STAPLETON — A Staten Island music venue will reopen this month with a newly built restaurant and coffee shop in the front and upgrades to the sound system in the back.
The Hashtag Bar at 388 Van Duzer St. closed in September as long-time owner Bobby Parker and his new partners rebuilt the inside with a new kitchen, booths, bar and coffee equipment — with cold brew on tap.
"We were able to get everything done the way I’ve always dreamed," said Parker, who's co-owned the spot since 2010.
"It's a ton of upgrades. The whole front is going to be a garage, you’ll be able to see the bar and everything will be wide open. It's a pretty cool concept."
The owners will tear down the front windows and door to replace it with a garage door and add a window into the kitchen from the outside alley where people will be able to order food.
"There’s going be a window in the alleyway so you could be smoking, drinking and hanging out in the alleyway and getting a taco at the same time," Parker said.
Parker plans to open the spot at 6 a.m. as a coffee shop and host open mics, comedy shows and acoustic performances during weeknights and live music over the weekend.
The menu for the front is being worked on by a former winner of the Food Network show "Chopped." Owners are planning a grand opening ceremony on Jan. 30 with live music and more, Parker said.
The space originally opened in 2001 as The Muddy Cup, later becoming just The Cup until it closed in 2010, the Staten Island Advance reported.
Parker bought the spot then with comedian Sul Vulcano and renamed it The Full Cup, but after Volcano's TV show "Impractical Jokers" took off he gave the bar to Parker.
"I've always dreamt of having a venue," Parker said. "Originally I had no business being in business, but you learn. It’s a really tough business, nobody had any clue how tough it is."
Parker eventually dropped the "Cup" from the title and renamed it Hashtag Bar after a suggestion from a friend and kept it because he wanted a fresh start and loved the logo.
"I definitely wanted a new feel, I wanted to get rid of the Cup," he said. "The Cup never blew up the way we wanted to, so we wanted to change everything about it."
His partners eventually backed out, leaving the front unfinished, and the venue trudged along until two new partners stepped in, including Queens comedian Andrew Nadler who performs under the name Peter Pan the Insult comedian.
"I don't know how I'm still alive, every time my back's been against the wall somebody came in and saved me," Parker said.
Parker and his partners completely closed the spot in September as crews turned the front into a restaurant and added a new sound system, sound board, stage monitors and sound proofing to the back venue, Parker said.
With all the new investments heading to the North Shore of Staten Island, including the large URL apartment building a few blocks away, Parker thinks his dreams of finally creating a vibrant music scene will come true.
"It's going to be hopping over here again," he said.
"There are investors ready to make the North Shore a big thing. It's coming, we're only a block from million dollar apartments."
