Par Bar Bar Rescue Update (Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant) – Still Open in 2024?

Is Par Bar still open today?

Status: >> OPEN <<
(keep reading to learn what happened)

Season: 7 | View All Season 7 Episodes
Original Episode Air Date: May 17, 2020
The Bar's Original Name Was: Pepe's Mexican Restaurant & Cantina
Par Bar Address: 31780 Railroad Canyon Rd Canyon Lake, CA 92587

Par Bar Bar Rescue Update (Pepe's Mexican Restaurant)

Episode Recap

Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant & Cantina, later renamed to Par Bar, was a Canyon Lake, California bar that was featured on Season 7 of Bar Rescue.

Though the Par Bar Bar Rescue episode aired in May 2020, the actual filming and visit from Jon Taffer took place a few months earlier.

It was Season 7 Episode 11 and the episode name was “In the Rough”.

In this episode, Jon Taffer visits Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant & Cantina in Canyon Lake, CA.

Canyon Lake is a gated community in the Inland Empire.

It’s a rich community with lots of golfers, which will be an important detail for the Pepe’s Bar Rescue changes.

Canyon Lake Pepe's Mexican

Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant & Cantina has long been a fixture in the community, being more than 50 years old.

The bar is currently owned by a husband and wife duo, Victor and Laura Demoreno.

When the Demonero’s bought the bar, they thought the bar would continue its success, but customers stopped visiting.

The level of service has also declined as the kitchen microwaves most of its food. 

Overall, it’s quickly gone downhill from its glory days and is now losing $6,000 per month.

To make matters worse, the Demorenos have more than $2 million in debt as a result of the bar.

Victor and Laura spend all of their time in the locked office and watch the bar from their sixteen security cameras.

Pepe's Mexican restaurant owner

The bar is described as a dungeon by employees who suffer from stress-related health issues. 

Mixologist Alex Goode and Chef Jason Santos join Jon Taffer to help save the bar.

The experts and Jon notice that the bar is in an area filled with golf courses.

The camera footage shows Christmas lights behind the bar, but the bar has no decorations.

Victor, a manager; Devon, a server; and Shawnda and Jessica, bartenders, are shown on the camera.

As seems to be the norm, the Pepe’s owners are in the office. 

A group of golfers joins Jon Taffer to evaluate the bar’s service.

Customers in the bar complain to Jon that they have received the wrong drinks, and the kitchen served food frozen in the middle.

The owners are in the back office watching the chaos on their cameras. 

Jon tasks the owners with coming into the bar, and at first, they are hesitant because they do not want to meet with the unhappy customers.

As they enter the bar, the owners are booed, and patrons tell them they won’t be back.

The employees, Victor and Lauren, stay at Pepe’s to clean. 

The staff is introduced to Jon, but Devon, the manager, says she is more of a glorified waitress.

The employees are not paid on time, which Victor says is within the parameters of the law.

The experts train the bartenders and cooks while Jon meets Victor and Laura. 

Jon wants to know the owners’ goals since they do not seem interested in running the bar.

While Jon is getting to know the owners, the experts are prepping the staff for the stress test.

Chef Jason trains the cooks on crispy chicken tenders and reminds them never to use the microwave.

Pepe's Mexican restaurant microwave food

Alex shows the bartenders how to pour correctly. 

Laura will work in the dining room for the stress test, and Victor will run the kitchen.

Victor doesn’t do much until Jason makes him run food from the kitchen.

One side of the bar hasn’t been given their drinks, and the customers start chanting.

Jon Taffer has seen enough and ends the stress test.

The owners are admonished for their poor performance during the trial. 

The following day the owners apologized to the staff for their behavior since they purchased the bar.

Training continues, and Alex trains the bartenders on drinks geared towards couples.

To help fix the bar, Jon Taffer and his crew renovated it and gave it a new golf-focused theme.

As part of that, they changed the name from Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant & Cantina to Par Bar.

