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Suzanne and Troy Letwak and manager Laura Fuentes-Bayardo are excited by the changes at the hilltop tavern. John Hernandez | Miner
San Manuel Miner
Troy and Suzanne Letwak have taken over the old Don Juan’s Tavern and turned it into a new fun place to be, called the Ore House Hilltop Tavern. They have done some extensive remodeling, enlarged the parking area and brought in old mine cars and mining artifacts from around the area. There are metal sculptures and even what looks like an old mine drift on top of the hill where the Ore House Hilltop Tavern stands. There is mining décor inside. They even have the original cash register used by Ada Mae Rhodes one of the owners of Don Juan’s in its heyday. “We want to go back to the basics of what this bar and the Tri-Community used to be,” said Troy. “It used to be about mining. Just because there’s no mine anymore doesn’t mean there are no miners.”
Troy said his wife talked him into opening the bar. They always liked Don Juan’s and saw the potential. They found themselves going out in town but felt they weren’t having any fun. “We decided to get our own place and turn it into someplace to go and have fun,” he said. “We want it to be comfortable, affordable and fun!” They hired a manager, Laura Fuentes-Bayardo who has had a lot of experience managing a bar. The Letwaks said they would have not bought the bar without Laura’s input and knowledge. “We knew nothing about running a bar,” they said. “Laura has hired some good people.” It made Troy and Suzanne happy that some of their friends volunteered to work on the place and helped with the remodeling.
The Ore House has a covered and uncovered patio area with outdoor heaters and a fire pit. “You can’t beat the view from here. It is a great place to watch the sunset,” said Suzanne. There is a fireplace inside, a pool table, dart board, an internet juke box and even an ATM machine. There are five television screens with Dish Network including the PAC 12 channel. Next year they will also have Direct to include the NFL channels. On Sundays at 3 p.m. there is a pool tournament. They are also looking at having outdoor games, karaoke and open mic nights.
The bar has eight beers on tap and a large selection of bottled beer. They have daily specials including a “beer of the day”. Happy Hour is from 3 to 7 p.m. every day except Tuesday. “We are going to try to keep prices as low as we can,” he said. Besides a full bar, they will have a food cart beginning New year’s Eve serving carne asada and chicken tacos as well as Sonoran hot dogs.
Every Saturday night they will have live music. They hope to bring in different bands on a regular basis. On New Year’s Eve they will be having live music and a champagne toast included for a $5 cover charge. The proceeds from the cover charge will be donated to a local non-profit group. “We want to do more functions for charity work,” said Troy.
Troy said he enjoys hearing the old stories from the miners that come in. He is asking any of the miners that wish to donate their old “brass” to stop by the Ore House. He will “proudly” display it in the bar. The “brass” is a small metal tag with an employee number stamped on it. It was used to account for the employee’s safety to make sure you had returned from underground. You would drop it off with the timekeeper at the beginning of shift and pick it up at the end of shift. You also had to show it when picking up your paycheck.
The Letwaks said, “It is making us feel good to see people we have never seen before coming in and supporting the place. The whole Tri-Community is supporting it. Oracle has needed this for awhile.” The Letwaks would like to get ideas for the bar from customers including constructive criticism. They have already added certain beers and liquors at customer’s requests. If you have ideas on how to make the place better or about helping local charities, let them know. The Ore House Hilltop Tavern is open six days a week. The hours are Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Closed Tuesdays.
John Hernandez lives in Oracle. He is retired and enjoys writing and traveling. He is active in the Oracle Historical Society. He covers numerous public events, researches historical features and writes business/artist profiles.
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