NIAGARA FALLS: Last call for Dell’s

Local News

July 30, 2008

Family tavern on Niagara Street shuts its doors

By Rick Forgione<br><a href="mailto:forgioner@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail Rick</a> The Niagara Gazette Wed Jul 30, 2008, 08:42 PM EDT

One of the “friendliest neighborhood bars in the city” has served its last drink.

Dell’s lounge, 314 Niagara St., officially closed for business at 2 a.m. this morning, ending a family tradition that started back in 1996.

“It’s been a lot of fun and I’ve met a lot of great people,” said owner Kevin Dell, who operated the bar with the help of his mother, wife and brother. “But it’s a day-to-day struggle in this business. I was basically sitting here spinning wheels.”

The Dell family, including Kevin’s late father, opened their first bar in 1996 at the corner of 18th Street and Linwood Avenue. The business moved into the old Pirate’s Table on Portage Road in 1998 and finally into the old Arterial Lounge on Niagara Street in 2003.

Dell had hoped a prime location downtown — a block away from the Seneca Niagara Casino and a short walk from the falls — would bolster business, especially since the bar had a fully functional kitchen to serve finger food and dinners.

However, steep increases in everything from the price of mozzarella to insurance ate up any profit the business may have enjoyed.

All five years on Niagara Street had been a struggle to stay open, but Dell said it wasn’t until recently he concluded it wasn’t going to work out.

“I’ve been going back and forth on making a decision for some time,” he said. “I considered taking out loans. It’s a very tough decision to close. If I didn’t have to, I wouldn’t. This is Niagara Falls and people just don’t have the money to spend here.”

Dell declined to talk about what influence, if any, competition from other area taverns and the casino’s operations had on his closing, but did say he had thought his business would attract more tourists.

“They don’t wander around to this side of downtown,” he said. “If it wasn’t for my regulars, I wouldn’t have survived for this long. We always prided ourselves on being one of the friendliest neighborhood bars in the city. This was like a home away from home for them.”

To thank the bar’s regulars, the Dell family hosted two parties Tuesday and Wednesday evening to say good-bye. Food was donated by several local businesses as supplies have run out.

Dell also gave his longtime customers beer signs and memorabilia that had adorned the walls.

Jim Gwizdowski, a regular at Dell’s for the past 12 years, requested the LaBatt Blue beer sign that hung prominently for so many years in the front display window.

“It’s depressing,” he said while having a drink Tuesday afternoon. “My wife and I come here, it’s just like a family to us. We’ll have to find a new place, but there won’t be another one like this one.”

Gwizdowski said he still plans to keep in close touch with Dell, who didn’t rule out opening another bar someday.

“There’s always a possibility in the future, but I think I’m going to at least take three to five years off,” Dell said.

The building, located next door to the Niagara Gazette, has housed several businesses, including a photo studio and coffee shop in its early years. It was known as the Arterial Lounge before Dell’s moved in, leasing the building from owner Michael “Mickey” Rimmen.

Text Only | Photo Reprints

Local News

Child run over be car on Niagara Avenue
Falls Traffic Division investigators said an 11-year-old boy was struck after he darted into the street, in front of a car as it pulled away from a stop sign.

February 9, 2012 2 Photos
Militello paid $50K to leave Niagara-Wheatfield
Former Niagara-Wheatfield Superintendent Carl Militello is receiving a $50,000 from the district, according to a separation settlement agreed to on Feb. 1.

February 9, 2012 1 Photo
Autopsy unable to determine cause or time of Judith Burr’s death
An autopsy by an Erie County Medical Examiner has failed to determine either the time of death or the cause of death of Judith Burr.

February 9, 2012 1 Photo
Gerber resigns from SPCA board; calls for adding veterinarian to staff
A Town of Niagara veterinarian and long-time member of the SPCA of Niagara Board of Directors has stepped down.
Dr. William Gerber submitted his resignation on Tuesday. It was effective immediately.

February 9, 2012
Has NYPA relicensing agreement led to a revival?
A state senator is calling for an audit of the low-cost power and cash used in the last seven years by Niagara County entities that have shared in the benefits of the 50-year relicensing agreement with the New York Power Authority.

February 9, 2012 1 Photo
Joseph Davis State Park gets some green
Officials in the Town of Lewiston received approval Thursday to spend a significant portion of the community’s incoming greenway funds on the redevelopment of Joseph Davis State Park.

February 9, 2012 5 Photos
Search continues for Falls jumper
State Park Police were still searching Thursday for a Falls man who jumped from the rapids bridge at Goat Island on Wednesday morning.

February 9, 2012
NU gets helping hand for campus projects
A new county entity formed to help organizations secure bond financing agreed on Wednesday to assist Niagara University in the development of its new science center, a proposed refurbishment at Meade Hall and other campus improvements totaling $48 million.

February 9, 2012 1 Photo
One Niagara tax break denied
It’s a no-go for a proposed tax break at One Niagara.
At least for now.

February 9, 2012 1 Photo
County IDA adds local hiring clause
From now on, applicants seeking assistance through the Niagara County Industrial Development Agency will be expected to demonstrate their “best efforts” in hiring local workers for subsidized projects.

February 9, 2012
More Local News Headlines

Do you think cigarette sales to non-Native American customers should be taxed on reservations?