The Society of the Old Hat Part 3 - A New Dawn

Hope springs eternal in the human breast: Man never is, but always to be blest. The soul, uneasy and confined from home, Rests and expatiates in a life to come. – Alexander Pope, English Poet.

Today is the first day of Spring. And though you wouldn’t know it by the weather outdoors, the grass will soon be greening up, tulips will bloom, and leaves will start to unfold out of their auspice beginnings as buds on the trees. I’ve already seen a lot of robins hopping around the yard looking for a meal.

And so it is with the Old Hat. It is spring time, and the hope once again is eternal. The new management consortium of Osborne and Shugars has thrust their will on the old brewery in a quest to transform it into profitable venture.

The Osbornes, long time patrons of the Hat, owners of the local KTS Enterprises, have sat many a night over the years on the paying side of the bar. They have seen the Old Hat at its best, full, vibrant and the beer flowing. And they have seen it sadly decline over the last couple of years. They have been some of its most faithful of customers. Now they take their hard work ethic, small business experience and local knowledge of the Lawton area and it’s people, and step on the North side of the copper counter.

The Shugars have much experience in the food business. They own a catering business that specializes in Pig Roasts, smoked meats and poultry, have a line of barbecue sauce and also have restaurant experience. They are more than familiar with the Hat, having provided Pig Roasts for various events there in the past. This makes for a nice fit with their new business partners.

The first thing this new partnership did was to close the Hat for 4 days. During this time they administered a rigorous cleaning to the bar and brewery. Tables and chairs were re-arranged in attempt to create a better flow. They reopened on Friday, March 10th to a decent crowd. The difference is noticeable. The bar looks and smells better. Service is better. The new bartenders and wait staff are wearing Old Hat collared shirts and act as a cohesive unit. They will be open Wednesday through Sunday, closing on Mondays and Tuesdays at this time.

I’ve spent quite a bit of time there the last week or so since the reopening talking with the new management, delving into what are their plans, philosophy and hopes? So let’s look at some of the things that I sighted in Part 2 of this series and see if things really are changing and how the new management sees them.

The People: The people are back, at least through the first 9 days since they have re-opened. Crowds seem to be on the average pretty good. The weekend crowd on Friday, St. Patrick’s Day was very good. This was followed by an exceptional crowd on Saturday, March 18th due largely to a 50th Birthday party. This party though seemed to hang around a long time, and went through a lot of beer. In addition, I saw some regulars that had been missing quite a lot in the recent past, this says a lot as previous regulars are starting to return to see what is happening The new management say they are committed to putting people in the bar. Not only new people, but trying to get those regulars that have left for one reason or another.

Mug Club: All the Mugs have been washed and re-hung in numerical order. And Muggers are coming back starting with the first Mug Club under the new management. Last Wednesday night was similar to the Mug Clubs of a couple years ago. Muggers putting away the beer and talking with everyone and anyone about everything and anything, a very good sign indeed. This subtle start I think is significant. As word gets out about the changes more Muggers are likely to return. The new management seems very conscious of the importance of a strong Mug Club. The Osbornes especially can appreciate what this group can do to help put people in the bar. When Muggers are happy, patronage goes up. So far so good. Mug Club membership is also up with a large group of new members signing up since the reopening.

Music: Yes music is at the Old Hat to stay. The new management is honoring those bands already booked. The Cats in the Hat are going to continue to do Sunday Blues jams, though the frequency has yet to be decided. The new management has a distinct philosophy on music. Bands will be booked on Fridays. There will generally be a cover charge on Friday. Saturday will be a quieter night, reserved for Acoustic solo acts or duets, (they seem to understand the fact that back to back to back music historically doesn’t draw well). Sunday is reserved for Blues Jams hosted by various local bands. Included will be the Cats in the Hat and occasionally yours truly’s band, Micro and the Waves, amongst others. Sunday is also slated to possibly go back to a no cover charge night. No music on Wednesday Mug Club night, or Thursday. I think this is a sound philosophy. If C. Buggs Coombs takes over booking bands, this could be a real plus.

