Owner of Big Daddy’s 618 in Belleville talks about temporary closure, what’s next
Folks in downtown Belleville may be surprised to see that Big Daddy’s 618 has temporarily closed as of Monday.
Owner Scott Schmelzel said Tuesday there’s a definite “Wow!” factor to the popular destination closing its doors for a few weeks.
He said people are already going by and taking photos of the signs in the front windows of the downtown Belleville bar and eatery.
Schmelzel posted the signs to make it clear to everyone that the closure is temporary and that Big Daddy’s 618 will definitely reopen in February.
“What we’re doing is we’re choosing to shutter for five weeks,” said Schmelzel. “January is a slow time for us. It’s just a slow, slow, slow time” for most businesses in January and February.
Schmelzel said they’re taking advantage of their biggest downtime of the year to touch up the building and make some minor improvements, an ongoing process with an old building.
Some of the maintenance includes dealing with a few roof leaks and sanding and refinishing the bar, which sees “a lot of wear and tear in the course of a year,” said Schmelzel.
There will also be a great deal of thorough cleaning and sanitizing throughout the place, which had been steadily busy since reopening last March.
Big Daddy’s 618 will reopen Wednesday, Feb. 16, in plenty of time to participate in the Downtown Belleville Mardi Gras Party on Saturday, Feb. 26.
Schmelzel seemed more excited about celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.
Schmelzel called the St. Patrick’s Day Party the “biggest day of the year” for downtown Belleville. After having to cancel the event two years in a row, Schmelzel feels the turnout will be huge. Festivities are scheduled to take place Saturday, March 12.
“Our downtown district is better than anyone else’s downtown district,” and community events were huge in the fall, said Schmelzel, who’s certain that we will see a lot of commerce downtown this spring.
Big Daddy’s 618 is located at 313 E. Main Street in Belleville. For more information about Big Daddy’s 618, visit bigdaddys618.com or the Facebook page.
