‘Sawyer’s 2.0’: Details from owner on new downtown Lexington burger restaurant
.JPG "The new location of Sawyer’s Downtown Bar and Grill will be at 140 W. Main St. in City Center between Limestone Bank and Italx.")
A downtown Lexington dining institution popular with office workers and basketball fans has found a new home and will reopen , possibly in time for the Sweet Sixteen tournament.
Sawyer’s Downtown Bar and Grill will open at 140 W. Main St. in the City Center block, between Limestone Bank and Italx, according to owner Jim Sawyer.
He said that after making the decision to not return to his longtime spot at Main Street and Broadway, he had scouted several spots. Sawyer’s in Triangle Center had been closed since May 2021.
City Center, with two hotels right in the heart of Lexington, is close enough to Rupp Arena and to the courthouses and offices, Sawyer said. This is the last unoccupied retail spot in the development.
“I just think the Main Street location fits our dynamic, fast in and fast out,” he said.
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He said that the new space is smaller, about half as big as the old Sawyer’s, but he thinks they will be able to replicate the restaurant very well.
“We’re trying to keep as much of the identity as we can,” he said. “it will still be family-oriented, cafeteria style, with the burger bar, chili bar and salad bar. It will be Sawyer’s 2.0, just in a different location, much closer to the center of town.”
Sawyer said that he hopes they will be ready to open by the end of February or the first week of March.
“I hope to be open by the Sweet Sixteen,” he said. The 2022 KHSAA Sweet Sixteen girls’ tournament is March 9-13; the boys’ state basketball tournament is scheduled for March 15-20 at Rupp Arena.
The restaurant again will be open for lunch and dinner, with a quick menu: Customers place orders for burgers or chili and by the time they have paid, the food is on the counter.
You dress your burger or chili how you like from the toppings bar, he said.
The restaurant also will have a full bar.
“We’ll be exactly like we were before, only smaller, block and a half away from the original location,” he said.
Sawyer posted about the move on his restaurant’s Facebook page, saying, “Hold tight as we go through construction, we will keep you posted on the progress with some pictures. Can’t wait to serve all of you again! Thank you for keeping me energized! This page made me smile every day. Your burger flippin chili making friend, Jim.”
Hundreds of fans chimed in enthusiastically about the news.
The restaurant opened as a Charlie & Barney’s almost 35 years ago at 325 W. Main St. in what was then Festival Market. But it dropped the franchise in 1997 and continued as Sawyer’s, serving basketball fans headed to Rupp Arena for Wildcat games and for the Sweet Sixteen high school tournament as well as downtown office workers looking for a quick and tasty lunch.
This story was originally published December 16, 2021 at 6:00 AM.