Beer: “Mmmmmmm Beer!” (Homer Simpson) The beer quality is up. Taking the day to day headaches of managing a bar off of Tom Fuller’s mind has made a significant difference. Tom can now concentrate as an employee on brewing beer and he is proving once again that he can brew good beer. The beer menu is full for the first time in a long time. The O’Fullers Red and Maeve (sp?) Stout that went on tap St. Patrick’s Day are very good. Easily the best Red and Stout we have seen in over a year. Some of the specialty brews are going over big time. The new management is stressing cleanliness in the brewery which will also keep quality high. They talk of not cutting corners on ingredients either. They know that the Beer is their trump card.

Service: The new management has brought back C. Buggs behind the bar, Wednesday and Thursday. This will help tremendously with customer relations. They have hired a new weekend bartender and beefed up the wait staff. Service is way up, it is as easy as ever to get a beer. If Oz or Scott are sitting on the South side of the bar off duty, and someone needs something they are more than willing to jump up and get it. They are paying attention to the customer. The wait staff and bartenders are all wearing shirts with the Old Hat logo on them, a nice touch.

Other Changes: The food has changed. They new management has reworked the menu. Many of the eclectic entrees are gone, replaced with more conventional bar food. Burgers, Sandwiches, Fish and Chips and Ribs and Pulled Pork are the main stay along with appetizers like deep fried mushrooms and onion petals. The quality is way up on the food. Dishes are served promptly and hot. Sweetpea and I ate dinner in the bar for the first time in almost 2 years, it was a very good meal at a very reasonable price. A big advantage that the new management has is the Shugars’ catering business. According to Scott, it is a win-win, his kitchen staff at the catering service can process more volume of ribs and pulled pork and smoked meats and the bar gets it a bottom line cost. And the ribs and pulled pork are excellent. I’m told they are doing 3 to 4 times the amount of dinners already.

Tabs have changed. They now fill out a check for everyone and rigorously keep track of who had what. All bartenders and wait staff are participating. This I’m sure will help profitability as consistency in this area previously was a problem, with you having to often remind the bartender what you had.

Attitude is different. The entire staff is extremely customer oriented at this time. This is making a good impression. Scott and Oz talk about getting people into the bar and keep them coming back. I’ve seen them give away some of the new menu items for people to try. People respond to this type of treatment. If this customer service attitude continues, then they have a good shot on getting repeat business on a regular basis.

Tables have been rearranged. This is probably one of the few things being talked about negatively. But it is early and the new management will make adjustments as they go. Some parts of the new arrangement are good, some parts create more congestion. There could be possibly bigger changes after the Liquor License has transferred. The jury is still out in this area.

Hope springs eternal… Many of the Muggers I talk to are hopeful. They like what they see and taste. The people are coming back already. The beer is better and so is the food. Muggers seem to be embracing the new management.

But the question remains, can the Old Hat be profitable? Can the new management do what previous managements were unable to accomplish? Putting top notch brewing ingredients into the beer costs money. The increased wait staff and bartenders need to be paid. The amount of effort required to get this back on its feet for good is tremendous. The work has just started, and it is a long way to the finish.

I think that the Osborne/Shugars partnership have a good shot. I think increased food sales will help offset the increased operating costs. The recent in flux of new customers and return of some regulars coupled with the better beer, food and service will help put people back on bar stools on a more regular basis. I think the people will be back and Muggers will continue in providing the unique atmosphere that makes the Hat special.

The new management seems to have firm grasp on the key points above. Sure they will make mistakes along the way, but I think they will learn and adapt quickly. They are also in it for the long haul, and understand that this will take a significant amount of care and feeding over a long period of time. But in the end I think they will succeed, and I hope so.

The social institution that is the Old Hat will rise again also. After all, Muggers are a resilient bunch. It may be different as institutions like this are ever changing but non-the-less, it will be as great as ever.

Long Live the Muggers and long live the Old Hat.