Harris County woman transforms ‘hole-in-the-wall’ bar to family-friendly restaurant
Travelers along Georgia Highway 85 in Harris County might almost miss the small, wooden restaurant attached to a gas station just north of Ellerslie with its population just north of 1,100 residents.
Locals might recall a time not long ago when Tricky Dick’s Oyster Bar operated there. A hole-in-the-wall bar that sported license plates from around the country and flags as well, Tricky Dick’s sat about 20 miles northeast outside Columbus.
But last April, the restaurant faced some unforeseen hardships and had to close, which created an opportunity for one of its employees.
In 2021, Brynn Smith began working as a server at Tricky Dick’s and fell in love with the restaurant. She was given the chance to buy the place after its closure.
Once she had ownership of the business, Smith renamed the restaurant Eighty-Five and made other cosmetic changes to provide a different experience for customers.
“It really looked like a bar,” she said. “And my whole goal was to make it more family oriented because I have two kids.”
Smith wanted a place where her two children, ages 5 and 2, and others could feel welcome.
After rebranding to Eighty-Five, Smith changed the menu for more variety.
“We’ve got the pork skins you may have grown up eating with your grandparents,” Smith said, not to mention the oysters that were a staple of Tricky Dick’s. She included cheese curds, shrimp, burgers and fried pickles to help round out the menu.
“We wanted to give the community a little bit of everything because there’s only four (restaurant) options out here,” Smith said. “When we did the menu, we tried to pick what was good, home foods.”
Touches of the community
Along with the name and menu changes, Smith changed up the color scheme and decor of the restaurant. Eighty-Five’s look now showcases aspects of the outdoor lifestyle of Harris County residents with fishing rods, a mosaic and other images throughout the building.
Despite the changes, Smith ensured that other elements remained familiar.
On the porch, the walls and support beams are full of messages and signatures from visitors throughout the years. Some are from couples like “Chuck & Kami 4-eva”, others are sketches of stick figures and animals that people have drawn, and still more messages supported the University of Georgia Bulldogs or Auburn Tigers.
“I wanted to leave some of the touches of the community in here,” Smith said. “We thought about taking the names off and letting them rewrite it. But I think that little bit of authenticity on the wall just makes it a little bit better.”
Flags from universities in the Southeastern Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference hang on the porch’s walls. In the front of the room, a platform stage allows space for Eighty-Five to host live bands and other events.
The restaurant has live music every Friday and Saturday night from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., Smith said. She also tries to host a community event every month, with an Easter Egg Hunt coming next month and a secret admirer event later in the spring.
“Even though it’s a small hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Ellerslie, it’s still a great place to come,” Smith said. “With the staff and the other customers that we have come in — with everyone included — it just feels very homey when you walk in the door.”
This story was originally published February 27, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
