Legendary Atlanta Tavern Closing for Renovations

Manuel’s Tavern -- always listed as one of the best, most iconic bars in America -- is closing for repairs and renovations on Dec. 27.

Two longtime patrons have set up a GoFundMe account to help employees with their expenses during their three-to-four-months-long unemployment, according to Atlanta Magazine. More than $5,000 have already been raised, and the goal is raise $1,000 a month for Manuel’s 60 employees.

The building’s owner, Green Street Properties, is upgrading its HVAC system and refurbishing other parts of the business. The watering hole is expected to be open perhaps by April 2016.

Manuel’s Tavern opened in 1956 after DeKalb County’s Manuel Maloof purchased Harry’s Delicatessen at the corner of North and North Highland Avenues. Maloof, now referred to as the godfather of Georgia politics, later became CEO of DeKalb County. He died in 2004.

From Manuel’s Tavern history:

The Tavern still bears the mark of his political and historic legacy. It is known as the place where Jimmy Carter first announced his intentions to run for governor in 1970. It is where Emory theologian Tom Altizer first talked about his theory that God was “dead.” It is where L.A. Dodgers manager Tommy LaSorda, writer James Dickey, Senator Sam Nunn, actor Brian Dennehy, singer David Crosby, and Atlanta mayors Andrew Young, Maynard Jackson, and Shirley Franklin, and many, many more have dropped in through the years to meet patrons and discuss current affairs. Reminders of these events and more line the walls of every room of the Tavern, now more than 4,000 square feet large and still gathering crowds from every walk of life.