Junior’s Bar & Grill, the new location of Bier Stube, sits boarded up on Monday. Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor
Bier Stube, a well-known campus bar that closed last September to make way for new off-campus apartments, will be revived at a new location.
The Bier Stube has been a staple of Buckeye culture since 1966, per prior Lantern reporting. Craig Kempton, who once worked as the Stube’s doorman before becoming its owner, is set on a spot located along King Avenue in South Campus.
Kempton said he’s excited to revive the sense of community that students, alumni and many other regulars shared.
“You form strong relationships,” Kempton said. “To not see the faces all the time was really hard.”
The bar had to close its doors at 1487 N. High St. after the University District Area Commission and Columbus officials approved a developer’s plans to replace the building with an apartment complex. Scott Ellsworth, friend of Kempton and owner of Thr3es, Fours and Fives, also understands that feeling.
Ellsworth was the owner of Too’s from 2007 to 2017 until a development plan forced Ellsworth to close the bar’s doors, according to prior Lantern reporting.
“Craig and I go pretty far back and have an unfortunate bond that both of our bars were taken at their peak on High St.,” Ellsworth said.
Kempton said he’s familiar with the Stube’s new location at 234 King Ave.
“I used to live across the street from the new place back in those days,” Kempton said. “It was called Estrada’s Mexican Restaurant (and Cantina), and we used to enjoy going over there and having some cerveza on the patio.”
Kempton considered the location to be a good place for the bar.
“I always thought to myself that this place would make a great location to have a Bier Stube,” he added.
The work to remodel the property into the new Bier Stube has already gained the attention of devoted Buckeye alumni and students on social media, including an Instagram post that gained 190,000 views.
“I know the public is ready. I know the community is ready,” Kempton said. “Just gotta give me time to rebuild it, so it feels like the Bier Stube again.”
Since taking ownership in 2004, Kempton said he knows what is needed to keep the Stube an enjoyable “meat and potatoes” bar.
The Bier Stube’s longtime customers have continued to support it, and many are excited about Kempton’s efforts to keep the bar going. Ellsworth praised Kempton’s work to reopen and preserve the dive bar’s culture.
“Craig is a resilient guy, and people will never understand what he’s been through and what it takes to stay motivated to try to relight that flame, and he’s doing it right now,” Ellsworth said. “We all know it’ll be great.”
