BLOG POSTS:
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Another Coffee & Breakfast Option Downtown?
It sounds like someone is going to start selling coffee and breakfast at the old Transit Bldg downtown. According to the Belleville News Democrat, at its May 15th meeting, the Belleville City Council approved a short-term lease agreement with Paul Crissimo for six parking spaces and the transit plaza building at 211 E. A St. From June to August, Crissimo will pay the city $150 per month. Beginning in September, the monthly rent goes up to $200. Crissimo plans to sell coffee and breakfast items at the building. the following at it's Monday, May 15th meeting:
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Good Times Getting Even Better?
Now this sounds pretty exciting! Check out this article about Good Times' rebirth from today's Belleville News Democrat:
A group of guys with links to a pair of Soulard bars plan to follow in the footsteps of Big Daddy's 618 and set up shop in downtown Belleville. They see the city as the next entertainment hot spot. Luke Reynolds, who owns Molly's in the popular south St. Louis bar district, Brian Besse and Stephan Kezirian, who own Lafayette's, along with real estate investor Ted Quinn have bought the former Good Times bar and restaurant at 7 S. High St.
"Brian and I had been talking about doing something in the Belleville area for a while," Reynolds said. "We went to the auction when Good Times went up for sale and we were lucky enough to get it. Literally, an hour after we laid eyes on the place, we owned it."
Reynolds said the group plans to turn the place into a "high-end lounge" where professionals can relax and have a drink in the evening. They also hope to continue the successful lunch business Good Times built up over the years.
"We really liked the location," Reynolds said. "We think it's going to take off. It has been a huge influence to see how well Big Daddy's has done." Big Daddy's 618 co-owner Scott Schmelzel said people laughed at him when he told them a couple of years ago that he hoped to open a bar in downtown Belleville.
"They said it would never work here," Schmelzel said. "But I knew that this area was going to become the place to be. I think there are going to be even more people coming over here."
Schmelzel predicted downtown Belleville will soon be an entertainment destination like Soulard and the Central West End.
"The only thing that surprises me is that this didn't happen faster," Schmelzel said. During the remodeling process at Good Times, the new owners found a trio of art deco lamps above a pair of drop ceilings that were installed over the years. They pulled the cords and the lamps still worked. Quinn said he hoped to polish them up and hang them over the bar. "We also found a menu from back when the place was called the Hob-Nobber, probably back in the 1950s," Reynolds said. "You could get a T-bone with salad and a baked potato for $3 or French toast for a quarter." They also found a coupon book from the IGA grocery store that offered 7 cents off vegetable oil. Even if the grocery store were still in existence, the coupons wouldn't have done them much good. They expired Feb. 21, 1966. The owners haven't decided what to call the place, although they kicked around either reviving the Hob-Nobber name or the bar's previous moniker, the Clover Club. They also are considering a new name based on the establishment's location, the 7 High Lounge. Reynolds said he hopes to have the name pinned down by the end of July, his target date for opening.
A group of guys with links to a pair of Soulard bars plan to follow in the footsteps of Big Daddy's 618 and set up shop in downtown Belleville. They see the city as the next entertainment hot spot. Luke Reynolds, who owns Molly's in the popular south St. Louis bar district, Brian Besse and Stephan Kezirian, who own Lafayette's, along with real estate investor Ted Quinn have bought the former Good Times bar and restaurant at 7 S. High St.
"Brian and I had been talking about doing something in the Belleville area for a while," Reynolds said. "We went to the auction when Good Times went up for sale and we were lucky enough to get it. Literally, an hour after we laid eyes on the place, we owned it."
Reynolds said the group plans to turn the place into a "high-end lounge" where professionals can relax and have a drink in the evening. They also hope to continue the successful lunch business Good Times built up over the years.
"We really liked the location," Reynolds said. "We think it's going to take off. It has been a huge influence to see how well Big Daddy's has done." Big Daddy's 618 co-owner Scott Schmelzel said people laughed at him when he told them a couple of years ago that he hoped to open a bar in downtown Belleville.
"They said it would never work here," Schmelzel said. "But I knew that this area was going to become the place to be. I think there are going to be even more people coming over here."
Schmelzel predicted downtown Belleville will soon be an entertainment destination like Soulard and the Central West End.
"The only thing that surprises me is that this didn't happen faster," Schmelzel said. During the remodeling process at Good Times, the new owners found a trio of art deco lamps above a pair of drop ceilings that were installed over the years. They pulled the cords and the lamps still worked. Quinn said he hoped to polish them up and hang them over the bar. "We also found a menu from back when the place was called the Hob-Nobber, probably back in the 1950s," Reynolds said. "You could get a T-bone with salad and a baked potato for $3 or French toast for a quarter." They also found a coupon book from the IGA grocery store that offered 7 cents off vegetable oil. Even if the grocery store were still in existence, the coupons wouldn't have done them much good. They expired Feb. 21, 1966. The owners haven't decided what to call the place, although they kicked around either reviving the Hob-Nobber name or the bar's previous moniker, the Clover Club. They also are considering a new name based on the establishment's location, the 7 High Lounge. Reynolds said he hopes to have the name pinned down by the end of July, his target date for opening.
