After 22 years of serving fish and chips in Downtown Delaware, the Old Bag of Nails Pub at 66 N. Sandusky St. will shut its doors for good on Sunday, Oct. 11. The restaurant announced the closure in a Facebook post Monday, saying it could not work out a new lease with its landlord.
“We are unable to reach a long-term agreement with the landlord that would allow us to continue operations,” the pub said, according to 614now.com. The announcement caps a run that began in 2004, when the pub opened in the Delaware building, according to the Lexington Herald Leader, citing reporting from The Columbus Dispatch.
The timing lines up with a real estate listing: the more than 6,600-square-foot building currently leased to Old Bag of Nails is on the market for $1.9 million, according to NBC4. The station reports that Old Bag of Nails is likely to continue renting from whoever buys the property, though a new landlord could ultimately decide to fill the space with a different tenant.
A Final Week of Fish and Chips
In its closure announcement, the company thanked its staff and the Delaware community for more than 20 years of support, and it encouraged locals to stop in before the lights go out. “We would love for the community to pay a visit this week and support the wonderful staff,” the pub said, per the same 614now.com account. The Delaware location has kept a seven-day schedule, open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, per NBC4's report, with Oct. 11 hours posted as noon to 9 p.m., according to the Herald Leader's account.
The pub also left the door open to a comeback. “Should an opportunity present itself for an Old Bag of Nails Pub in Delaware in the future, we would be happy to return,” the company said, according to the same 614now.com report.
From a Worthington Hardware Store to a Regional Chain
The Old Bag of Nails story began well before the Delaware location existed. Michael and Tara Purdum opened the first restaurant in 1996 in Worthington, Ohio, converting part of the former Zettler hardware store into a neighborhood pub, according to the Herald Leader. The concept started small, with burgers, chicken wings and salad on the menu, before fish and chips was added a few months later and became the chain's signature dish, Michael Purdum told The Columbus Dispatch.
By 2008, the business was growing well beyond its Worthington roots. Owner Mike Purdum had broken ground on a new location in Marysville and was finalizing plans for one in Mansfield, according to The Columbus Dispatch. That same report noted the Delaware restaurant was about twice the size of the chain's typical spot, with other locations running around 4,000 square feet and seating roughly 75 in the dining room and another 75 at the bar and patio.
What Remains After Delaware Closes
Even with the Delaware closure, Old Bag of Nails isn't disappearing from the region. The chain operates 11 Central Ohio locations in total, according to 614now.com, with Central Ohio restaurants in Bexley, Hilliard, Marysville, Newark, Pickerington, Upper Arlington, Westerville, Whitehall and Worthington, per the Herald Leader's reporting. The company also has locations elsewhere in Ohio and in Lansing, Michigan, according to the same account.
For now, the Delaware restaurant's Facebook page still carries the pub's longtime slogan, “Hammers, Nails & A Great Fish Story,” attributed to Gaylord, alongside more than 13,800 check-ins from regulars over the years, according to the restaurant's Facebook page. Whether the building's eventual buyer keeps Old Bag of Nails as a tenant or brings in someone new remains unresolved, per NBC4's reporting.
