The Chicken Bone (The Bone) From Bar Rescue To Close For The Summer

The Chicken Bone in Framingham, Massachusetts, which was on season 1 of Bar Rescue announced today that they would be closing for the rest of the summer.  The Chicken Bone was renamed to 'The Bone' during their Bar Rescue makeover, but they quickly went back to their original name.

In a status on their Facebook Page, the bar stated:

Dear Friends of The Chicken Bone:

Summertime has always been a very slow time of year for us here at The Chicken Bone. Many people are away on vacation and/or enjoying outdoor activities. This, combined with the changes in the economy and the rise in cost of living expenses, means we all have less money to spend on eating out and entertainment.

Up until last summer, The Chicken Bone had always been open 7 days a week. Last summer, in an effort to minimize the impact of the slow season, we reduced our operating hours and decided to be closed on Mondays. We have made the difficult decision to suspend our operations for the entire summer this year, with a re-opening scheduled for right after Labor Day.

We want to thank all of our staff and all of our customers for your friendship and support over the years. We know that The Chicken Bone would not be the special place that it is without all of you. We hope that you enjoy the summer and come back to see us in the fall for the great food and live music that The Chicken Bone is known for.

We will close beginning Tuesday June 17th and re-open after Labor Day. We apologize for any inconvenience and look forward to seeing you again in the fall.

Sincerely,
Bill & John

You would think that in a place like Massachusetts that business would be better in the summer than in the winter, but who knows.  Whether they follow through on their word of re-opening on Labor Day remains to be seen, so this will be one to watch.  For now, this bar will not be marked as closed on the Bar Rescue Update list, but if anything changes, there will be another update.

UPDATE - The Chicken Bone never reopened and closed for good.  More information on the closing.

Bar Rescue Specials To Air In The Coming Weeks

Photo - Spike

Just a heads up that this Sunday, there will be two half-hour Bar Rescue specials on Spike TV.  They will be at 9pm ET, and the first one is "Taffer's Top 10: Most Disgusting Bars", where Jon Taffer will count down the ten most "repulsive establishments" he has encountered up until this point.

The second half-hour special this Sunday is "Taffer's Top 10: Worst Owners", where there will be a countdown of the most unpleasant owners from the show over the years.

Next week on Sunday, June 29th, there will be two more Bar Rescue Top 10 specials at 9pm ET.  The first one will be "Taffer's Top 10: Angriest Moments" where Jon Taffer counts down his angriest moments from the show.  The second one is "Taffer's Top 10: Toughest Rescues" that counts down the toughest rescues that he has encountered.

O'Face's Liquor License Suspended Seven Days and Fined $1,000

On May 30th, O'Face agreed to a settlement with the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division for an incident that occurred at their bar on November 11th, 2012.  The bar admitted guilt and said they "sold, dispensed, or gave an alcoholic beverage or beer to persons who were intoxicated at the time."

According to the settlement, O'Face will have their liquor license suspended for seven days from 8am, October 5, 2014 to 8am, October 12, 2014.  During that period, the bar can remain open for other lawful activities, but no alcohol of any kind can be sold or given away during that time frame.  They also must pay $1,000 to the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division.

Here is the link with information regarding the settlement.

This comes just after the Council Bluffs City Council rejected their liquor license.  O'Face appealed that decision, and has a hearing date for their liquor license renewal on July 28th (link to documents).  Look for an update on that after the hearing occurs.

Bar Rescue - The V Bar (South Park Bar & Grill) Update

Tonight on Spike TV is the special 'lost' episode of Bar Rescue where they will be showing the pilot of the show for the first time.  Bar Rescue started airing on Spike TV in July of 2011, and this pilot was filmed in June of 2010.

In the pilot episode, Jon goes to South Park Bar & Grill in Montclair, New Jersey.  The bar has a hot head owner who is kicking both customers and employees out of his bar.  He also doesn't seem to respect his employees or Jon Taffer's knowledge.

It appears that they renamed South Park Bar & Grill to The V Bar (short for Vodka Bar) during the makeover, but the name did not stick.  The bar changed their name again to The Park Sports Bar not long after Jon Taffer made all of the changes.  Lets take a look at some information, reviews, and updates for The Park Sports Bar since Bar Rescue came to their bar in 2010.

The Never Before Seen 'Bar Rescue' Pilot Airs Sunday

This Sunday on Spike TV, the first ever episode of Bar Rescue that was filmed will be airing for the first time on TV.  Jon Taffer is at a New Jersey bar, where the owner has a habit of kicking out both customers and employees.

Spike TV has been airing this 15 second ad for the show, and there has also been a lot of chatter on social media about it.  Many people thought that when they saw a "lost" Bar Rescue episode would be airing that it would be the Music City Mess episode.  That was the Bar Rescue episode that was pulled after the bar owner killed someone at the bar just days before it was scheduled to air.  That episode accidentally aired once on Spike TV, but has not aired since. 

So if you are interested in seeing the first ever Bar Rescue filmed and seeing how much has changed since, be sure to tune in to Spike TV this Sunday at 8pm ET.  As a bonus, you get to see Jon Taffer rocking bowling shirts (pictured) and with a little more hair on his head.  Look for the update for the bar appearing in the episode to be posted here on Sunday.

