Blues Bar gone from downtown Mt. Prospect for good

The Mount Prospect village board has officially pulled the liquor license of the restaurant known as the Blues Bar, once one of the most highly touted downtown businesses.

The restaurant, at 34 S. Main St., has been closed since April.

Mayor Arlene Juracek has confirmed that Dr. Errol Oztekin, the original Blues Bar owner, and his wife, Kimberly Oztekin, are out of the picture, and the building's landlord is looking for a new tenant. Acting Village Manager David Strahl added the locks have been changed.

Neither Errol or Kimberly Oztekin could be reached for comment.

Juracek explained that Illinois pulled its state liquor license in early April when Kimberly Oztekin fell behind in tax payments to the state. In 2013, Kimberly Oztekin had taken over ownership of the Blues Bar from Errol, and called her business the BB BBQ Grill.

A business can't have a village license without first having a state license, since a state license is what is required to take liquor deliveries from a distributor.

The lights on the former Blues Bar were still shining this week, illuminating the sign on the door that says the tenant was evicted on May 8.

“I think the landlord is just keeping (the lights) on so that it doesn't look abandoned,” Juracek said.

Given the high hopes for the Blues Bar -- and the downtown in general -- when Errol Oztekin opened it in 2007, the current situation is a disappointment to Mount Prospect officials and other downtown businesses.

With decor that featured a 1974 Dodge Monaco sedan — a replica of the beat-up Mount Prospect police car used in the movie “The Blues Brothers” -- the Blues Bar was a hit when it opened, and was anticipated as the first piece of a dining and entertainment hub that would spring up in downtown.

Today, those plans are gone.

“The good thing is we have entities that have told (Community Development Director) Bill Cooney that they are interested in leasing,” Juracek said. “So now it's a matter of the marketplace playing matchmaker between an interested restaurateur and the landlord.”

The building is owned by an investment group that Mount Prospect has been in conversations with, Cooney said, and those talks have included other potential restaurant/bar operators.

One of the advantages, Cooney said, is that the space is already set up for a restaurant and bar.

“The big challenge of getting restaurants into any location is the upfront cost of putting in a kitchen and all the plumbing associated with it — the bathrooms, the bar. That's all in there already,” Cooney said.

The building's landlord, Young Kim, confirmed he is looking for a tenant, preferably one who will open a bar or restaurant and who is experienced in running a large-scale establishment, since the former Blues Bar has around 9,500 square feet.

“Anybody who owns a large restaurant or bar could apply for a lease,” he said.

Kim said he is talking with real estate brokers. He said he has received inquiries from restaurant owners in the immediate area, as well as parties in Roselle and Addison.

Kim said he owns other properties, mainly in Chicago.

“Everybody says this is a good location,” he said.