the owner was a Pirate fanatic but you thought after she saw how a real restaurant with customers looked after the remodel that she would try it.

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  58. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 5:38 PM

    And would you expect a Pirate themed lunch to do well for a corporate lunch? The woman had lost $900K and she didn't think the essence of the business needed to change. The woman would rather play pirate than make money. I have seldom seen someone so opposed to good advice by someone who CAN run a profitable bar.
    The question I have is they seemed so proud of gutting Jon remodel that made more money in one night than she was making ever and filming the burning when he left, are they still so proud of this money losing enterprise. This has the flavor and sadness of watching someone mentally ill harm themselves after you've calls the family many times. To know that Pirates was a failure, all she had to do was look at her bank statement. It was a failure and it continues to be a failure until their money was gone.

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  59. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 5:39 PM

    Exactly

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  60. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 5:50 PM

    Hahaha

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  61. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 6:05 PM

    It would have worked if they wanted to be profitable. Jon looked at the demographics and there were none listed under pirate light.

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  62. Thank you, I’ll be here all week.
    And be sure to tip your waitresses folks.

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  63. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 6:21 PM

    How deranged to u have to be to choose "Pirate"
    The Answer is Very

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  64. Shocked_and_Amazed8591April 6, 2015 at 6:25 PM

    Taffer gave her a probable money maker. She was running her own show and crashed and burned badly. To be 900K in debt and to also loose your house? It hadn't been ever been a money maker. She was offered a money maker and went and played Pirate. Well, in a battle of wills, she won...the right to lose her ass.

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  65. As I stated below, "I suspect [the failure of their lunch service] has to do with the business being a mismatch for what the
    area workers wanted in a lunch -- good food, served quickly, as opposed
    to slower service, lesser food, and a pirate theme."

    Her statements during the update episode suggested either that she was ready to reconsider the pirate theme in the interest of turning a profit, or that she was hoping for another visit by Bar Rescue that she could use as a publicity stunt. I'm not sure which.

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  66. She could easily have changed the name while keeping the business model, one that could have attracted a significant lunch and after-work crowd, instead of immediately going back to a boutique model with evening-only hours and a limited market. Her choice was not binary.

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  67. "fucked" by reality TV so hard the first time you subjected yourself to it again in the hopes that they would come back a third time? Seems legit.

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  68. Always with the 'don't believe what you see on TV.' Sounds like a lot of nonsense. She said herself they didn't even try the concept for 24 hours. And if there was so much damage and BR is so horrible, why was she (by her own admission!) going for a third appearance on the show?

    Yeah, they dramatize for tv, but when it comes to business, Taffer knows what he is doing.

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  69. Lizabeth S. TuckerApril 6, 2015 at 8:46 PM

    I love how it is everyone else's fault when a bar fails because, despite asking for help, the owners won't listen. The makeover was beautiful. Maybe not what they wanted, but a pirate themed bar needs to be in a pirate area. Tampa, the Keys, somewhere like that.

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  70. The Maharincess of FranistanApril 7, 2015 at 12:50 AM

    The update was even more hilarious than the rescue show. These people worked overtime putting themselves into debt. Taffer at least tried to pull then out it!

    Now they can play Pirate ALL DAY long in Tracey's mom's basement. Her dumb husband should walk the plank.

    Now that would be a happy ending.

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  71. I heard the she is opening a new bar called ISIS. Catering to mujahedin fighters. I wish her well

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  72. Watching the rerun right now. I really like Mike. I would hire him at my bar. That guy has a very good wit customer relations

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  73. There's no spinning the mental illness of the owner, friend. Saavy enough to scam a remodel out of Jon and pull a Piratz, but mentally ill nonetheless.

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  74. This woman didn't get slapped in the face enough. I feel so sorry for their daughter, it's obvious Juicy or whatever her husband's name is has a toxic personality, and she seems to be caught in Stockholm syndrome. Her daughter should get a job at a real bar and get as far away as possible from Juicy and Mrs.Pirate.

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  75. Corporate never had a chance to work - they removed the stuff almost immediately. So we'll never know if it could have worked, simply because they didn't even give it a try.

