Brick House in downtown Butler changing its focus
After 25 years and thousands of guests served, a Butler establishment is changing its direction.
The Brick House, 118 N. Main St., has ceased all of its dining operations as of Saturday, according to owner Larry Goettler, and will now focus solely on hosting events.
“We have always done events,” Goettler said. “We have always done wedding receptions, rehearsal dinners and Christmas parties. We are just going to stop our daily operation of the bar and dining, and transition to events only.”
Goettler, a Butler native, opened the Brick House in October 2000, and described the business as his “gift to his hometown” when he first opened it.
“My intent was to create a place where people can build memories in this town,” Goettler said.
Goettler, 67, said he plans to still be involved with the business moving forward, but he intends to spend more time on other projects he is involved with, as well as spending more time with his grandchildren.
“Honestly, my favorite title ever is grandfather,” he said. “I want to be present for them while they are small because as kids get older you kind of lose their attention.”
Goettler said little will need to change within the building to help the business pivot.
He already has employees lined up ready to work the events, which, Goettler said, he thinks is easier to prepare for than day-to-day dining operations.
Goettler said the buildings that make up the Brick House were built in the early 1900s as side-by-side vaudeville theaters called the Lyric and Capital theaters.
“The Lyric Theater, which is where the main bar is today, used to have a diving tank in the back left,” Goettler said. “There was a seven-member mermaid diving team at the Lyric Theater. There were animal acts, dogs, horses, you name it.”
Goettler said later in the 1970s, part of the business used to be the former Eat’n Park, that he and his grandmother used to frequent.
Goettler said he put the business up for sale about a year ago and decided to make the change after receiving what he called “low-ball offers.”
The business is still for sale, but Goettler said he is in no rush to sell it.
“The building and business itself are for sale,” Goettler said. “It will have the booking behind it if people still wanted to continue that part of the business, but if they want to go another direction we can refer our event business elsewhere.”
Those interested in booking an event can reach out to the Brick House at brickhousebutler@gmail.com.
