BEVERLY — For decades, Brewbakers served as the final stop for a night out on Western Avenue. Now, it may soon be “last call” for the infamous late-night Beverly bar.
Brewbakers, 10350 S. Western Ave., has been listed for sale, with the business and its nearly 7,000-square-foot building seeking a buyer at $995,000.
Brewbakers is the only bar in the 19th Ward with a late-night license, allowing the business to stay open until 4 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 5 a.m. on Sundays. Open since at least the early ’80s, the bar’s rowdy reputation has irked some neighbors and previously caused clashes with Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th).
In 2015, Brewbakers sought a zoning variance to allow it to charge a cover fee, which the bar had been charging improperly for years until police shut down the practice. O’Shea and other neighborhood officials opposed the change, which would have also allowed for live entertainment in the venue, saying the bar had too many problems to be granted the request. The Zoning Board of Appeals eventually denied Brewbaker’s request.
Brewbakers has historically been the source of many neighbor complaints, O’Shea said, and at one time, he called the bar “a cancer” on his ward. But more recently, “it’s been quiet for the most part,” he said.
Though he has fought the bar in the past, O’Shea said an outside investment in the business could be a good thing for the neighborhood.
“You always hope a business sells, and that a new owner would invest in the business,” he said.
It is unclear why the bar has been listed for sale. Brewbakers owner Peter Bradarich and his real estate agents did not return calls for comment. The for-sale listing went live on Dec. 9.
Brewbakers has offered a no-frills party space for Western Avenue bar patrons for years. Catering to a young, party-happy crowd, the bar was known to have an extensive “banned” list, which the business has jokingly referenced on its Facebook page.
On Brewbaker’s Yelp page, patrons have hilariously recounted nights at the bar. One reviewer warned other patrons not to bring their families along to a night out at Brewbakers, less the family wants to see the person in a compromised state. “Closing this bar down … put me on the band [sic] patrons list ;(” the review reads.
The bar has recently changed its hours, opening at midnight Sunday-Wednesday and at 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.
In November, Brewbakers announced that it would begin accepting credit cards and no longer be cash-only.
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