Bar Rescue - Houston Sports Hub (End Zone) Update

Tonight on the season finale of Bar Rescue, Jon Taffer and crew are in Houston, Texas to try to rescue End Zone Sports Bar and Grill.  The bar and the kitchen in the End Zone is filthy and the beer they are serving the customers is sour.  The bar is owned by two "muscle-bound meatheads" who get in a fight with each other during the recon.  Two other female employees also get into a fight while the bar is under surveillance.  Despite all of the fighting, Jon Taffer still goes through with the rescue and makes over the bar.

During the Bar Rescue makeover, End Zone Sports Bar and Grill was renamed to Houston Sports Hub, and they seem to have kept the name.  Let's take a look at some information, reviews, and updates for Houston Sports Hub since Bar Rescue came and made all of the changes to the bar:

O'Face's Liquor License Renewal Rejected By City Council

Last night at the Council Bluffs, Iowa City Council meeting, the O'Face bar was trying to get their liquor license renewed, and it was rejected by the city council by a vote of 3-2.  There were seven liquor license applications reviewed that night, and O'Face's was the only one rejected.

The three city council members who voted against the renewal said that O'Face's appearance on Bar Rescue put the city in a bad light, and the mayor agreed.  They said the city is suffering as a result of the show and the mayor has received emails from around the country telling him how embarrassing it was for the city.

The mayor told the owner Matthew Overmyer "I understand this is a reality show, but the depiction of this inaccuracy has caused irreparable harm to the city.  This sort of show concerns me that you would hold out this community in a false light.  We all make mistakes, but we have to pay for them.”

Matt said that he has gotten a lot of negative feedback from people and even death threats and apologized for putting Council Bluffs in a bad light.  He was quoted as saying the experience has "been nothing but hell."   Matt plans to appeal the council decision to try to keep his license.

I guess as Jon Taffer would say, SHUT IT DOWN!

The local news is at the bar tonight interviewing employees, so we will see what they have to say tonight after the story airs.  I will do an update to this post or do another post if there is anything interesting said.

(Nonpareilonline)

Bar Rescue - Thirsty's Roadside Bar (Mary's Outpost) Update

On tonight's episode of Bar Rescue, Jon Taffer and crew are in Grand Prairie, Texas to try to rescue Mary's Outpost.  Mary's is a struggling dive bar with an owner who is handing out free drinks despite the fact that the bar is struggling.  The owner Bill also crosses the line with one of Jon Taffer's experts and tries to get girls to take their tops off in his back office.  He does this despite his wife working in the bar.

During the Bar Rescue makeover, Mary's Outpost was renamed to Thirsty's Roadside Bar.  From the looks of their website/Facebook, it looks like they are going with a combination of the two and will not commit to one name.  Let's take a look at some information, reviews, and updates for Thirsty's Roadside Bar since Bar Rescue came and made all of the changes to the bar:

Bar Rescue's Metal & Lace (Headhunters) Has Closed

Headhunters in Austin, Texas, which was on season 3 of Bar Rescue has closed.  When the bar appeared on Bar Rescue, it was renamed to Metal & Lace, and that name stuck for a bit, but looking at their Facebook page, it seems they reverted to Headhunters on all of their ads/flyers.

During the Headhunters episode, you may remember roaches in liquor bottles, the owner Steve Ricci clashing with Jon Taffer and also not paying his bartenders.  Jon didn't even say goodbye to him after he rescued his bar.

Last night, the Austin Chronicle is reporting that the door was locked and the staff was removing production gear from the stages.  When the owner Steve was asked for a comment he declined "citing legal reasons and a personal hatred for the Chronicle (“sucking cock backwards and only caring about themselves"), then asked me to leave".

Steve said he has nine locations he is considering for a future venue site, and there is speculation that there were issues with keeping his lease after the property was bought.  With Headhunters closing and moving out on the last day of the month, that speculation may be correct.

Looking at the public tax records for mixed beverage receipts in Texas, Headhunters claimed $598.77 in mixed beverage receipts in 2/2014 (in the 4-22 file).  For reference, other Bar Rescue bars in Texas had the following receipts for 2/2014 - The Brixton in Austin - $3204.54, and Bryant's Icehouse (Wildcatter) in Katy - $2258.10.

This is the 11th bar that has appeared on Bar Rescue to close, and the Bar Rescue Update Page has been updated with this information.

Bar Rescue - Taza (Oasis Hookah Bar) Update

On tonight's episode of Bar Rescue, Jon Taffer and crew are in Omaha, Nebraska to try to rescue Oasis Hookah Bar.  When Jon gets there, he notices a bad odor and also bad behavior from the bar employees.  The odor is supposedly a dead rat and the bar is also serving "toxic" drinks to customers.  One of the "toxic" drinks makes a customer puke after just one sip.

During the Bar Rescue makeover, Oasis Hookah Bar was renamed to Taza Nightclub.  The bar seems to be using both names and goes by Taza Nightclub/Oasis Hookah Bar.  Let's take a look at some information, reviews, and updates for Taza/Oasis since Bar Rescue came and made all of the changes to the bar: