Today we’d like to introduce you to Erica Grinkis.
Erica, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My life long dream was to own a small sports bar. In 2012, I was dining out with my family at an old Italian restaurant in Leominster when we discovered it was for sale. The place was much larger than I had envisioned and had a full kitchen. It was pretty run down as it had been open for 18 years. After a few meetings, negotiations and help from my family, I had made the purchase. We took over September 2012 and did almost a complete renovation. We transformed an old italian restaurant into a 100+ seat sports bar and grill. Initially we started with 7 flat screen tv and more of a local pub fare. Now we have 9 flat screens, 3 lottery tvs and a full menu ranging from burgers to fresh seafood to homemade pasta dishes. We have a huge regular customer base and most employees have been here from the start. We operate like a big family and have fun while doing it!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The first couple years were a little rocky as we were all trying to figure out what would work best for the business. After 5 years I believe we have all come together with ideas and have a very smooth system. We are always still improving or trying new systems to ensure we are doing the best we can!
The GazBar Sports Grill – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am the owner of The GazBar Sports Grill. I would say as a business we specialize in customer relations and reactions. We want to to be personal with our customers and we also want them to have a good reaction to our staff and our food and beverages. We listen to their concerns and always make things right. Our goal is to make each customer and employee fell as comfortable as possible. We give off a home like feel and an atmosphere that you dont see everywhere.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success to me is giving it 100% always. You get what you put in. I believe we are successful because of the staff we carry. We all strive to be better than the next day whether or not this is someones full time job or just a college student working for extra cash. We all have the same mind set and know that if we work together and give it our all then there is no reason why we should not be successful.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1045 Central Street, Leominster, MA 01453
- Website: www.thegazbar.com
- Phone: 978-534-6600
- Email: thegazbar@gmail.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/gazbar12
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegazbar/
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