A Hunterdon County favorite, the owners are expanding with opening of the Rock Creek Tavern in Warren County.
Owners of a long-standing bar and restaurant in Hunterdon County will soon be opening a new tavern at the former Skoogy's Sports Bar and Restaurant in Warren County.
Lori Stocklinski, one of the owners of the Pattenburg House in Union Township, said she and her partners will open the Rock Creek Tavern at 3231 Belvidere Road (Route 519) in Harmony Township.
They hope to open around the end of July.
Skoogy's, which opened in 2013, shut down June 30. Former owner Larry Skoog wrote on his Facebook page that he sold the business because it was too time-consuming to run the restaurant along with his other businesses.
Belvidere is home to two Skoogy's delis and Skoogy Do's Pet Grooming.
Stocklinski said she heard the business was going to be put up for sale and she decided to make an offer to buy it before it even went on the market.
A look inside P'burg's newest place
A tavern and inn first opened at the Pattenburg House in 1872 and Stocklinski, who began there as a bartender and then bought the place in 2011, said the business is still running strong.
"I listened to my customers," Stocklinski said about the bar's key to success. "You've got to give the people what they want."
The new tavern will feature standard American food and have live entertainment Thursday through Sunday. Stocklinski said she plans to have something happening at the tavern every night, such as billiards leagues or a motorcycles night.
Stocklinski said she is excited that the Rock Creek Tavern has ample space to handle the many fundraisers she sponsors. There are three patio areas in the back of the restaurant and a grass area that can accommodate large crowds, she said.
The business will employ about 15 to 20 people, who will be a combination of former Skoogy's staff, Pattenburg House staff and new hires, according to Stocklinski.
John Best is a freelance writer. Find lehighvalleylive on Facebook.