Quarantine Facelift: Bacchus of New Paltz Renovates Throughout COVID-19 Pandemic

By: Dylan Kusmuk

Usually, in March, Bacchus Brewery & Billiards is bustling with people. With the congested Main street traffic, SUNY New Paltz students, and tourists from the city, it’s hard to even get a seat in there on a Friday night.

However, 2020 is different. This year, the restaurant closed for renovations, but that wasn’t the original plan. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Bacchus owner, Wayne Bradford, had to temporarily close his doors ‘for two weeks’, according to local ordinances. In his 47 years, he’s never had to make such a drastic and sudden decision in his life. “Theoretically, pandemics don’t usually come full circle in two weeks, it’s going to be a minimum of at least three months,” he added. “The floor behind the bar had flooded a lot and it was something we’ve been wanting to fix for a while,” he added.

That being said, Bacchus didn’t do ‘curbside pickup’ or ‘takeout’ April through July, they decided to take that time and revamp their entire kitchen and bar area. Bradford explained that opening didn’t make financial sense. The ingredients for their menu are very cost-effective, and it wouldn’t turn into profit if they only got 25% of business.

Bradford had to act extremely quickly, as he had to purchase all of the necessary materials to renovate during the first week of the shutdown, due to many non-essential businesses closing.

Since the pandemic began, multiple Hudson Valley restaurant locations have closed permanently, including Bonefish Grill and Table Talk Diner of Poughkeepsie.

Somehow, Bradford and his team at Bacchus were able to shut down and renovate. Bradford is in the restaurant supply business, along with owning the 209 Diner in Ellenville, New York. This is how he was able to keep his New Paltz pride and joy afloat during these uncertain times.

Along with being a restaurant and bar, Bacchus is also very popular because of the billiards/pool room located downstairs. When Bacchus was finally able to open up in July, they opened their billiards as well, with social distancing and sanitizing precautions of course.

It was a huge success as it was the first time in five months you could play, and New Paltz locals missed their Bacchus billiards. However, on August 20th, the pool hall was closed by the NYS health regulations until further notice.

“What we’re making in a week now, is what we used to make on just a Friday and Saturday night,” said Bradford.

With his restaurant ownership experience, Wayne Bradford was not only able to keep his business above water but was able to improve it. When this is finally all over, his loyal customers can enjoy their high-quality food in an even higher quality restaurant location.