Longest Running Tavern in Sodus (1934 – Present)

The  longest running restaurant/tavern  in the Village of Sodus is at 7 Mill Street.  Its dates back to 1934 and has been known by many names and had a number of different owners over the years.

In the 1920’s, the building was the home of Sparton Radio owned by E.J. Walbourn, He sold a variety of radios which were the latest rage at that time.

Here is an old picture showing the rear of the building. Photo courtesy of Mike Fox.

In September 1934, Carl  Brown and Alfred Fletcher opened  the Brown and Fletcher Restaurant and obtained a liquor license to sell alcoholic beverages. Below is a picture of the Brown and Fletcher Restaurant taken in 1942: Photo courtesy of Mike Fox.

In 1957, Alfred Fletcher sold his share of the restaurant  to Carl Brown and it became Brownie’s Restaurant.

In June, 1959 Carl Brown sold the restaurant to William Drury and his son Albert. they obtained a liquor license in Oct. 1961 and it was renamed Drury’s Restaurant.

The Drury family ran it until it was sold in 1964 to Robert William Burnham. In October, 1964 he obtained a liquor license and it opened as Bob’s Restaurant.  It operated for 10 years.

In November 1974, its became Jug’s  Tavern which would be operated by Betty and Harry Husner for the next 42 years until 2016. Photo courtesy of Mike Fox.

Photo Courtesy of Edith Farrington.

Jug’s Tavern would be known for having the “best hamburger in town” and “a place where everybody knew your name.” When they closed their doors in 2016, the Sun and Record ran a very nice full page article about this establishment:

Jug’s Article PDF

In 2016, Mike Fox became its new owner and it became the Mill Street Tavern. Mike has spent a great deal of money to restore the restaurant and bar room to the way it was in the 1940’s. The bar has been redone and a number of the chairs and tables seen in the 1942 photo have been restored and are again in use. Old pictures from the past have been lovingly placed on the walls that tell of  bygone days. When you talk to Mike, you can tell that he is a man who is very interested in the Village’s history and is driven to see it regain its former glory. When you eat or drink at the Mill Street Tavern, you always get a free side order of history.

Photos Courtesy Edith Farrington:

 

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