A
Downtown Landmark Reopens (March 2008)
by Mike Ironside, 365ink
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It might
just be me and the people I know who worked for or frequented
this seminal downtown restaurant and nightspot, but the
anticipation for the reopening of the Silver Dollar Cantina
is palpable. To say we are excited does not quite convey
the intensity of the emotion. Back in our March 22, 2007,
issue of 365ink, we announced the beginning of restoration
work on the Silver Dollar and the apartments above in
the historic building known as the Old German Bank. We
reminisced about good times and great bands and detailed
some of the major work ahead to save and restore the
building. Well the work is almost done and an opening
date is just around the corner (more about that later). |
For those
new to town or too young to have experienced the original
Silver Dollar, I’ll give you a quick recap. Back
in the ‘90s, before the America’s River
Project set the transformation of the Port of Dubuque
into high gear, before you could drive down Main Street
through the heart of downtown, back when most people
weren’t sure what to do with all those old brick
buildings downtown, there was a little Tex-Mex restaurant
on Main Street with a tiny stage in the corner.
The Silver
Dollar Cantina was not only a destination downtown
for a good burrito, but it was ground zero for Dubuque’s
live music scene. It may not have been widely known
throughout the broader community, but to a fiercely
loyal bunch of regulars and music lovers, it was definitely
the coolest thing going on downtown or anywhere in
the city at that time.
Fast-forward
to this century and some of the aforementioned downtown
and Port development was beginning to take shape. It
looked like the Silver Dollar was going to share Main
Street with some slightly more upscale neighbors when
on October 1, 2001, a fire ripped through the building
and the beloved bar was destroyed. |
|
German
Bank and Silver Dollar owner Steve Althoff worked in the
interim to
find a way to finance
a restoration
but the
damage was just too great. Though work was done to
save the building from falling into further disrepair,
a full
restoration
was too expensive. Finally, with appropriate grant
money and tax credits in place, and financing through
Premier
Bank, Gronen
Properties together with Steele Financial formed
German Bank, LLC. The group purchased the building from Althoff,
setting
in motion a restoration plan for the building and
making
it possible for Althoff to recreate the Silver Dollar
Cantina. Though Althoff has put in hours of work
himself toward
the resurrection of the building, he is sure to make
one thing
clear: “I can’t stress enough the help
and input from John (Gronen) and Mike (Steele) and
their faith in me.”
Since crews began
last year, a massive amount of work has been done. Demolition
of fire-damaged materials
cleared the way
for new construction. The massive brick and concrete
bank
vaults were cut into cross-sections and removed.
The
basement floor
was dug down further and re-poured. New water,
waste,
and electrical services were installed. Steel beams
were installed
to support
the building and first floor. Exterior brick and
stone was cleaned, repaired and tuckpointed. “Basically,
it’s
a building within a building,” explained
Althoff. The upstairs apartments were mostly gutted
and rebuilt.
Existing
yellow pine floors and original woodwork was refinished
and replaced where damage was too great. New kitchens
and bathrooms
were installed. While some of the work was detailed
in an earlier progress report in 365ink, it would
take a lot more space to
cover all the hard work and skilled craftsmanship
that went into the building.
The preceding
paragraph barely scratches the surface of work done to restore
the building, but what
we all really
want
to know is what the cantina is going to be like,
so here goes.
Well, first of all, it’s going to be much,
much bigger. While the fire was truly tragic,
it opened up opportunities
to rethink and rebuild the space. “It created
a lot more room,” admits general manager
Michelle Bechen. “It
allowed us to make it a bar and restaurant instead
of a bar and restaurant in a bank.”
The
removal of the vaults opened the floor plan
of both the main floor and the basement. The
kitchen and new
restrooms are located in the lower level, with
a
single handicap-accessible
unisex restroom located on the first floor.
The heavy steel vault doors now serve as decorative
elements – one on
the main floor and one in the lower level.
The relocation of the kitchen and restrooms
allowed
the bar and restaurant space
to expand greatly. With about 2,700 square
feet on the first floor, the restaurant will
now be
able to seat 118, about double
the previous number. Booths will line the wall
across from the bar, with tables in-between
and a large custom bench settee
on the opposite wall.
 |
While
the original bar was destroyed in the fire it has been
replaced by a vintage walnut bar from the Windsor Tap
in Platteville. It’s being refurbished with a
new laminate top and a stainless steel foot rail. The
mahogany back bar was custom built for the space. Though
slightly different from the original, the bar has much
of the classic character of the original and truly
seems to fit in the space.
“As
soon as the bar was done, I had an 18-pack in there,” said
Althoff of some quality control testing of the bar’s
height and functionality. “All the workers had
a beer to toast the place.” In fact, after our
interview and cover photo shoot with the staff, a few
of us stuck around to give the bar another test run
with a few beers and some shots of tequila. Yeah, it
feels pretty good. |
| The reconstructed
space is a blend of modern style and traditional elements
many will remember from the original cantina. Near the
front and along the bar, small hexagonal black and white
ceramic tile set in a traditional pattern replaces the
original, with hardwood floors throughout the rest of
the restaurant. Walls and other built forms sport a complementary
palette of 10 different colors. |
 |
| Though most
of the decorative crown molding along the ceiling was
lost to the fire, Dave Blake of Restoration Warehouse
tinkered in his garage long enough to come up with a
custom mold process to replicate it from the plaster
and horsehair original. The new molding, cast in foam
and resin, depending on the element, is virtually indistinguishable
from the original, some of which remains in place. The
signature skylight was restored, though it is now illuminated
artificially as a buffer was installed to give the upstairs
renters a break from the noise of the cantina. |
 |
Of
course, a big part of the original Silver Dollar’s
appeal was that tiny stage in the
corner and the wide variety of bands that squeezed onto it
to perform.
