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WEIMAR’S HANGOUT - WEIMAR TAVERN

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WEIMAR’S HANGOUT

OLD FASHIONED GOOD TIME Weimar Tavern

MASON LAPHAM SHARES WHY THE OLD WATERING HOLE MEANS SO MUCH TO HIM AND ALSO TO WEIMAR

BY MICHELLE BANSE STOKES, PHOTOS BY EMILY HENDERSON

The Weimar Tavern is a simple, old-school joint that takes an individual with a love for small-town Texas charm to admire it aesthetically. I guess I’m one of those people. I find a whole lot of character in the hangout’s old bar-back, wooden floors, and old jukebox songs. And although there’s a modern jukebox in place now, the old beerhouse still has the same feel that it did when I walked though those tavern doors for the first time years ago. Looks like some things do indeed stay the same as you remember them.

The Weimar Tavern is a welcoming place—so long as you don’t get too out of line. There’s a pool table, locals looking for a domino game, and friendly staff ready to bring you a Lone Star. The current owner, Mason Lapham, has been at the helm for over 17 years with the help of a small, dedicated staff. “I’ve always been kind of doing my own little business stuff and this seemed easy. Plus, I had good people to work with … really good people. One example is Leona Jones who used to own the place. She still works here and has the most longevity at the Tavern. She retired for about five months and then said, ‘To hell with this, I’ve got to do something.’ She still works a few hours throughout the week.”

No one can run a bar for long and not have an interesting story or two to tell. Mason was quick to share one of his favorites that says a whole lot about the Weimar community as a whole.

“One of the most surprising moments is when we had a mishap with the work schedule,” Mason shared. “Whoever was supposed to show up to work didn’t show up when the place was supposed to open at 3 p.m. Now, back then I had a key outside hidden for whoever needed to service the place

WEIMAR’S HANGOUT

and a couple of customers knew about it. So, when no one was at the Tavern to open the door, a customer opened it on their own. A little bit after 5 p.m., I get a call from the customer who opened up for me, ‘Mason, I can’t stay here covering the bar for you.’ I was surprised and rushed down there to find a pile of money next to the register. Everybody helped themselves and it was probably the most honest day ever.” Although Mason has his regular day job, he doesn’t plan on giving up on the Weimar Tavern anytime soon. Having grown near and dear to his heart, he’s dedicated to making sure that Weimar has a watering hole in its midst. “The reason I keep it going is that I know if I sell it, it’ll just turn into another resale shop,” Mason said. “It won’t be a bar anymore and this town needs a bar. After four o’clock, when people start getting off work, that’s the retirement table up front. They’ve already worked their 60-plus years. They have no place to go. So, that’s what keeps me rolling. I don’t make a fortune on it but I do it just to keep a bar in town.”

Still, changes are underway at the Weimar Tavern and Mason plans to bring back a little bit of what was. “I want to get back to having live music,” I don’t make a “ Mason added. “But the building itself won’t be changing much. I also want to bring karaoke back. When I was young, I would come in here with my cousin, Joey. He’d enter the pool tournaments and this place was packed. Sometimes we host class fortune on it but I reunions or birthday parties. We don’t charge anything for them, we just ask that they buy everything here. We also have our regulars do it just to keep that come in and play dominoes every week. We’re just going to keep going the way we are here at the Weimar Tavern.” a bar in town. The Weimar Tavern is located at 211 North Mechanic Street.

Above, the Weimar Tavern is a popular watering hole for locals and visitors alike; right, representing the local high school mascot, this Weimar Wildcat is a fixture on the old bar top.

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