On February 11, University Heights’ Small Bar announced it was closing so renovations could be made. Those design, organizational, food and beverage alterations followed owner Karen Barnett partnering with Trust Restaurant Group (TRG) to keep the business afloat. Opened in 2009, the popular craft beer venue has struggled in recent years, with Barnett reporting mounting debt and inability to pay vendors.
“I’m tired of my anxiety having anxiety,” says Barnett of the decision to take on a partner. “I’m tired of going up on my roof to spread tar and repair my roof in eight places. I’m tired of staffing issues where I’m forced to cook on the line and flip burgers. I’m just being pulled in too many places, putting out fires and not being able to pull myself out of the financial hole I was being sucked into. I love my business. Partnering with these guys is giving me some breathing room to take a step back and refocus on what’s important, not only to me in my business, but also establish a better quality of life for myself.”
Barnett weighed partner and purchase offers from several factions, ultimately deciding on TRG. She was initially introduced to TRG chef and Small Bar patron Brad Wise last year. They struck up a good relationship, which went a long way when he expressed interest in being part of the venue’s next step. Adds Barnett, “[TRG is] running some of the best restaurants in town right now. They also had the capital and vision to take Small Bar to the next level.”
The upcoming edition of Small Bar will retain some elements that have been around over the past decade, while introducing an aesthetic refresh, improved seating options, several new food items, and a cocktail program from former Polite Provisions bartender and new Small Bar general manager Frankie McGrath.
Barnett maintains full control over the beer program, and she decided to reduce the number of taps from 42 to 36. “It just never made sense to let that much beer sit in my lines. That was a bad decision made in the beginning. Over the past year, I’ve kept between 30 to 40 beers tapped from day to day, and it just makes sense to continue that.”
On the cocktail side, “customers are going to enjoy consistency,” she says. “Instead of heavy-handed pours to ‘hook you up,’ a la dive-bar etiquette, we are striving for an experience that doesn’t change depending on who is pouring your drink.”
Regarding the drink pourers, a good number of the bartenders upon re-opening will be fresh faces; several long-time employees were let go last week, to the tune of roughly 50 percent of total staff, by Barnett’s estimation. This ignited a firestorm on social media as former employees shared the news, prompting Barnett to respond online.
“It pains me to admit that I had to step away from the decisions that needed to be made,” says Barnett, who was out of town to attend her father’s funeral during the layoffs. “A comprehensive and mandatory training was scheduled for bartenders, and it was disclosed several times that staff would need to pass this training to remain on the schedule. It is never easy to let someone go, even more so when they are people who have supported you and become more like family than friends or employees. Unfortunately, hard decisions have to be made in business. I am proud to say these wonderful people are all smart, hard-working and employable—they have my full recommendation for the next chapter of their lives.”
Barnett hopes to reopen Small Bar today at 4628 Park Boulevard, but it may not happen until Friday or Saturday due to last-minute construction setbacks. When that happens, service will be more basic than in years past, but ownership reports venue mainstays such as beer dinners, steak nights, and Small Bar’s popular brunch will return as soon as March.
“It was extremely important to me for this to be a continuation of the business that has existed for nine-and-a-half years. If we changed everything, we may as well be changing the name,” says Barnett. “Small Bar has always been and remains my baby, and I’ll do everything possible for it to always feel like home.”