Soddy-Daisy's Snooker's gets new owners who rename it The Tavern Sports Bar

photo The new owners of The Tavern include, from left, John and Dana Underwood, and Dottie and David Petty.

IF YOU GOWhat: The Tavern Sports Bar grand openingWhere: 12130 Dayton Pike, Soddy-DaisyWhen: 5 p.m. to close, Friday, May 3Contact: 423-401-7234

John Underwood found his name on the layoff list at Alstom a few weeks ago and at about the same time ran into the chance to buy a bar in Soddy-Daisy.

"With that layoff coming about he said, 'I'm just tired of working for someone else,'" said his wife, Dana Underwood. "So we said OK, let's do it. And we all jumped in with both feet."

The Underwoods teamed up with another couple, David and Dottie Petty, and bought the old Snooker's bar at 12130 Dayton Pike. After extensive renovations, the group's new bar, The Tavern Sports Bar, is celebrating its grand opening tonight.

They'll have free pulled pork, live music, bottled beer, pool, big screen TVs and dart boards. There's room for about 100 people to sit and space to dance.

They've repainted, refinished, rearranged and reopened.

"We just redid everything," David Petty said. The group put about $25,000 into The Tavern Sports Bar, adding a vintage NASCAR bar top, video jukebox and new kitchen wiring. The owners hope to fill a niche that's been lacking in Soddy-Daisy, co-owner Dana Underwood said.

"I'd like it to be a one-stop shop," she said. "I want you to be able to come in and grab lunch, dinner, play pool or watch your favorite sporting event. You kind of have to go out of Soddy to get that experience. So that's what we're looking for, to keep our family and friends here."

The bar currently does not serve draft beer or food, but the owners are planning on adding draft beer within a month and hope to install a kitchen that will allow them to add a full bar menu. They also plan to add liquor-by-the-drink within a year, Dana Underwood said.

In five years, she hopes to expand both the bar's clientele and its physical space, which is currently 5,000 square feet.

"I think with the way Soddy-Daisy is growing, I'd like to have this building expanded by 2,000 more feet and put parking all the way around the building," she said. "I really see us being a hopping place from the time we open the door at 12 p.m. to when we close it at 3 a.m."

Contact staff writer Shelly Bradbury at sbradbury@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6525.

Upcoming Events