- May 3, 2024
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Flagler County’s newest bar and restaurant is a little bit western.
From the Old-West-inspired bar to the wanted posters on the walls and the barrel lamps hanging from the ceiling, the Flagler Beach establishment’s theme is hard to miss. But owners and couple Tom Walther and Pamela Vail want their latest business venture to be, more than anything, a place to have fun.
“We don’t want to be one of those places where you know the waiters are just trying to turn tables,” Walther said. “We want this to be the type place where you can come have fun for the evening.”
To spur that environment along, Walther and Vail are planning various entertainment initiatives to start in September, including a dart league, karaoke nights and trivia games.
Walther and Vail are both bus drivers, and The Watering Hole was their summer project — this year. The year before, they were renovating a business in St. Augustine. The year before that, they were gutting and remodeling a house in Flagler County.
They are a couple that seldom rests: Between the two of them, this is the third business they own. Once school starts in a couple of weeks, they will start their mornings driving buses for the St. Johns County School District. Then, they’ll oversee The Curio Corner and The Pet Spa, the two businesses they own in St. Augustine.
Then, they’ll return to their buses for the afternoon routes.
That used to be the end of their workdays — and to many people, that day would be more than sufficient. But last March, the two started thinking about what they could do to “keep themselves busy” after work. That’s how The Watering Hole was envisioned.
When school ended for summer, the couple began to renovate, doing most of the work themselves, including building the restaurant’s bar.
“I’m pretty happy with how it turned out,” Walther said, looking around his restaurant. “I only wonder what my summer project will be next year.”
The Watering Hole serves food — from flatbreads to sandwiches — as well as wine and beer. It is open daily from 4 to 11 p.m., but it will open at noon on Saturdays and Sundays for college and NFL football games.
The restaurant will host a car show on Sept. 1 in its parking lot at 2515 Moody Blvd. It will also hold a sangria dance night at 6 p.m. Sept. 7. Starting in September, trivia will be Thursday nights. To join the dart league or for more information, visit The Watering Hole during business hours.
Call 439-3458.
