The new owners of Court Street Diner will get a liquor license in the summer for the restaurant after it was sold off by the previous owner in January.
Court Street Diner will become Hangover Easy and might sell breakfast type of liquor, such as mimosas and bloody Mary, as the diner slowly transitions to resemble the menu of Hangover Easy’s previous establishments in Cincinnati and Columbus, Kitchen Manager Dylan Dockery said.
“We’ll probably wait until after the seniors leave, wait for a couple weeks and then do the actual liquor,” Dockery, 29, said. “Just so it’s a little easier. Then people won’t get laid off or anything like that. It’s just naturally going to work out so nobody has to lose shifts or anything like that.”
Front of House Manager Mary Nern said that while there will be no change in the employees, the menu will definitely change to accommodate newer food trends and resemble more of Hangover Easy’s menu, which has mostly breakfast food along with alcoholic drinks.
“It’s not set yet, so I’m not sure what exactly they’re keeping, if anything, but I know they have a change going,” Nern, 21, said.
Dockery, who has consistently worked at the diner since 2012, said the menu is going to be a mix of the diner’s dishes and Hangover Easy’s dishes. A lot of fresher vegetables might also be added to the menu.
“They just have a more modern take on breakfast,” Dockery said. “They’re not afraid to experiment with the menu a little bit and add cool, fun stuff.”
Dockery said he is excited about about the change that will come with the business model of Hangover Easy because over the years, some things, such as certain burgers, had gone stale on the menu.
“I think they have some ideas to bring to the table that are going to be good for us,” Dockery said.
Nern also said the change will be fresh because the previous owner, Terry Wells, was struggling to maintain the business.
“He owns the Whit’s Frozen Custard,” Nern said. “I think he was just kind of finished with (Court Street Diner).”
Alivia Neil, a server, said she is excited to see things change in the diner.
“I think it will be good in the end,” Neil, a senior studying psychology, said. “I think business will definitely pick up. Hopefully servers make more money. Business has been a little slow lately.”
Neil also thinks the liquor license will draw more college students in.
“Come to the diner, oh, I guess the Hangover Easy,” Neil said.
