A group of friends with working histories in the hospitality industry have pooled resources to take over Front Street bar and restaurant Flanagan’s.

For some it will be a case of realising an ambition to go from bar tender to owner, but all will be very much hands-on bosses and will work in the Emporium Building-based business.

Chris Garland will be general manager, with Deon Mills his assistant, while the bar tenders will be Anthony Daniels and Robby Bell. Michael Robinson will be the restaurant manager and Barry DeCouto will be on hand to back up the management.

The six men are backed up by two other partners, each with a smaller stake, and they took over the lease for Flanagan’s and the neighbouring Legends Sports Bar on January 1.

They aim to strengthen Flanagan’s reputation in terms of service, quality of food, providing a family atmosphere and regular live entertainment. And the increasingly popular poker nights at the sports bar will continue.

The new owners are confident in the future and list some of the pub’s strong points as its location, with outside dining overlooking Hamilton harbour, its reputation for friendliness and for attracting all types of clients and the fact that it is the only upstairs bar on Front Street with an elevator.

Customers can expect to see the premises spruced up with some cosmetic changes in the coming weeks. But late next year, Mr. Garland said the partners intend to gut the place and give it a total makeover.

The takeover has been eight months or so in the making, with the group growing until there were enough prospective owners with enough combined capital to make a successful bid.

“We are all friends and we are all professionals, from the old school of hospitality,” Mr. Garland said. “We are taking a group of people who have day-to-day experience of working in the business and we’re putting them together.

“Robby and Anthony worked here before and Deon worked here for 15 years and always wanted to have his own bar. I worked here as a kid. Mike has a lot of experience in the restaurant business and is a good friend and so we approached him.

“We got the people we wanted and we’ve all been friends for years and the business relationship was built up through a series of meetings in the summer.”

Mr. DeCouto added: “It’s a great opportunity. It gives us job security because we have the lease until 2020 and we have the chance to work for ourselves and make the business better.”

With fellow Front Street bar the Pickled Onion now closed for up to three months for renovations and the Ozone night-club having shut down, Mr. Garland said it was an opportune time to take over Flanagan’s.

“The closure of the Pickled Onion for a time gives us a head start in the business,” Mr. Garland said. “We are excited for them, because if they have a good product it helps everyone on Front Street and it helps us.”

The premises will undergo a general clean-up and see some cosmetic changes, such as new carpeting and new furniture for the outside dining section.

“At the end of 2008, we plan to carry out a major revamp and completely gut the place and do some serious work in here, but we will keep the Irish theme,” Mr. Garland added.

Mr. Robinson has big plans for the restaurant. “Our emphasis will be on providing the best service possible so more people move Flanagan’s to the top of their list,” Mr. Robinson said.

The business has a staff of 24 and the partners are well aware that improving service will require the best efforts of the whole team. To that end, the staff have been promised bonuses linked to overall profits.

“If your staff are happy, then your customers are happy,” Mr. Bell said.

It is also paramount to hang on to the staff, because there is a shortage of Bermudians coming into the hospitality industry, Mr. Garland added.

The new owners aim to strengthen Flangan’s tradition of providing live entertainment and a three- or four-piece band will play there five or six nights of the week during the busy period from May through October. A disc jockey will also provide music all year round.

Legends Sports Bar, just a few yards away from the main Flanagan’s bar and restuarant, will be marketed as an ideal and affordable venue for private functions and even lunchtime business meetings, as well as a home for players of traditional pub games like pool and darts.

“We also have successful poker games in the sports bar, one run by ourselves and another by the Bermuda Poker Tour,” Mr. Garland said. “The house makes no cut — players are playing for each other’s money.

“There are four or five different games going on, from cheap to expensive, and our regulars seem to enjoy it. It’s just a fun game for entertainment.”

Flanagan’s is open for lunch from 11.30 a.m. - 5 p.m. and for dinner from 5-10 p.m. (later in the summer). The bar remains open until 1 a.m.