The new bar has lots of golf decor and really plays up the golf theme.

A draft beer system was gifted to the bar and will serve ice-cold beer.

The bar also received new furniture and a POS system.

Customers enter and are impressed by the contemporary furnishings and decor in the bar.

The food and drinks are coming out quickly and are tasty.

So was the Pepe’s Bar Rescue visit a success?

Let’s talk move onto the update portion of the post and talk about whether it’s still open in 2024.

Par Bar Update - What Happened Next?

Now that we’ve recapped the Par Bar Bar Rescue visit, let’s talk about what happened after Jon Taffer and his crew left Canyon Lake, CA.

First, let’s talk about the name. The bar did not remain named Par Bar for long as they quickly ditched the name.

They also got rid of the golf theme that Jon Taffer implemented, including all of the golf decor.

However, instead of going back to the Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant name, they changed it to Del Lago Bar at Pepe’s.

Del Lago stands for The Lake.

That went about as well as you’d expect…

Is Par Bar from Bar Rescue still open?

As of 2023, Par Bar is still open but doing business under the original Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant & Cantina name.

What’s more, the bar also has new ownership, so it’s not the same owners that you saw on the Bar Rescue episode.

Victor and Laura Demoreno decided to sell the business in October 2020 so that they could focus on their five other businesses.

The new Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant owners are also a husband and wife duo who live in Canyon Lake. Their names are Erin and Ed Ryder.

As part of purchasing the bar, they changed it back to the original Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina name, ditching both the Par Bar name from Bar Rescue and the new Del Lago Bar at Pepe’s name from the Demorenos.

They also remodeled it again after the changes from Bar Rescue and the Demorenos and then reopened it in February 2021.

Here’s an explanation for why Erin and Ed bought the bar:

We want to retire here and live the rest of our lives in Canyon Lake.

We have always wanted to own a restaurant close to home, so we chose Pepe’s.

We have always loved Pepe’s.

We used to play in a pool league at Pepe’s back in the day.

However, the new owners also seem to be drawing a distinction between the old bar that you saw on Bar Rescue and the new Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina bar:

Pepe’s is a whole new restaurant.

It’s brand new.

Everything is different now.

The restaurant we were all familiar with pre-COVID-19 is now completely different.

It might be hard for others to see how everything has changed and they’re no longer coming back to the old Pepe’s.

We have worked with the community to see what they like and are listening to them as to how to move forward.

Here’s what the Pepe’s / Par Bar Canyon Lake CA location looks like in the most recent picture from Google Maps street view:

Recent reviews for Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina under the new ownership seem mixed.

Here’s a sampling of reviews that have happened with the new owners.

Five star Yelp review from April 2022:

They redid the place and it looks great!

I’ve always liked their food and the bar is awesome too!

Two star Yelp review from April 2022:

Customer service was good.

Was greeted as we arrived and waitress was attentive.

However, the food tasted like it was out of a can.

This is not good Mexican food.

Definitely not fresh food or homemade.

I was very disappointed and unsatisfied.

One star Yelp review from Feb 2022:

Service was terrible, brought out cokes with no syrup, forgot kids meals and when told so they still forgot it.

The bathrooms had crap splattered all over the toilets.

The place was basically empty so shouldn’t have been such a bad experience.

Overall, I’m still marking this one as open because there is a Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina operating at the same location.

However, it’s under new ownership after the Bar Rescue episode and ditched Jon Taffer’s Par Bar branding, so I almost marked it as closed.

If you think it makes more sense to mark this one as closed, please let me know in the comments!

Either way, the only connection between this bar and the Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant that Jon Taffer visited is the name and location.

The decor and owners are both new after it was rebranded and sold (and then changed back to the original name).

If you want to see some other nearby California Bar Rescue episodes, you can check out my updates for Derby’s / The Wheel House in Hemet, Power Plant / Rocks in Laguna Niguel, and Rack’s Billiards / Angel’s Sports Bar in Corona.

