Jacksonville VFW post 'rescued' by reality TV show

Jon Taffer didn't even yell at anybody.

Fans of "Bar Rescue," the Paramount reality TV show that sees long-time bar owner Taffer restoring failing taverns and nightclubs across the country, know that every episode includes at least one incident of Taffer yelling at the staff, calling someone an idiot and insisting that the place be shut down immediately.

That didn't happen when Taffer visited Jacksonville's VFW Post 1689 on St. Augustine Road in San Marco, one of at least three local bars that were "rescued" late last year. The episode about the VFW post, "From Camo to Cocktail," airs at 10 p.m. Sunday and the post is planning a viewing party at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Jeff Lincoln, quartermaster and past commander of the post, said Taffer got in the all-volunteer staff's faces a few times, but it was nothing like on the television show, where Taffer is usually working with for-profit bars. The show sneaks an occasional VFW or American Legion post into the rotation about once a year, and Taffer generally tones it down on those episodes.

Lincoln said the post needed the help. It's only open to VFW members, and its roster stands at about 115. Both of the building's air conditioning units broke down, equipment was aging and the COVID shutdown nearly spelled the end for the post. The average age of members is 64 and something needed to be done to bring in new blood, he said.

"We had gone downhill the last 10 years," Lincoln said.

He said he was sitting at the bar — officially known as a "canteen" — one night when a producer from "Bar Rescue" called to see if the post would be interested in a makeover. "I thought I was being pranked," Lincoln said.

Post leaders went through several Zoom interviews, and people from the show came by to take photos and measurements before they were finally approved. Taffer and his crew were there in early December.

"They came in with two full 18-wheelers of gear," Lincoln said.

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"Bar Rescue" ultimately redid the front lobby, renovated the entire bar area, provided a new panini press and pizza oven, renovated and recertified the stove hood and fire-suppression system and resurfaced the pool table

The post is named for Charles E. Bennett, who represented the Jacksonville area in Congress from 1949-93. Bennett also has an elementary school in Green Cove Springs, a bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway and a downtown federal building named in his honor. A bronze statue of him stands in James Weldon Johnson Park in downtown Jacksonville. The post was chartered in 1929 at the foot of the Acosta Bridge and moved to its San Marco quarters in the mid-'80s.

Handing over the keys for 'Bar Rescue'

Taffer flooded the bar with members from other VFW posts for a "stress test" to see how the crew could handle a big rush. In the end, he told the post leaders they just needed training and money to turn the place around.

Pete LaComb, the current post commander, was one of the volunteer bartenders who went through two days of off-site training from the "Bar Rescue" crew. The post mostly serves beer, whiskey and vodka, but the bartenders were taught to make daiquiris and cosmopolitans and other complicated cocktails. "If you can make those," LaComb said, "you can make anything."

During the renovation project, no one from the post was allowed onsite to check on the progress. LaComb had to hand over the keys in the parking lot. That made everyone a little nervous. The only thing they really wanted to preserve was the bar, which is covered with memorials to members.

The bar is still there, backed by a new wall. There are new dart boards, elegant wallpaper and wainscoting, improved lighting, two big-screen TVs, an updated jukebox and new tops on all the tables. There is still work to be done, LaComb said.

"They don't do ceilings and they don't do floors, but that leaves us with some projects," he said. A second room that the post rents out for weddings and parties wasn't renovated, so the post will handle that on its own, and they're looking for help with the air-conditioners.

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LaComb and Lincoln estimated that "Bar Rescue" dropped at least $75,000 in equipment on the project. "We appreciate the hell out of this," LaComb said. "It would have taken a five-year plan to do all this."

Post leaders were loaded into a van several blocks away and blindfolded for the big reveal, which took place on Pearl Harbor Day. "It just blew us away," he said. "Holy catfish."

Late last year, "Bar Rescue" also renovated the Bay Street Sports Grill in downtown and Arnold's Lounge in St. Augustine. The show has renovated at least two dozen Florida bars since 2011, including Cap'n Odie's Lounge in Mayport, Blue Water Oyster & Daiquiri Bar and Fatballs on the Westside. Cap'n Odie's is still open but Fatballs and Blue Water, which was renamed to Sydney an Australian Beach Club, have both closed.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: 'Bar Rescue' helps turn around Jacksonville VFW post