The owner of Hawthorn's Dining and Celebrations said last week that he has sold his stake in J.T. Whitney's Pub and Brewery in Madison to focus his energies on Oregon's largest restaurant.
David Bookstaff, who opened Hawthorn's last June, last week quelled a rumor that J.T. Whitney's had shut down and that Hawthorn's was next. In fact, J.T. Whitney's is closed only temporarily while the new owner, Tom Volke of Milwaukee, renegotiates the lease with the building's landlords, Bookstaff said.
J.T. Whitney's had a month-to-month lease with the landlord and was served an eviction notice March 3, according to online court records. Bookstaff said Monday that the restaurant was likely to re-open early this week.
Meanwhile, in Oregon, the first year of business at Hawthorn's has been slow at times, Bookstaff admitted, but he hopes to turn that around. "Obviously, Hawthorn's has not taken off out of the gate like I'd hoped," he said. "It's probably going to be rough for a little while, but we're going to make it."
Last Monday, madisondining.com posted a picture of a "Closed for Business" sign on the front door of J.T. Whitney's and speculated that the pub might be shuttered. It later posted a retraction.
Bookstaff, who lives in New Glarus, said he hasn't been actively involved in running the Madison pub for months now.
Instead, he's spending his time trying to build business at Hawthorn's. He cited the recent Oregon Chamber of Commerce annual awards dinner as the type of event that could help his restaurant thrive.
"We've learned that we're going to have to rely more on our banquet business than we thought ... because our nightly (business) has not taken off like we'd hoped," he said.
