Ron’s Mug & Jug, located at 8285 N. Dixie Drive in Piqua, has officially re-opened for business.
Courtesy photo | Carla Swigert
By Sheryl Roadcap
PIQUA — The Mug & Jug, a past-time favorite watering hole in Piqua that has been closed for nearly a decade has been refurbished and is now open again for business.
Now named Ron’s Mug & Jug, which is located at 8285 N. Dixie Drive in Piqua, the establishment offers a full bar, approximately 10 domestic draft beers on tap and light snacks, including pizza. The bar has a pool table, an electronic dart board, jukebox, corn hole in the outside patio area, and plans to welcome bands on some weekends.
“I am excited (to be open again),” said Ron Schultz Jr., owner of the business and property, who has been working since 2015 to obtain a liquor licence and re-open his bar. “I’m really looking forward to seeing all my friends.”
The Mug & Jug officially re-opened for business on Sept. 8, but its grand opening celebration and a ribbon cutting ceremony is set for Saturday, Sept. 30.
Schultz explained a previous tenant, who rented the building and ran the bar under a different name, sold the liquor license when closing that business down. He elaborated saying limited liquor licenses are available but after years of working with an attorney to find and secure a liquor license again in his own name, he and his family finally felt they had the green light to then obtain a vendor license, to sell snacks, and could begin remodeling the inside that had been badly run down.
“I had to replace everything, the ceiling (which the health department requires of food establishments to have smooth surfaces that can be easily cleaned) … the floors, the bathrooms, the TVs, everything,” Schultz said as he pointed around to the newly lacquered hardwood floors, his brand new pool table, light fixtures, bar area, including glass wear and sinks, and remodeled bathrooms. “There were holes in the floor behind the bar that had rotted after they were allowed to be flooded with water. I also replaced all the (draft beer) lines. …”
Schultz said once he obtained the business’ liquor license and got through the health department inspection he knew they were close to finally re-opening, which is a dream he had held for many years.
“I was determined to get this bar opened,” he said, explaining that it took at least four to five months to get ready after obtaining a liquor license. He said they did a lot of work to get the bar back to a presentable establishment, and although they still have some additional work he wants to do on the outside patio area fence, people can still go out there and smoke and hangout.
Thinking back to past times at the business, he reminisced about helping his dad Ron Schultz Sr., who first owned and opened the business in 1968, build the Mug & Jug, lay concrete outside of the building, as well as work for his dad behind the bar as a young man.
“Back then I wasn’t allowed to drink (yet). I was in the Army and I said, ‘Dad, I‘m fighting for my country and I can’t even drink; Come on!’ And he said, ‘That’s the law, son; I‘m not going to go against the law.’ He was strict,” he recalled with a chuckle. “And then when I tended bar here (for his dad) on the weekends, I used to have to wear a white shirt and tie. Every bartender that worked here used to have to wear a white shirt and a tie. That was the rule.”
Schultz said the establishment is still a family-run business and they want it to be a place people can come to have a good time.
“We are making it a family affair here, running it,” Schultz said. “And like I said in my Facebook post about re-opening, I want it to be a place to have fun but we don’t need any trouble here. We want it to be a place where everyone can come to have a good time; Leave the attitude at home.”
The grand opening celebration will feature music throughout the day, starting at 1 p.m. BJ Brown is scheduled to play and Schultz plans to have a chicken fry to offer his customers during the day-long party. The ribbon cutting ceremony is set for 5 p.m.
The Mug & Jug is open Monday through Saturday from 1 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. The bar can be reached by calling 937-773-9009.
