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Bethany seeks brewery, tavern restaurant

Bethany is a cool little town in the hill country of West Virginia’s Northern Panhandle. The quaint hamlet is home to the highly regarded Bethany College. Problem is, it’s a college town with an empty tavern, one in need of an operator and possibly the chance to add a small brewpub. It could be just the business opportunity you have been seeking. 

Who would like to put a tavern, restaurant and, possibly, a brewery in Bethany? That’s the question being asked by Bethany College Vice President of Operations John Lipinski. He pulled together some information on this business opportunity for Brilliant Stream.

Bethany brewery
Bison Inn exterior. [Photo by Lipinski]
The existing tavern space is Bubba’s Bison Inn. In 1977, Bill “Bubba” Reid purchased the building on Main Street and began operating a tavern at the site. With Bubba’s passing in 2010, ownership and management changed hands, and the tavern was run by Chuck Kern during this decade. Sadly, Mr. Kern passed away last year, and now the owners have put the property up for sale.

“In the meantime,” writes Lipinski, “the Town and College of Bethany have no operating tavern.”

Bethany brewery
Bison Inn, Bethany WV [Google Maps screenshot]
Lipinski says the town would welcome a tavern/restaurant/brewpub that would cater to the town’s full-time residents and college students alike. The Bison Inn building owners and a small working group of Bethany College alumni are seeking interested investors, operators and partners to help it re-establish this Bethany institution.

The 1930s vintage building has ample bar, restaurant, and event space, plus room for some small pub brewery equipment, if desired, on its ground floor. The upstairs of the two-story brick building was at one time an inn.

The Town of Bethany was founded in 1827 and the college in 1840. The town’s leaders call it a community of arts, culture, and education. It is a welcoming, progressive community in Brooke County, about 30 minutes from downtown Wheeling and one hour from downtown Pittsburgh. Bethany’s somewhat isolated location increases the need for a local tavern, rather than having people drive to the big city on curvy roads. A tavern operator would have pretty much a captive audience in this town with a population of 1,001 residents (2010 Census), which includes the college students. Moreover, the Bethany location can draw business from neighboring West Liberty, less than 10 minutes away, with its much larger West Liberty University. West Liberty does not have a brewpub either.

Interested parties should contact: John Lipinski at jlipinski@bethanywv.edu or at 304-830-1308.

Town of Bethany website

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7 comments on “Bethany seeks brewery, tavern restaurant

Gary

Wellsburg, Follansbee, Beech Bottom and countless other communities also don’t have brewpubs. It’s far from remarkable that Bethany doesn’t have one.

Even during the best of times, the Bison Inn only generated enough business to justify being open when College was in session. The college’s enrollment and the town’s population are both down significantly since then. From what I’m told, in the post-Bubba years, there was barely enough business to necessitate a very limited appetizer menu and a very limited beverage menu that was mostly the staples of Bud Light, Coors Light, Miller Lite and IC light, at rock-bottom prices. Where is the steady, reliable, affluent, year-round clientele going to suddenly come from to sustain a tavern hoping to sell product at 2-3 times the price of the previous business?

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Earl Keener

Bethany doesn’t have a laundromat either and there’s plenty of room for a pub/inn/laundro combo.

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Ed

This is why I disagree. Look at Hightower in Rayland. They are in an area that is not growing or bustling and are doing fantastic. A quality product with a ability to market outside of Bethany would pull people in and would help the town and college immensely.

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Faculty

Most of Bethany’s students are underage. Selling alcohol to underage patrons is illegal! Faculty and staff wages are are poor. Unlikely that faculty and staff can afford high end bar. This bar will only work if it can pull in patrons from surrounding area with good food and drink at a reasonable price.

Ronda

Gary, you took the words right out of my keyboard! Right on! And when it was Bubba’s there was certainly some sort of ‘arrangement’ so that a blind eye was turned away from the underage drinking. I don’t know that this courtesy was extended after Mr. Reid was gone. And even during its peak years the business was always closed whenever college wasn’t in session….Christmas break, summer, often. It would be nice to have a microbrew and a decent restaurant, but over the years I’ve never seen anyone try to develop locals/students clientele. (in West Liberty OR Bethany) It’s always been catered toward the students. Therefore, the locals don’t patronize these establishments. Without both groups I don’t see anything like this surviving.

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Ray Janda

In it’s hey day the drinking age was 18

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