The new open floor
plan enabled a larger, more band-
and audience-friendly stage to be built at the back of the
space.
The new stage is four
times larger than the original!
Iowa
City piano blues artist Dave Zollo is working with Althoff
and
Bechen,
along with
George Rondinelli
of Rondinelli
Music
/ Audio, to build a new house PA
system. The back room features
an architectural
drop panel
ceiling
and a
heavy curtain at
the back of the stage to help control
acoustics of the space. The stage
will also have
a storage area
for collapsible
dance
floor-area tables. With the room
cleared for live music, club capacity
should
be somewhere around
160, up from
about 100.
“
The reconstruction is definitely more conducive to live music,” says
Althoff. “We have a real
stage now. I think people will
like the new layout much better.” Joe
Tower, who will be acting as
front-of-house manager, agrees, “Now
it really has the feel of an
urban music venue.”
The
new setup practically begs
the question of what kind of
bands will
be performing.
A lot
has changed
since
the Dollar
was, the for the most part,
the only show in town. Bechen, who
returned
in her role
of booking
bands
for the club,
answers, “Our
niche is going to be pretty
much the same. We’ll
bring in regional bands. We’ll
feature a bunch of different
genres and bring in some big
names.” Althoff agrees: “We
have the ability with the larger
room to bring in bigger acts.”
While
it might be too soon to speculate
who might be on
the
roster, Dollar
regulars can
expect
to see many
of the
old
favorites returning, though
some groups might have to
reunite to perform and others might
be
returning
for
old
time’s sake. “A
lot of the acts careers have
gotten bigger since they
used to play here,” Althoff
notes. “A lot of the
bands that played here didn’t
play here to make a lot of
money. They played here because
they loved to play here.” Still,
with Bo Ramsey and GB Leighton
still touring, and the House
of Large Sizes playing reunion
shows in Iowa City, Des Moines,
Minneapolis, and Cedar Falls
in December, it’s a
sure bet the Dollar will
be trying
to book them. The Bent Scepters
have been known to get together
for the occasional shows
as well. In addition, the
aforementioned
Mr. Zollo will be using some
of his industry contacts
to secure some larger names
that
might be new to our neck
o’ the
woods.
One act we can
be sure to see in the near future
is
Madison
jazzy
soul-funk/hip-hop
collective
Smokin’ With Superman,
who will be playing for
the Silver Dollar’s
Grand Opening night on
Saturday,
March 8. Opening for SWS
will be Mama Digdown's
Brass Band, a funk band
in the form of a New Orleans-style
second line brass band.
It
should be a stellar show.
Note that while
the Grand Opening set for March 8
is the “drop
dead, must be open ‘cause
Smokin’ With Superman
is coming date,” the
Silver Dollar hopes to
have a soft opening a
couple weeks before,
possibly
as soon as Friday,
February 22, for the
bar and sometime the
following
week for the restaurant,
but much depends on making
those dates, including
finishing construction
and city permits. As
Althoff notes, “There’s
still a lot of heavy
lifting to do.” (Stay
tuned to Dubuque365.com
for double-secret
opening dates as they
are revealed.)
The stage
is not the
only place we expect
to see
Silver Dollar
classics;
the menu
should be familiar
to the
restaurant regulars
as well. “We’re
starting out with almost
the same menu we left
off with for the first
month," says Althoff. “Later,
when we get comfortable
with the menu, we will
start to expand.” Andy
Hoffman returns as
chef and kitchen manager,
bringing some continuity
back to the kitchen,
but having worked with
Chef
Kim Wolff at Pepper
Sprout
in the meantime, we’re
guessing he’s
picked up a few tricks.
Expect
to see the classic
cantina Tex-Mex cuisine
taken
in some new directions,
possibly
even the return of
the Thursday night
gourmet
specials.
Along with
Bechen and Hoffman,
a number of
the old staff
is returning – from
servers to bartenders – in
fact, many of them
showed up for our
cover shot. “It’s
so exciting,” enthuses
Bechen. “I
get excited when
I talk
to anyone about it.
Not just me but we
have some old
employees coming
back. I’m stressed,
but I can’t
wait. The reaction
of people has been
very positive.”
Though
Althoff seems to
be holding a certain
amount
of enthusiasm
in check until
all the work is done,
the fact
that an opening
seems imminent
coupled with
the experience
of seeing some of
the old crew returning
might be
getting
to him as well. “The
fact that all these
people are coming
back makes it a
lot easier to start
again,” he
confesses. “The
Silver Dollar was
not just a building
or a space. It
was an attitude
put
together by the
people who worked
here.”
In
an earlier conversation
about the nearly
seven years between
the fire
that marked
the end of
and era and
the reopening
that marks a
new beginning
for the Silver
Dollar, Bechen
had
a similar
confession. “It
never left my mind,” she
said of the time
spent at the cantina. “It
was never a question
if I would come
back. We were family.”
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