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| Photo - Spike TV |
"It is with a heavy heart that I have to deliver the sad news that Piratz Tavern has lost it's lease. Our last night will be April 4th. I am trying to keep this information within the family as we really don't want to deal with anymore bullshit from the reality TV world. Thanks to all who worked and played so hard to make the last eight years so great. The memories will last forever!"The Piratz Tavern episode of Bar Rescue is one of the show's most popular and controversial episodes. Jon Taffer got rid of the pirate theme at the bar and renamed it Corporate Bar & Grill. This upset the owners and regulars who wanted to keep the pirate theme, and quickly after Jon Taffer left, they removed all of Bar Rescue's changes and reinstalled the pirate theme. They sold items from the Bar Rescue makeover and supposedly spent $60,000 to get the bar back to the way they wanted it. Also the self serve draft beer tables didn't have the proper permits, so they were removed. Piratz Tavern even posted a Youtube video of them burning the Corporate Bar & Grill sign, and as of today, this video has been viewed over 200,000 times.
After the makeover, the owners and customers were publicly critical of Jon Taffer and his concept, and Jon Taffer felt they were more concerned with being pirates rather than making profits. Also, fans of Bar Rescue flooded the Piratz's Yelp page to give a bunch of 1-star reviews (over 200 of which have been filtered). A fan of the bar reached out to Jon Taffer on Facebook about this, and Jon Taffer actually responded to a fan saying he wanted his fans to be civil but also that the pirates brought this upon themselves with the way they acted.
One of the most common questions I get asked is "Is Piratz still open?," and the answer to that question will soon be 'No'. If you want to get your pirate fix before they close, you have a little over a week to do so. When they close on April 4th, the bar will be updated as 'Closed' on the Bar Rescue Update Page.
UPDATE - After everyone found out about the closure, Piratz Tavern posted the following on their Facebook page:
"Hear Ye, Hear Ye! Piratz Tavern will open it's doors for the last time on Saturday April 4th. Unfortunately the negative publicity, constant prank calls, vandalism and bogus reviews generated by our unfortunate participation on Bar Rescue have taken their toll. To add insult to injury, late last year Taffer's crew reached out to me again asking that we participate in a back to the bar episode. They promised that it would be followed by a re-rescue and that they would right all the wrong's committed during the first episode. Obviously I don't learn. I believed them. On December 1st we went to the effort to open on a Monday, the one day a week we have been closed for 8 years, with a skeleton staff of former employees who agreed to play the parts. It was basically coerced and staged to be an opening act for a re-rescue. I was told to bring in several changes of clothes to make it appear that filming covered several days. As usual they brought in a bunch of extras to fill the house and we were told what to say and with whom to speak. Throughout the entire shoot the director coached Juciano to curse and say negative things about John Taffer. He referred to me as the "hero", my daughter as the "victim" and Juciano as the "villan". Total bullshit frown emoticon Basically we have been fucked by reality TV again and with know one to blame but ourselves, we have decided not to renew our lease. Just can't take anymore. Director James Agiesta sweet talked me into the deal and then left us behind like carnage, just like the first time. A HUGE thanks to all of you who worked and played so hard to make Piratz Tavern the awesome place it has been for the last 8 years."So, the bar will be on an upcoming episode of Bar Rescue and they appear to be saying everything was faked in hopes of another makeover. I guess we will see when that airs...
Here is a preview of the "Back To The Bar" episode that will air on Sunday, April 5th and the clip features Piratz Tavern (video after the break):