Or, you can read my full list of all the Bar Rescue episodes in California, which is the most popular state on the show by far.

Thanks for reading!


More Information

https://www.yelp.com/biz/pepes-mexican-and-american-restaurant-canyon-lake
https://www.facebook.com/pepesmexicanfoodandcantina/


What did you think about the episode? I'd love it if you shared your thoughts on the episode in the comments below!

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And don't forget to check out all of the other Bar Rescue updates.

Last updated: 2023-04-03 05:32

28 thoughts on “Par Bar Bar Rescue Update (Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant) – Still Open in 2024?”

All comments are the sole opinion of the commenter and are not endorsed by RealityTVUpdates.

  1. I fathom holding onto memories of days gone by…but there’s a reason why Jon renames businesses. Especially bars, it’s not my business, but I personally would do my best to keep the name Job chose, especially since a name like Par Bar is so not just catchy but also specific to golfers, which were a huge part of the area if not culture as well of this town the bar is in at Canyon Lake CA. Sad things didn’t work out, everything happens for a reason, but I could tell the first owners were not into being owners of this bar from the get go. I’d say they just had too much on their plate already. Ah well, again..things happen and as for me, I’d love to be able to have 2 million dollars in itself, let alone have 2 millions dollars to be able to invest in a business.
    And I wouldn’t ever hide myself away in an upstairs office.

    Reply
    • *Jon not ‘Job’
      *2 million dollars not ‘2 millions dollars’
      Lol apologize for the typos.. tech doesn’t agree with me sometimes.

      Also as for my opinions, they are all my own and just from the outside looking in.

      I don’t know what all the first owners, current owners, etc have gone through, are going through in their personal nor professional lives that may sway their decision-making.

      Again I feel the first owners had so so much on their plate and that’s so crazy that they had four or five other businesses they owned not even including the Pepe’s bar.

      That’s so stressful and I’m sure it wasn’t helping them in their personal lives either. So not owning the bar anymore I’d say helped relieve at least some of their stress so they could also then live happier, healthier, more fulfilling lives.
      Wishing them all the best.

      PS I don’t believe it needs to be marked as closed, even though it was sold/has new owners and the name has been changed several times. I feel how you have it shown on your article is the best way to describe and show it for others to see.
      Also appreciate the map at the bottom.
      Very informative and well written article.

      Thank you for sharing.

      Reply
  2. I would mark this one as closed cause it isn’t Par Bar and it isn’t what Jon Taffer made it to be. It is totally different and under new management so it’s not the same. Sadly, what Jon worked hard to do is not there anymore.

    Reply
    • Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I’ll think about it. If they changed the name I would definitely mark it as closed. But the only thing holding me back is that it’s still the original name from the Pepe’s Bar Rescue episode.

      Reply
  3. I’d mark this as closed because it has new owners and didn’t keep the name Jon gave it. We don’t know if the training and menu are what Jon put in place, but that’s unlikely with the new management. Par Bar is officially closed in my opinion.

    Reply
  4. I would prefer you marked it OPEN*

    OPEN* Meaning yes you can visit the episode location and no it has nothing to do with Bar Rescue anymore.

    Reply
  5. Closed. Jon changed the brand and new owners rejected it. Jon changed the decor and again, new owners changed it. I love what Jon does but he can’t influence owners after he’s done.

    Reply
  6. I would mark it as closed, the owners sold, and the place has once again been renovated.

    I knew that they would sell it once it was renovated. That guy was all business with no personality. He saw an opportunity to make some money and go with what he was comfortable with.

    Reply
  7. I would mark this as closed. Had it *just* transitioned to new owners, I can see calling it open. Had they *just* undid most of the changes, I’d still call it open. But they, 1. Undid the changes, 2. Sold the place, and 3. The new owners created a whole new place. The fact that they reinstated a legacy name becomes irrelevant because of those changes.

