Historic Tobacco Road Closes Its Doors For Good
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- It's the end of the road for the historic Miami bar Tobacco Road.
After 101 years of service under its belt, the bar is closing on Saturday.
"I could cry. I'm crying," said Dana O'Hara Smith a long-time patron who moved away and drove down from Martin County just for this celebration. "This place, I've grown up with this place or it's grown up with me. It's been a part of my history."
According a spokesperson for the bar, the land its on was bought three years ago by its current owner who gave the bar a three year lease. That lease has now come to an end.
"We knew this was a real estate investement. We this day would come," said Tobacco Road co-owner Patrick Gleber. He and his partners bought the property in 1982.
CLICK HERE to watch Oralia Ortega's report
The Brickell establishment was bought for $ 12.5 million by real estate developers. The owners are planning to eventually re-open just a few hundred feet away.
"It's because Tobacco Road invested in Miami and Downtown that we have now what we have. I mean, they were here through the good times and the bad," said City of Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, who stopped by before the celebration began.
Long-time bar patron Bob Lowery says the local feel of the place is what kept him coming back for 41 years. "It's not the tourist trap. It's not South Beach. It's where the people that live here come," said Lowery.
Christine Michaels has been a patron since the 80s. "It's just so home grown. It's local. It's the only place back in the 80s that was open till 4 am and you just meet local people," Michaels said.
The building that houses Tobacco Road is scheduled to be demolished soon. The new Tobacco Road is expected to open in six to 12 months. The bar will also have a new home on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship.
Cruise officials said Wednesday they partnered with Tobacco Road to bring the most genuine experience of the bar on board the Norwegian Escape. The ship will begin sailing from Miami to Caribbean destinations on November 14, 2015.
Last call for Tobacco Road's original location is at 5:00 a.m. and the bar promised to make the closing a celebration with music, drinks and good times.
RELATED CONTENT:
