Pandemic prompts closing of Tarentum's Praha, possibly for good, as other restaurants hang on

Uncertainty brought on by the covid-19 pandemic is prompting owners of the Praha restaurant and bar in Tarentum to close, possibly for good.

Unless businesses are shut down sooner, owner Ken Gulick said the Praha will close at the end of business on Dec. 23. He expects the closure to last for months, and he’s not sure if it will ever reopen.

“I hope it’s not permanent. I can’t tell you that it’s not permanent,” he said. “It’s a hard decision. We put a lot into that.”

Gulick and his wife Cris Gulick, of Frazer, bought the historic Praha at East Fourth Avenue and Corbet Street in 2018. They quickly went about repairing, updating and improving the more than century-old building, including the rooms above that are more small apartments than hotel rooms.

The rooms are not affected by the closing of the restaurant and bar on the first floor, Gulick said.

They recently had to contend with a partial collapse of the building’s facade, which sent bricks from near the roof of the three-story building down onto Corbet Street. The damage has been repaired.

“It was definitely an unexpected capital expense,” Gulick said.

Except for a brief reopening, the bar at Praha, a big part of the business, has been closed since the first business shutdown ordered by the state in March, Gulick said. The restaurant reopened following reduced capacity rules, first 25% and then 50%, and provided takeout.

But with limited occupancy and reduced business, Gulick said they still had the same fixed costs to pay operating the business, as well as trying to project inventory in an uncertain environment.

“It’s obviously economic, with the uncertainty of the shutdowns and all that stuff,” he said. “We just don’t think it makes a lot of sense right now to stay open. At this point I’d be surprised if there wasn’t another shutdown coming up with the surge in cases.”

Other restaurants hurt, too

The Gulicks have not been the only ones to struggle with opening or reopening a restaurant in Tarentum.

John Greco, owner of JG’s Tarentum Station Grille, initially planned to reopen on Dec. 1 before deciding in November to postpone until the week of Jan. 4.

Greco kept his restaurant closed when capacity was limited to 25%, and said at even 50% that opening was not economically feasible.

After 25 years in business, Rebecca Coy cited the pandemic in closing her Hometown Restaurant in Tarentum in August. Cindy and Bob Hatajik moved their walk-up ice cream stand and eatery into the space in November.

While they still have those who dine indoors at the restaurant, Hatajik said they’ve been reaching only 40% capacity, and started delivery in addition to takeout for those afraid to come out.

“It has hit us. We’re doing a lot more takeouts and deliveries. That is a blessing,” she said. “People are scared. I get it. I think I’m more scared of what covid can do to me financially than I am scared of what it can do to me physically. Financially, it could cripple me.”

Ordering perishable inventory when things could change without much notice has been the hard part for Kirk Massart, owner of Massart’s Restaurant.

“It just keeps you on edge. You never know,” he said. “We’re doing the best we can.”

Massart said he can keep going as long as things stay as they are.

“I’m lucky,” he said. “We’ve been here almost 100 years. I have a lot of steady customers that have been keeping me going pretty good. It’s not normal, but it could be worse. I’m not as bad off as others.”

Gulick said they’d consider reopening Praha at some point after the pandemic’s end. They’re not putting the building up for sale at this time.

“We would love to reopen at some point,” he said. “If it’s feasible in the future we’ll definitely consider it.”

Gulick said they worked hard to change the Praha’s reputation. He hopes they made a difference, and they said they see a lot of potential in Tarentum.

“We’d like to thank our employees and our customers for the support we’ve had the last couple of years,” Gulick said. “Our employees are absolutely our most valuable asset. Our customers have been fantastic over the years. We appreciate their support.”