    Reply
  8. John I wish i had the the money to open a bar and the know how you have I could make a million if you showed me how to run it. I watch all your shows,can’t believe they sell out after you give them what they need to do good. Some people are stupid. My mother and father had a restaurant in FLA I learned a lot we did very good for only a breakfast place. Thanks for your service,but some people don’t get it.

    Reply
  9. Had any of the original owners and the original concept done by Jon was still around, then calling it open would make sense. A name does not make the place open or else you would need to go back and mark all the restaurants closed if they changed the name. This one should be closed.

    Reply
  10. I would mark this one as “closed”, because the new owners have gone out of their way, as is their right, to delineate it from the Bar Rescue experience. Or, maybe to look at it through Jon’s lens…it’s like putting generic “well” rum into a Bacardi brand bottle.

    Reply
  11. Closed. Definitely closed. The current restaurant has nothing to do with Bar Rescue anymore – the owners, the concept, the name.

    I’m surprised these two dopes have other businesses that they are successful at.

    Reply
  12. This bar absolutely needs to be marked “closed.”

    This is a NEW restaurant in a FORMER bar rescue location. It has different owners, is a total remodel, and has no meaningful connection whatsoever to Bar Rescue. The only thing not different might be the parking lot.

    On another note, I predicted right off the bat that the owners were going to sell and move on. It was just another (neglected) project on a list of projects for them. They didn’t seem to have passion or commitment.

    It is sad to see these remodels go to owners who are not in it for the long run. That means one less opportunity for someone who really is committed to their place for the long run.

    Reply
  13. I’m glad the original owners sold & I hope they are far better owners at their other businesses. They could have cared less about those employees before during or after Jon’s visit. Their arrogance was stifling. What a great group of employees! I hope they are all appreciated by far more caring bosses!!

    Reply
  14. I would mark it closed. It does not have the same owners so it was rebranded from what Jon did. So the original owners failed By selling the restaurant.

    Reply
  15. This should be marked as closed. The reason Bar Rescue was called was due to the owners. The owner has since sold it. The new owners success should have nothing to do with Bar Rescue or Jon Taffer for that matter. It should still be considered a success though because they didn’t close. They sold it.

    Reply
  16. You have to go to canyon lake to really understand it. Picture a 24/7 365 Trump rally and that is canyon lake. I stayed at the nextdoor motel and ate
    It is a community of people with Trump won flags on their golf carts and tweakers.

    Reply
  17. It was very obvious that this was just another investment to them.
    I did not get a good positive feeling that they are people who enjoy working with people or a hospitality business, more about the bottom line.
    Which is even more bothersome because of the huge debt, when do you decide that a massive $6k a month debt should stop? Why didn’t they stop and figure out why? Both were way out of their expertise.
    I did not like the way he said he was within the law to not pay employees on time… no relationship with employees, sad. They had to many things going on.
    Saying that, if the employees are still working with the new owners, i would note that as part of the reason to say it is still open. You never mention that, just curious.
    Hope the new owners do well for the employees and community.
    You have to love what you do.

    Reply
  18. Mark it closed. Jon’s efforts did not help the owners succeed and they abandoned his recommendations. And then sold. I agree with the other posts that believe it should be marked as closed.

    Reply
  19. What I see from victor & wife is they want to own the business but,DON’T WANT TO DO ANY LABOR!!! I say this cause when the show started all they did was walk in the door & go up to the office. They NEVER acknowledged 1 employee or speak with the manger!!!

    Reply
  20. I just recently rewatched the episode. When the reveal came you could see Victor didn’t like it.

    I recently rewatched the episode, and it appeared to me that Victor was under the impression that he was simply receiving a renovation that would maintain the existing theme. His reaction during the reveal indicated that he was not pleased with the results. It was also evident that he preferred to do things his own way and did not want to be directly involved in the day-to-day operations. Given these circumstances, it is understandable that he decided to alter the décor. Perhaps selling the bar was the best decision in this situation. I would keep the status open but add that there are new owners.

    Reply

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