Dec. 7, 2020

The longtime West Sioux bar Jono’s is closing Sunday but eventually will reopen under new ownership.

“We didn’t want out. We weren’t looking to sell it,” said Renae Sefrana, who has owned the bar at 1700 W. Burnside St. with her husband, Joe, for 13 years. “They came with the right number, and we said, ‘We’ll talk about it.’ So we talked about it and decided it was time.”

The sale is set to be completed Dec. 17, and Sefrana said the buyer did not want to be identified yet.

“The new owners are going to come in and remodel, close it down for a few days, maybe a month or whatever, and remodel and then reopen,” she said. “We’re under the understanding that it’s going to stay a bar/restaurant, or it’ll turn into casinos – one of the two.”

Jono’s opened in the early 1980s, and before that, the building was home to Lee’s Family Restaurant.

It’s a neighborhood bar that’s open 365 days a year and is known for its chislic, burgers and great employees, Sefrana said.

“It’s just a small-town bar in a big city. Everybody gets along with everybody.”

A lot of the regulars are skilled in trades, and they’ll help each other out with projects at home, she said.

A few years ago, when The Log Cabin was closed between owners, Jono’s began opening earlier in the morning to pick up the night-shift workers who had lost their after-work bar.

“We were just trying to give them a place to be because we’re in the neighborhood,” Sefrana said. “It helped us out, yes, but bars aren’t just for drinking beer. They’re about camaraderie and meeting your friends and finding out what’s new in the world. So when we took over the 7 a.m. (opening) for them, it was to keep their crew together, to give them time with their ‘family.’ They’re not always about just coming to the bar and getting drunk. It’s seeing your friends and keeping up on the world.”

When The Log Cabin reopened, Jono’s went back to its 10 a.m. daily opening. It’s open until at least 10 p.m. or later if there’s a crowd.

The sale is coming together quickly, so Sefrana has been working to make sure the employees and customers are taken care of before the final day. She has been researching unemployment benefits on behalf of her crew to make sure they’ll be covered, especially if they want to take a few weeks off with the holidays coming up before having to start job searches.

It’s also dart and pool season, so that means teams will have to relocate to keep their leagues going. Twenty-eight teams used the electronic dart boards on one half of the bar five days a week.

“We have one (pool) group that’s always here Wednesday nights. They’ve been here since the day we bought the bar. … It wasn’t great timing, but it’s what it is. Is there ever really a great time?”

Sefrana is expecting to see more customers this week as people stop in for one last drink or to have one last lunch special – they’re served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“Anybody who has free drink cards (or gift cards), they need to get in and use them. The new guy’s not going to take them. … We’re probably going to be fairly busy (in the coming days). Our tills may not look like it, but I’m sure we’re going to be collecting a lot of cards, which is OK.”

Sefrana’s husband works full time at Music Service, so keeping the bar going day to day has been her job.

“When we first opened the bar, somebody said, ‘Well, now that you’re bar owners, are you ready to make millions?’ And I said, ‘No. I’m ready to make a million memories. I want to sit back some day and have a million memories.’ And I think we’re well over that mark,” she said, laughing. “People ask me, ‘How many kids do you have?’ I’m like, ‘800.’ ‘800? Holy!’ ‘I own a bar.’ It’s going to be different not seeing my kids every day.”