Ohio State football is back this week, but one longtime campus watering hole won't be ready in time for kickoff.
The Bier Stube's return is taking longer than expected as crews encounter complications renovating the roughly century-old building that will become the bar's new home, owner Craig Kempton said in a recent Facebook video.
Kempton had previously hoped to reopen the beloved University District bar months ago. While he still doesn't have a reopening date, he said work is continuing at 234 King Ave. and he's hopeful the Stube could welcome customers back during football season.
"I know it's opening week of football, and boy, do we want to be open by now," Kempton said. "I thought we were going to be open months ago, but it's just not working
out that way."
The Bier Stube closed its longtime location at 1479 N. High St. in 2024 to make way for a new development. Kempton signed a lease in August 2025 for the King Avenue property, which previously housed Hampton's on King and Junior's Bar & Grill.
The new building is nearly twice the size of the Stube's former home, and renovation plans have included a large outdoor patio.
Why is the Bier Stube reopening taking so long?
In the 6-minute-long video, Kempton said renovating the roughly 100-year-old building has revealed significantly more work than he anticipated.
"Every step we take forward, something happens where we have to redo this," Kempton said. "If you know anything about rebuilding, if you move something and something else behind it needs fixed, you have to fix it."
The prolonged renovation has also taken a personal toll, Kempton said. He acknowledged that he stopped posting frequent updates and responding to questions about the reopening because of the frustration and pressure surrounding the project.
"I kind of shut down with posting things out of frustration, anxiety and pressure," Kempton said. "We're working on it and we're getting there."
Although progress might not be obvious from outside the building, Kempton said much of the work has been happening inside.
"What you guys see from the outside, you might think nothing's going on, but trust me, from the inside the bones are looking really good again," he said.
Kempton said construction is finally reaching what he described as the "fun stuff" of the build and that he is beginning to see "a light at the end of the tunnel."
"I think we're gonna get some football games in," Kempton said. "I need to get back into it and bring the people back a bar that they love. It's going to be great."
Bier Stube has been a campus-area bar since 1966
The Bier Stube first opened in spring 1966 and operated on North High Street for 58 years before closing in 2024.
Kempton began working at the Stube in 1996 and became its owner in 2021.
While customers wait for the bar itself to return, Kempton also used the latest update to reveal a new Bier Stube T-shirt that he said had been in the works for nearly a year.
"It's kind of a sign of what's to come," Kempton said.
Trending reporter Amani Bayo can be reached at abayo@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Bier Stube owner shares an update as beloved campus bar's reopening journey drags on
