Tres Cuartos Bar Rescue Update (Laguna Lounge) – Still Open in 2023?

Is Tres Cuartos still open today?

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

Season: 4 | View All Season 4 Episodes
Original Episode Air Date: October 26, 2014
The Bar's Original Name Was: Laguna Lounge
Tres Cuartos Address: 1007 Summit Ave Jersey City, NJ 07307

Tres Cuartos Bar Rescue Update (Laguna Lounge)

Episode Recap

Laguna Lounge, later renamed Tres Cuartos, was a Jersey City, New Jersey bar that was featured on Season 4 of Bar Rescue.

Though the Tres Cuartos Bar Rescue episode aired in October 2014, the actual filming and visit from Jon Taffer took place before that in early 2014.

It was Season 4 Episode 4 and the episode name was “El Moronte!!”.

Laguna Lounge is located in Jersey City, New Jersey.

DJ Ivan Arroyo owns the bar.

Laguna Lounge owner

He wanted to bring his DJ knowledge to New Jersey, along with his Puerto Rican pride.

He has owned the bar since 2008, which means he’s been in control for about six years before the Laguna Lounge Bar Rescue episode.

His two sons, Josh and Jeremiah, help him with the bar. 

Ivan got too distracted being a DJ, and sales have dropped.

In 2013 Ivan and his wife divorced, and he blamed the bar.

Ivan lashes out at his staff, and his sons can’t stand the bar anymore.

Josh has a degree in business, but his dad will not support his ideas. 

Ivan and his sons

Mixologist Lisamarie Joyce and Chef Anthony Lamas join Jon for the recon.

Jon brings in four locals as his spies.

The bar has a small kitchen.

Beyond that, there is a dance floor, a bar, and a pool table inside.

One girl orders a pina colada, but they do not have it.

The soda gun is broken, so the bar uses warm soda cans. Gross!

Ivan’s mom is in the kitchen.

She reheats food she has already made at home.

She is putting food in oil that isn’t hot. 

The food situation is just generally not very sanitary (what a surprise on Bar Rescue haha).

Ivan gives out free shots to the bar.

Jon goes into the bar and yells at Ivan because of how Ivan is treating his staff members.

He makes him say sorry to the bartender.

Jon has him close the bar early so they can sit down and talk. 

The next day, Jon meets with the staff for another meeting. 

Ivan admits that he can’t handle his anger.

Jon says that people will spend more money in a well-themed restaurant.

Jon introduces his experts to the staff.

He tells Ivan that he wants to see him step up during the stress test.

Jon Taffer really doesn’t mince words.

He tells Ivan he sucks as a DJ and as an owner. 

Jeremiah is in culinary school.

Jon sees excellent potential in Ivan’s sons/the brothers.

Lisamarie shows the staff how to make a correct Pina Colada.

She also has them work together to practice teamwork.

If they over-pour or under-pour, she will toss out the drinks.

Anthony Lamas teaches the kitchen staff how to make an empanada. 

The bar opens for the stress test, and the staff moves slowly.

Customers are waiting too long for their drinks even though five people are behind the bar.

Ivan is no help at all. He is just standing around doing nothing.

The bar is a wreck, and the food takes too long to prepare.

Laguna Lounge stress test

Jon has them close down the bar for the night.

The lack of organization failed the staff during the stress test.

Lisamarie shows the staff new drinks that will be added to the menu.

Jeremiah is taught how to make shrimp ceviche by Anthony.

While the staff is leveling up their knowledge, Jon Taffer begins renovations on the bar.

As part of the changes, Jon Taffer renames the bar from Laguna Lounge to Tres Cuartos.

Beyond a new name and style, there are new workstations and POS machines. 

During relaunch, the staff seems to be in control and is handling everything well.

Customers are delighted with their food and drinks.

Jon Taffer tells Ivan to continue leading the bar, and they will succeed. 

So was the Laguna Lounge Bar Rescue episode a long-term success? Keep reading to learn what happened next and if this Jersey City bar is still open in 2024.

Tres Cuartos Update - What Happened Next?

Now that we’ve recapped the Tres Cuartos Bar Rescue, let’s talk about what happened after Jon Taffer left the building.

Six weeks after the Bar Rescue visit, Tres Cuarto’s food sales had doubled and the drink sales were up 20%, which put them in a much better spot.

Ivan seemed to have a good experience on the show, though.

In an interview with NJ.com, he had very positive things to say about Jon Taffer:

“He’s a genius.

