With the sudden closing of the Boar’s Head bar last semester, many students were left wondering why their favorite outdoor bar was gone … again. The bar had opened a few months before and business seemed to be doing well.
No one knew why, and many were angry from being cut off too soon of a night out that was supposed to feature a local band. The bar remained closed all through the winter, and many thought it was gone for good, just like every other bar that had occupied that space before it. But Thursday night, the bar reopened to a crowd of about 350 people.
Manager of the new Boar’s Head, Derek Willis, notes people’s reactions to the reopening.
“Everyone was talking about the Boar’s Head being back, but things are running a little different now,” Willis said. “We’re leasing the building to a new restaurant that’s going to serve tex-mex cuisine, although I’m not quite sure yet what exactly is going to be on the menu. He’s going to renovate that and put in a new restaurant and bar on the inside. We’ll also serve Little Dooey’s food and his food at the bar as well.”
Now that the Boar’s Head has reopened, many people still want to know why it closed in the first place. Willis explained that many of the problems the bar had last fall were the effects of learning how to run a business.
“We tried it out; it was our first venture into the bar business,” Willis said. “We saw what was successful, and it was a learning experience. We saw some things that weren’t successful, and we faced some problems that we had to overcome.”
“We didn’t know a lot about the business at the time,” he added. “This go ’round, we know what we need to do now to make this place better than it was before.”
Willis also noted the cold weather gave the bar’s business some problems, but that now they’re more prepared for the winter months.
“We did not plan ahead for the winter months,” Willis said. “This time around, we’ve already planned for the winter months that are about seven months away. We plan on keeping the outdoor bar open all year round. It will not close this time; it’s here to stay no matter what happens. I don’t care if there are only two people sitting at the bar, it will be open for everyone to come and have a good time.”
Marketing manager for Little Dooey’s Michael Wardlaw said the abrupt closing of the bar was because of cold weather.
“Primarily, the tiki bar closed when it got cold because there wasn’t enough space to run the bar,” Wardlaw said. “We tried to keep the outside bar open to see if business would work, but it wouldn’t work because it was an outside bar, it was too cold for people to stay out there.”
However, Wardlaw has high aspirations for the bar and believes it will work out this time with better, more experienced management.
“I think the location is a unique one, and it has all the potential in the world to succeed,” Wardlaw said. “I think they’ve got the right idea with the tiki bar, and I think it will be really fun to see what happens.”
Willis adds that Rick’s Caf‹¨’s new tiki bar is no problem for the established Boar’s Head.
“I know Rick’s [Caf‹¨] has opened his tiki bar, and we’re not in competition with him,” Willis said. “But we have this tiki bar, and it has been in Starkville for a long time now; people know about it.
“We still have those few who call it the Pub and the Marlin; we get called a lot of things,” he added. “That’s why we decided the name’s not important, just that people come see us.”
The Boar’s Head also hopes its numerous previous closings won’t discourage people from coming back to the bar, only to see it close.
“The closings of the location had started to get old and become redundant,” said senior public relations major Tucker Sappington. “They need to have better publicity and make better use of their space.”
Sappington also thinks a better emphasis on food would give the bar a personality all on its own that it can become known for around Starkville.
“They should emphasize a better menu,” Sappington said. “Mugshot’s and Bin 612 are known not just for being bars, but for their great food, too, so if they could put out a good menu, more people would come for the food when the outside bar closes. The winters in Mississippi aren’t that long anyway, so they could put more attention on their food in the winter and not have to worry about closing an outside bar because it’s cold outside.”
Willis says that a lot of new changes are taking place with the Boar’s Head, and they have the customer’s needs in mind more importantly now.
“This is where we’re starting back at better than we were in the fall, with the addition of the new deck and stage area,” Willis said. “We’re also going to work on specials, promotions and better advertising.”
Willis also says that this time of year is ideal for the newly renovated bar, and that things are looking promising now that the Boar’s Head is here to stay.
“Our biggest downfall is that we do face some weather problems, but it’s been clear the past few nights, and we’re getting into better weather,” Willis said. “And with Super Bulldog Weekend [this] weekend, we’re getting prepared for those crowds. As long as we’re open, we’re going to continue to make this place better and a bar you really want to come to.”