Restaurants come and go. It's a tough business. But some endure and among those is Center Street Smokehouse, which has been a staple of the downtown dining scene in Batavia for 20 years.
In 2000, Paul, his brother Scott and friend Tommy Freeman bought at auction an old newspaper building that had been vacant for years and was in a sad, dilapidated state and renovated it, turning it into a Southern-hospitality, retro-themed eatery.
"It's been an interesting trip," Paul said. "We've got a loyal fan base and we've been improving things year after year after year so people keep coming back."
As downtown's business base has slowly grown over the past two decades, Center Street has been in the thick of it.
"It's nice to be right in the middle of the city," Paul said. "People can move around downtown and get more of a city experience."
The restaurant opened 20 years ago on Dec. 7 and to celebrate, on Sunday (Dec. 8), draft beers are $1, beef ribs, $6, half chicken, $4, and a hamburger is just $1.
"These prices are not a misprint," Paul notes in a flier he made for the event, and the prices only last on Sunday while supplies last. The hours are from 4 to 8 p.m.
The celebration will last all of 2020, Paul said, with monthly specials throughout the year.
