It’s been a crazy past couple of days for Sault Ste. Marie entrepreneur Jay Scott, who has been working feverishly to ensure his latest business venture — the bar formerly known as Reggie’s West on Korah Road — is running smoothly.
Scott took over as owner of the bar and eatery affectionately known way back in the day as ‘The Rosie’ Nov. 1 and has come up with a new and unique name for it: Jay’s Piston Broke Pub.
“I just wanted something that would grab attention — people might have some fun saying it and trying to remember it,” said Scott, speaking with SooToday Thursday.
A couple of minor touch-ups will be done on the interior of the establishment.
“It’s going to be a work in progress. Definitely, I have to freshen it up - fresh paint, new flooring, stuff like that,” said Scott. “It’s not going to happen overnight, because I’m not closing.
“I just slid right in. We never had any downtime with the takeover.”
But other than some freshening up, Scott says, Jay’s Piston Broke Pub will retain the overall vibe of Reggie’s West.
“It’s just going to be your typical neighbourhood bar — we want to have live entertainment on the weekends like we always had,” he said.
Scott says that karaoke on Sundays will in fact return to the west-end watering hole, and there will most likely be other events happening during the week in order to “increase the body count.”
“The Roosevelt [Hotel] used to be packed on Sundays with karaoke, so we want to try and bring that back and just make it a fun place to come,” he said.
The kitchen will also remain intact with new ownership.
“As long as we’re open, the kitchen’s open,” Scott said.
Scott, who also owns Scootz — a business specializing in e-bikes, scooters and off-road vehicles on Bruce Street — says his latest business venture will be an effort to “try and get things back to the way they used to be, when people liked to go out and enjoy themselves.”
I like to get out and see new people and meet new people, and I don’t think I’m the only one like that,” he said. “I’m going to try and bring in an atmosphere where people can come and do that.”