Longtime Water Street Staple, The Brat, to Sell by End of Year
after three decades, The Brat is in the process of closing and selling to fellow Water Street bar owners
Eau Claire’s historic Water Street has been a one-spot stop for grub, drinks, and shopping for decades, and while businesses come and go, there are some that have stood the test of time, including The Brat. After decades of romping and stomping and slingin’ drinks, folks will have to say farewell, as The Brat (previously known as The Brat Kabin, 314 Water St.) will be closed and sold by the end of the year.
Steve Geitz has owned two popular watering holes, The Brat and The Grand Illusion (418 Water St.), for more than 30 years. (He also owned the House of Rock, which closed in 2017.) At 60 years of age, Geitz said he’s selling not for a lack of love for The Brat, but rather because of a simple fact of life: You can’t do everything forever.
“I didn’t want to sell; I’ve been an overachieving workaholic most of my life,” Geitz laughed. “But you have to call it sometime. It’s been a long haul, and I’m going to miss it.”
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TO HEAR HOW THE BRAT HAS BEEN A PART OF PEOPLE’S LIVES ... IT’S SO BITTERSWEET.
STEVE GEITZ
OWNER OF THE BRAT AND THE GRAND ILLUSION BARS
Geitz has received numerous offers for The Brat over the years, but as he got older and continued to hop back and forth from The Brat and The G.I. bartending, it became clear he wouldn’t be able to keep doing so forever. Geitz repeatedly noted his love for the longtime bar and the people who made it all worth it.
“It’s been cool,” he said, reflecting on his ownership of The Brat. “I’ve seen so many different homecomings, friends having their own reunions here, all the people who come in and say ‘My uncle used to love this bar,’ people who I used to serve who had kids who came here,” Geitz recalled. “To hear how The Brat has been such a part of people’s lives … it’s so bittersweet.”
Geitz is currently in the process of closing a deal on the beloved Brat, though its new proprietors are no strangers to Water Street: Jed and Elizabeth Hart – who own The Pickle, The Pioneer Tavern, and Island Parkside – are lining up to take the reins of the 314 Water St. establishment, which will no longer be known as The Brat. Geitz said the current plan is to officially close on a deal before the end of the year.
“It’s the people who worked here and the people we served that made it what it was,” Geitz said. “They became friends and family along the way.”
Geitz will continue bartending some nights at The G.I., which will be his sole business moving forward, and said he hopes some of those longtime patrons of The Brat will swing by sometime.
“It’s a great spot (314 Water St.) and hopefully people will keep going,” Geitz said.
