Syracuse, N.Y. — The late night scene in downtown Syracuse’s Armory Square may start to look almost normal by the end of this month.
Mulrooney’s Pub and Benjamin’s on Franklin nightclub, which have been shut since the fall, plan to reopen on Memorial Day weekend just ahead of the official end of the statewide indoor bar and restaurant curfew.
The indoor curfew, currently midnight, ends on Memorial Day itself — Monday May 31. (The curfew for outdoor seating ends May 17.)
But the two bars will open that Friday and Saturday even with the indoor curfew still in place, and then open the following Friday and Saturday without it, said Joe Rainone, who owns Mully’s and is a partner in Benjamin’s.
“We’ll take those first two nights to get our systems and our staffing back in place,” Rainone said. “Then we’ll be working to get back to normal after that.”
Both bars have remained closed since Gov. Andrew Cuomo impose the initial 10 p.m. curfew last November. They remained closed even as the curfew shifted to 11 p.m. in January and midnight in mid-April. Rainone has said his places depend on the late night crowd for most of their revenues.
Cuomo announced the dates for the end of New York’s bar and restaurant curfew last week as state lawmakers were preparing to force him to do so.
The Legislature did end Cuomo’s rule requiring food to accompany alcohol purchases last week, and today Cuomo announced that capacity limits at almost all businesses, including bars and restaurants, will end May 19. In the case of bars and restaurants, the six-foot social distancing rule (or barriers) will remain in effect.
Rainone said he’s becoming more confident about his business now that the Covid-19 restrictions are coming to an end.
“As more people get vaccinated and the (infection) numbers keep falling, there’s no excuse to keep (the restrictions) in place,” Rainone said. “We can get ready to bring our staff back and go back to normal.”
Mully’s, Armory Square’s oldest pub, is at 239 W. Fayette St. Benjamin’s, which Rainone operates with partner Nick Falcone, is at 314 S. Franklin St.
Mully’s has been able to weather the prolonged closing in part with the help of grant money provided by the digital media company Barstool Sports. Mully’s won the grants in January, and they have provided $6,000 a month to cover expenses since then.
“This is just the start,” Rainone said. “We hope to be able to expand (the days and hours) in the near future.”
Mulrooney's bar owner Joe Rainone (center) reacts to the Jan. 18 announcement from Barstool Sports owner Dave Portnoy (inset) that the Syracuse pub will receive $6,000 a month to help it weather the Covid 19 pandemic.
Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.