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  76. Thank goodness Taffer did not re-rescue...NEVER seen a more ungrateful group of people. My son goes to college in College Park, Md, and after the rudeness and disrespect they showed John Taffer, even though we are regularly in the area to go to the art supply store caddy corner to Piratz, we would NEVER patronize them! It's not reality TV that cost them their lease, it is their ignorance in not taking the advice of a world renowned expert to whom people pay VAST SUMS for guidance and advice. I certainly hope the producers of Bar Rescue vet potential owners FAR MORE CAREFULLY. Taffer should have them sign agreements to keep his concept in place for six months! Failure to comply should result in repayment of all sums expended! GOOD RIDDENS TO BAD RUBBISH ON PIRATZ!

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  77. U let your dumb pride screwup a million dollar ideal. I feel bad for daughter she could have been set for life.. So sad that she going to be low pay waitress cuz you wanted to play pirates you should be ashamed of yourself listening to that clown of a boyfriend . LOSERS-BRACKET

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  78. A pirate theme is good, just not in that area. A Corporate theme is just a bad idea, and since some of the enhancements were not allowable, I wouldn't consider this bar "rescued" in any sense. Given the corporate environment in which they were located, something more general that focused on good food for corporate catering and a good after-work happy hour drink program would have been more lucrative and not been as far in the opposite direction as they went.

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  79. These comments lasted longer than this bar failure. They knew before Bar Rescue that the concept was flawed regardless of all this deep analysis of the Silver Spring bar scene by the fact THAT THEY WERE LIVING IN THE PARENTS BASEMENT. That the debt they had could have never been overcome and that neither the wife or husband owners had the skill set to run a bar period.

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  80. When you consider that Discovery Communications is literally across the street from the bar, the pirate theme should have worked for lunch. But that would defeat the whole purpose of Jon Taffer yelling, "NEEEEEEERRRRDDDDSSSSSS!!!!!!!!"

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  81. If you were playing that place to a packed house at 2am, those people were not there for the bar, they were there to hear YOUR band. Go somewhere else with your band, and that same crowd will follow you to another bar.

    They certainly weren't there to hear the talentless owner get on stage and wail like a moaning banshee.

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  82. Except Discovery is NOT ''literally across the street'' so you go fuck yourself for being wrong. And the pirate concept was never going to work.

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  83. Discovery certainly has its fair share of office drones.

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  84. When I watched the Pirate show, concluding with the rename to Corporate, I felt that Taffer hated her and wanted to stick it to her re the Corporate name. I agree that the name Corporate was a stinker, but I felt it was done with purpose....

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  85. Does no good to have a packed house when no one is buying drinks...

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  86. She blames John Gaffer & Bar Rescue for the closure but what about the fact that she was $900k - $1m in the hole. You think tat had something to do with it????

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  87. Sorry... I meant John Taffer (damn autocorrect)

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  88. Yes, but I read those bullet points out in John Taffers voice! :)

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  89. Their daughter's not going to college anytime soon. It's not that she's dumb it's just that her parents are holding her back. They need that 3rd pay check. The only way I can see her going is if she's incredibly talented and gets a scholarship.

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  90. Michael R RmartinezMay 11, 2015 at 12:33 PM

    How sad only three years it took for
    Pirates to go completely TItts up

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  91. As an interesting follow-up to Piratz being unable to capitalize on the closure of Quarry House, it turns out that Quarry House was able to capitalize on the closure of Piratz:

    http://dcist.com/2015/04/quarry_house_to_temporarily_reopen.php

    "It was a sad day for Silver Spring when a two-alarm fire burned down the Bombay Gaylord Indian restaurant and left its downstairs neighbor—the beloved dive bar Quarry House—out of commission. But now Quarry House is coming back—at least temporarily—in the space formerly occupied by the recently shuttered Piratz Tavern."

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  92. I would have visited that place just to take a shot at the owner. She was hot in a freaky way.

