(keep reading to learn what happened)
Season: 5 | View All Season 5 Episodes
Original Episode Air Date: February 19, 2017
The Bar's Original Name Was: St8 Pub
Downstairs Bar + Kitchen Address: 4386 S Broadway Englewood, CO 80113
Episode Recap
St8 Pub (pronounced State Pub), later renamed to Downstairs Bar + Kitchen, was an Englewood, Colorado bar that was featured on Season 5 of Bar Rescue.
Though the State Pub Bar Rescue episode aired in February 2017, the actual filming and visit from Jon Taffer took place in the middle of 2016.
It was Season 5 Episode 14 and the episode name was “Don’t Tell Mom the Bar is Dead” .
St8 Pub, pronounced State Pub, is located in Englewood, CO.
If you’re not familiar with Colorado geography, Englewood is basically part of Denver, though it’s technically its own municipality.
The current owner is Sean, who was a long-time bartender at St8 Pub for over one and a half decades.
His dream was to own a beer bar, so he took on the bar with a $10,000 loan.
To build equity in the bar, he will pay $2,000 per month to the owner until he pays it off to become co-owner.
Sadly, Sean treated the bar like his own adult Chuckie Cheese and began drinking and partying.
Currently, Sean needs to pay the owner back $25,000 and the $10,000 loan.
The landlord has given Sean a request, he must pay back the money he owes, or St8 Pub will shut down.
To be honest, that seems like a pretty fair request haha.
Shawn Ford, an expert mixologist, and Chef Vic Vega help Jon Taffer to rescue the bar.
Jon sends in local beer experts to spy on the bar with over fifty beers on the menu.
The spies order a beer that is supposed to be put in a specific glass, but instead, it is served in a mason jar.
Sean is seen tossing out the garbage, but he doesn’t wash his hands after.
Sean is wearing gloves in the kitchen, but he is still contaminating things because of his unwashed hands.
The spies order sloppy joes, which Sean makes in a microwave.
Jon Taffer has seen enough at this point and shuts down the bar.
He condemns Sean for his bad practices, such as not washing his hands after touching garbage.
Pamela, Sean’s mom who helps out at the bar sometimes, is told by Jon to talk to her son about the state of the bar and his irresponsibility.
Sean is apologetic, saying he didn’t realize things were that bad.
The following day Jon returns to have a staff meeting with Sean, Pamela, and Caitlin.
Caitlin is the only employee of St8 Pub, as two other employees had recently quit due to Sean’s behavior.
The landlord wants the money paid back within five weeks, but Jon tells Sean that is not possible.
Jon tells Sean to talk to the landlord about a repayment plan.
The landlord gives Sean a three-month extension which means Jon Taffer and his crew can move forward with the renovations.
To help with work at the bar, two new employees are hired – Rachel and Isaiah.
To prep for the stress test, Shawn Ford trains the staff on a Tom Collins cocktail.
Chef Max is brought in to be taught alongside Pamela by Vic Vega.
He shows the pair how to make pulled pork in a pressure cooker.
The stress test begins…
Rachel and Caitlin do not feel confident at the bar and keep making mistakes.
The kitchen starts okay, but soon they are busy and serve undercooked meals.
Too many drinks are being dumped, and customers begin to leave.
Sean starts to apologize to the customers and is made to end the stress test.
Jon and his experts meet to discuss the bar’s theme.
They decide on a man cave theme, which fits with Sean’s personality to be honest.
While the renovations are going on, we also get some of the classic Bar Rescue “heart to heart” talks.
Sean says he is sorry to his mom and makes a promise to be a better leader.
Soon after, we get introduced to the new bar.
Jon Taffer changed the bar’s name from St8 Pub to Downstairs Bar + Kitchen.
The interior is warm and looks like a home basement.
The bar was gifted new ice bins and workstations.
During the relaunch, the bartenders sound knowledgeable about the beers on the menu.
The customers love the décor and service.
So was the State Pub Bar Rescue episode a success and was Sean finally able to pay what he owes? Keep reading to find out what happened and if it’s still open in 2024.
Downstairs Bar + Kitchen Update - What Happened Next?
Now that we’ve recapped the Downstairs Bar Rescue episode, let’s talk about what happened to the bar after Jon Taffer and his crew left Englewood, CO.
At the standard check-in with the Bar Rescue producers, we learn that sales at Downstairs Bar + Kitchen are up 25% from where they were before.
This increase in revenue has allowed Sean to begin paying the rent he owes – what a wild concept!
Sean also seems to have continued with Taffer’s concept, including the Downstairs Bar + Kitchen name.
Unfortunately, Taffer’s changes would not be enough to save the bar long-term.
Is Downstairs Bar from Bar Rescue still open?
Downstairs Bar + Kitchen closed in August 2017, around five months after the Downstairs Bar Rescue episode aired on TV and about a year after the actual visit from Jon Taffer.
I’m not sure exactly why Downstairs Bar + Kitchen closed, but I’d imagine the issues with not paying rent certainly had something to do with it.
With that being said, reviews for the bar after the Bar Rescue visit seemed to be not that bad.
Here’s a sampling of Yelp reviews from after the St8 Pub Bar Rescue visit.
5 star review from February 2017:
My favorite neighborhood bar.
Great staff and food, best bar for beer options in the area.
5 star review from April 2017:
Awesome food and great atmosphere.
Sean has always treating us right when we go there.
They have some good new sandwiches and service is always super quick.
Try the cheesy chips.
1 star review from February 2017:
Sean the “owner” is an egotistical jerk.
I WAS there. I was told I was to old to come there.
The bartender was rude(she is no longer there).
I DID have a horrible experience.
I have even been twice since bar rescue and it’s still bad.
I WILL keep posting no matter how many times the owner lies and cries about my reviews!
I hope he loses the bar so someone with a heart can take it over.
I guarantee I could go with a body cam on and video how bad it is.
Sean never recognizes me so it could work.
As of 2023, the old Downstairs Bar Englewood, CO location is occupied by a new bar named The Englewood Tavern.
You can see the new bar in this shot from Google Maps Street View:
Reviews for the new bar seem good as it has a perfect five-star rating on its Yelp page.
The new bar is also spoken of positively in this article from a local publication, which includes mentioning that it used to be known as Downstairs Bar.
It seems like the owner of The Englewood Tavern purchased the bar from Sean (or maybe from the landlord).
If you want to see some other Colorado Bar Rescue episodes, check out these posts:
- Garrison Tavern / Brickhouse update
- Summit House update
- Malloy’s / GI Jodi’s update
- Triple Nickle Tavern update
- Rockabillies / Bar Retro update
Thanks for reading!
More Information
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Last updated: 2023-03-05 10:27
Probably the worst concept/makeover Taffer has ever done. He obviously had no faith this place was going to make it long term. I mean, a back bar made of STACKED BRICKS?
Yeah I agree. Not a lot of effort was put into this one.
I could tell in the way Sean was acting, he is a taker, any and everything he expects to given to him, from his landlord, his mom and Jon, and they aren’t going to help him no matter what they do. Sean is basically a loser and he should have never gotten the rescue.
Weather like the concept of remodel, it fulfilled job,left Chris in better shape and a better bar! Got a remodel, ran successfully, found a buyer to get out of debt, pay his mom, and landlord made out on the deal! Better than screwing Mom, landlord and being in debt! I saw another bar owner scam bar rescue, free improvements, publicity, increase sakes and sell to pay everyone and cash in pocket!
Many episode are blatantly “pump and dump”…