ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Florida bars reopened Friday and the Anchor Inn in Holmes Beach was the first one on Anna Maria Island to restart its business.
Anchor Inn owners Darla and Bobby Tingler hosted a soft reopening that began at 12:01 a.m. in accordance with Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Executive Order 20-139 – an order that allowed bars, bowling alleys, movie theaters, concert houses, arcades and other entertainment businesses to reopen at 50% capacity.
The soft reopening coincided with their son Robbie Tingler’s 21st birthday and Darla checked with Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer to make sure the 12:01 a.m. opening was allowed.
At 12:01, Darla, Bobby and the bartender on duty began serving drinks and Michael Hesselbert was the first to get a pitcher of beer.
“I missed this place. Hopefully, we’ll get a little more normalcy back in our world,” he said.
Joined by Elizabeth Shirey, Dcoy Ducks’ bartender Shane Weaver ordered two shots of Rumple Minze and said, “I’m excited to have a cheers with my friends at the Anchor.”
“I’m excited, but I still think we were picked on because the governor never gave us an explanation about why he held off so long,” Darla said.
“Two-and-a-half months is a lot of days of not getting any information,” Bobby said.
After noting the hand sanitizers and social distancing signs, Bobby said, “I’m allowed 32 or 33 people at 50% capacity and we’ll monitor it the best we can. If there’s a line outside, they’re just going to have to wait.”
Joyful reopenings
The Anchor Inn opened again at 7 a.m. Friday morning. The Drift In in Bradenton Beach also opened at 7 a.m. Tommy Knockers in Bradenton Beach opened at 9 a.m. Dcoy Ducks in Holmes Beach opened around 10:30 a.m. and the Sports Lounge in Bradenton Beach opened at noon.
Drift In bartender Susan McAllister brought homemade coffee cake and doughnuts and brewed a pot of coffee for the occasion.
“I’m excited to be back to work and glad to be getting off unemployment. I hope the country never closes like this again,” she said.
Shortly after 7 a.m., McAllister’s first customer arrived and ordered a draft beer.
“I’m glad they’re open, but I’m going to try to keep my distance. I usually don’t drink this early, but it’s a special occasion,” he said.
A few minutes later, Jim Kosco took a seat and said, “It’s wonderful. I’m missing all my friends and confidantes.”
A return to the Drift In at 3:30 p.m. found longtime patron Donald White sitting at the bar with Dan Cleary.
“It feels like a homecoming. I got my barstool back,” White said.
While working the outside bar, bartender Sharon Bell said, “I’m just over-the-moon happy to be back.”
Dos-Macs performed under a tent in the Drift In parking lot and concluded their afternoon show at 4 p.m. before the rain got heavier.
Inside the neighboring Sports Lounge, several regular customers sat around the bar celebrating the reopening as afternoon gave way to evening.
Down the road at Tommy Knockers, bartender Courtney Call discussed the reopening and said, “It’s about time. We have a good turnout. Everyone’s happy and everyone missed socializing.”
Back at the Anchor Inn, Brad the bartender had worked up a sweat and he jokingly said, “I need a vacation already.”
Around 7 p.m., Dcoy Ducks owner/general manager Richie Brown stood behind the bar and said, “We love being back open and seeing all of our Island friends and loyal customers. We know we’ll be at full 50% capacity later tonight. On Fridays and Saturdays we always have a doorman, but tonight we’re going to have two – and we’ll do that for the first couple weeks to make sure everyone is safe.”
Brown also weighed in on bars being among the last Florida businesses to reopen.
“It’s been about two and a half months. I think it was long overdue for the bars. The rent, the mortgage, the utilities – those bills keep coming in. They don’t stop just because we’re closed,” he said.
Doorman Matt Vinski said, “My job is to make sure people practice social distancing and to keep a count on how many people are coming and going to make sure we stay at our capacity.”
At The Doctor’s Office, craft cocktails to go were sold as business operations resumed.
Meanwhile, Sports Lounge bartenders Courtney McGough and Patrick Edwards were surrounded by friends and familiar faces.
“We are excited to see all those faces we’ve missed for so long,” McGough said.
Inside the Drift In, Concrete Edgar was rocking out again on a Friday night.
Wearing a mask while tending bar, manager Doreen Flynn said, “I took some bar tables out and moved some stools to different spots. It’s a challenge to keep it at 50% inside and I’ve had to ask some people to please go outside where the capacity is 100%. But we missed everybody, and everybody loves us being open.”