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  93. Yeah you can't believe everything on tv but she blow a big opportunity to make money Jon Taffer was trying to help her and that's what I believe his intent we're to was it's not about being a a pirate its called making money making a living and it's true her husband is an a****** on the TV and its true about her part you care more about your daughter or being a pirate to me she took the pirate over family to live in your mother basement loser she needs to grow out and who burn something that probably caused Taffer crew in team a lot of money to help her out she is a lost cause and a loser in my eyes I'm not a big corporate person but guess what I would have embrace it and made money that's the important part and putting my daughter in school it would have made a lot of money but people are actually having fun and her negativity put her employees down in the people liked it better than she did the owner She such a loser and you can help people Jon Taffer is right about that bars is easy to fix not people in this case she's a lost cause and I feel sorry for her daughter because I seen another bars he fix and their still going strong

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  94. I just seen that video of burning it wow is she such a loser how old is she when I seen her crew they look like promising good working people and she made them to be losers like her just because she didn't want it didn't mean they didn't want it she ruined their hopes and dreams I hate people and there's no hope for people like that she should have never had a business she didn't deserve it and she didn't deserve Jon Taffer and what he did for her all i have to say is a big ass loser

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  95. I Also just watched a video of the husband her talking about him coming back and talking to my daughter like that what an a****** and a loser like her daughter said her daughter is smarter than she is a I seen it looks like it was making money that's what's important God the girls smarter than you and if a guy ever talk to my daughter like that I would knock him the f*** out he is such a loser and you are to you let your daughter down because of your stupid pirate theme and your stupid ass husband you can't take the truth John Taffer and be a little mean but he delivers But your husband and you can't deliver cuz he's an idiot and an a****** I wouldn't blame John he shouldn't come back he did fix your bar you didn't take his advice why would I ever comes back to that bar with too immature owners that can't work for money and not play all day like little children God is watching those too they are such losers I can't take it no more

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  96. I use this episode in my business seminars as a prime example of how ego, arrogance and denying all the figures that are staring you in the face will ultimately bankrupt you. The pirate theme might have worked in another location, but surrounded by high rise office blocks it was a joke. Everyone but the owner and the staff knew that, and the fact the bar ran into massive debt is the ultimate proof. I'm not surprised that the owners are still trying to blame Bar Rescue, as it is just an extension of the denial we all witnessed when watching the episode. This is a perfect example of how not to run a bar.

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  97. I can't believe the number of MORONS who are babbling that the Corporate bar wouldn't have worked! HOW WOULD ANYONE KNOW?! That Half-Witted Ditz only gave it TWO DAYS! Then that incompetent moron went back to living in her little fantasy world.
    I don't feel sorry for that bimbo! Good enough for her and her leech of a husband. She Tried to use Bar Rescue to generate publicity for her tacky little bar. She was stupid enough to think that publicity would solve all her problems so she wouldn't have to keep the Intelligent changes that Jon made. I would have been Very Interested in going to the Corporate Bar. That laughable little pirate bar looked like something for kids. Except it served alcohol.
    That space-cadet and her husband need to a serious reality check! They obviously do not know very much about how to Successfully run a business. Jon TRIED to teach them but you can't Fix Stupid!

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  98. These people wanted a re-rescue?!?! smh

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  99. I'll have a Gin&Tonic and a box of crayons please

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  100. How does Tracy with her communications background believe she can run a hospitality business with no experience? And put her mail order husband in the kitchen with no cooking experience? My wish to Jon Taffer: please help Tracy's daughter with college; perhaps some sort of coop work/study? That girl was the only one who made sense - and its apparent she does not like Juciano! I wish her luck in the future.

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  101. Haha right! If I never seen prior episodes of bar rescue, seeing that name change I'd just think, wow that's straight up mean.

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  102. The "basement bar"—Quarry House—has been in business for decades, and after a recent fire actually moved into the Piratz site until repairs are completed in the home location.

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  103. Thank you! As a Silver Spring native, I watched that episode and screamed at the the television that Taffer was completely off the mark and that Silver Spring is not what one would call a corporate town. Not only is NOAA a major employer in the area, but most of the privately owned businesses in Silver Spring work on Federal Government contracts and are more Fed-adjacent than they are "corporate" in the designer-suited executive sense.


    Silver Spring has a quirky, laid-back culture and a place like Piratz could well have worked theme-wise if the quality of the food, service, and management had been better.

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  104. The woman put her obnoxious little worm of a husband before her daughter's needs. She's as lousy a mother as she is a business woman. Just as well her business closed.

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