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Now for a story about a dream, a pandemic, a fixer upper, a big investment; staring down the skeptics... and winning.
Friday, March 24th 2023 is Wrangler's Cafe and Entertainment's fourth anniversary of doing business in downtown Hillsboro. We sat down with the owners recently, ordered a drink and fries, and asked them to tell us their story.
When you ask people for their story, you usually receive a first response of humility, and then a blank face. After a pause, they finally start thinking back to all the risk and uncertainty, the reasons and moment they made the big commitment, and the milestones that got them where they are today. This is when their eyes widen, they point in the air, and you should order another drink, because the story is coming.
"We had the dream of opening a place where both adults and children could enjoy a meal, air hockey, pool, karaoke, and have something fun to do together. We talked about it often, but knew the financial and business risk was there. We kept turning it over in our minds, and finally decided... "if we don't do this, it won't exist".
By December of 2018, Kenny had quit his job, and was working 15 hour days - 7 days a week making renovations to the dated retail space at 106 East Elm, which locals remember as Herring's Men's Clothing store. Bill and Kenny invested 150k of their savings on renovations, and without going into detail on the zoning hurdles they had to overcome, they opened for business on Sunday, March 24th, 2019.
As we walk through the now vibrant business, Kenny tells us the story of how they approached clearing out the clutter, making a stuffy dated retail space bright and usable, and their commitment to reuse and repurpose many of the original fixtures. Kenny designed and built the art on the walls in the main room, the barn lavatory doors, and used materials salvaged from the original space to create unique interior finishes.
The circa 1886 building was originally a three story doctor and dentist office with three sets of stairs in the building. In the early 1900's the third floor burned and was never rebuilt. The storefront was updated in the 1920's to the recessed entry design you see today. The original tile floor is still viewable at when you enter the front doors.
"We celebrated our first anniversary in business March 24, 2020 during a required shutdown due to the pandemic, and the shut downs happened several times during 2020. It wasn't easy but we were determined. We dug in, and the customers returned when we were able to reopen. We have very loyal customers who cheer us on, and see an increase of both tourists and locals coming to our karaoke night and events.
We aren't a bar scene, Kenny confides. We serve drinks, but we also serve our share of iced tea and sodas. Our food is incredibly fresh and prepared with great care, and we have a terrific following because there is more here to do than just eat and drink. I bring my father and family here, and people of all ages can enjoy themselves"
Wrangler's has a weekly lineup of line dance lessons, pool and dart tournaments, all you can eat catfish on Fridays, and a loyal karaoke night crowd on Saturday nights. Wrangler's helped bring the Music on the Green Summer Concert series into fruition, in a partnership with the Hillsboro Chamber, City of Hillsboro, and Hillsboro Truck Yard.
Happy Four Year Anniversary Wranglers.
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