He’s a pain in the ass but he knows what he’s talking about.

In a way, we needed that.

It was a wake up call.”

Despite calling Jon Taffer a genius, Ivan apparently didn’t like the new name that Jon Taffer gave the bar.

After the Bar Rescue episode, Ivan renamed the bar again to Laguna Shots Bar, which was closed to the original name of Laguna Lounge.

Is Tres Cuartos from Bar Rescue still open?

Tres Cuartos closed for good in August 2017.

At that time, it was already operating under the name Laguna Shots Bar.

This was about three years after the visit from Jon Taffer and his crew.

While business still seemed to be doing ok, Tres Cuartos closed because Ivan wanted to go all-in on his music career rather than running the bar.

Ivan does seem to working regularly as a DJ, as he regularly promotes events on his Facebook page.

He seems to still perform as DJ Commandante.

He also lists himself as CEO of Viva La Musica Entertainment, which I guess is his business name.

Here’s an example:

Ivan Laguna Lounge DJ

As of 2023, the old Tres Cuartos Jersey City location is occupied by a catering business called Casa Cubana Catering.

The business offers both catering and takeout food and reviews seem ok with a four star rating on its Yelp page.

Here’s a picture of the old Laguna Lounge Jersey City location on Google Maps that shows Casa Cubana:

Old Laguna Lounge Jersey City location

At the time of the bar’s closure, it had a 3 star rating on its Yelp page.

Here’s a sampling of a few of the reviews that were written after the visit from Jon Taffer…

1 star review from June 2015:

One word: HORRIBLE.

Me and my gf drove 35 mins to this bar because we saw the turn around on bar rescue and I can’t begin to describe the disappointment.

First, there isn’t parking.

Second, there’s no drink menus.

Third the kitchen was closed and atmosphere wasn’t friendly.

Overall I would not recommend this place to anyone.

Jon Taffer wasted his time!

3 star review from February 2015:

Had high hopes for this place came out quite disappointed

Food: Amazing! The best part of this place!

Me and my lady had the mofongo…empanadas & tostones sliders and all where amazing and very cheap! The chef needs a promotion!

Service: needs improvement walked in after 10 minutes sitting around we we’re finally greeted

Drinks: the bartender that was working that evening made some nice tasting piña coladas but everything else was blah…

i mean come on she didn’t even know how to make a margarita..definitely needs more training

On another note they’re heat is not that good so be prepared to wear you’re coat while you’re in there!

The place does definitely look nice inside that’s a plus

5 star review from March 2017:

Went on a Wednesday night to hang out and try dancing salsa (Wednesday is their salsa night).

Relaxed atmosphere, open back room for dancing and a pool table and bar up front.

I had a great time dancing, the bartender, Gina was great and got up and danced.

Ivan was on the music and played bachata when I requested too.

Will definitely be back to dance and have a few again.

As far as I’m aware, Laguna Lounge was the only New Jersey Bar Rescue episode.

However, if you want to see some nearby New York City Bar Rescue episodes, you can check out my updates for Rhythm and Brews / 5th and Vine in Staten Island, Jack’s Ale House / Fire Department in Sunnyside, and Undisputed / SoYo Craft Bar in Yonkers.

Thanks for reading!


More Information

https://www.yelp.com/biz/laguna-shots-bar-jersey-city
https://www.facebook.com/Laguna-Shots-Bar-689112864511248/


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

Last updated: 2023-02-07 08:16

10 thoughts on “Tres Cuartos Bar Rescue Update (Laguna Lounge) – Still Open in 2023?”

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

  1. Ivan needs to repay Bar Rescue as do all the other owners who are failures. This way the generosity of Jon can be applied to owners who really are interested in putting in the effort to be a success.

    Reply
  2. Ugh, that one son mumbled under his breath “damn, she’s hot” when Jon brought Lisa Marie in and then he continued to leer at her the entire episode. So gross.

    Reply
  3. I noticed something in this episode – a bit of an easter egg… when they were showing the shots inside of the crowd enjoying the new bar, you can see the back of someone’s shirt with the “Bacon, Beer, Bloodies” logo from the old Kerry’s Sportsbar/Bacon Bar episode. I assume it was a crew member, too much of a coincidence.

    Reply
  4. Just watched episode for 1st time. Ivan was and probably still is a jerk. The way he treated his sons and employees was awful. He also lost points with me for abandoning his wife for a younger woman, whom I hope gains 100 pounds and turns out to be a thorn in his side. All the best to his sons!

    Reply

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