Buffalo Bar Nietzsche’s Under New Ownership

Nearly two years ago to the day, Buffalo bar patrons learned a beloved Allentown institution was going up for sale. On January 17, 2023, Nietzsche’s owner, Joe Rubino, confirmed he was selling the bar and looking to get out of the business he’s owned since 1982. 

Now, as the city is in the process of tearing down the remains of Mulligan’s Brick Bar following Sunday morning’s fire, and six months after mourning the loss of The Old Pink, there’s reason for some relief. New ownership will be taking over the artsy hangout at the west end of Allen Street, and it’s not some faceless group or a stranger who doesn’t understand the importance of the bar. 

Kelly Weber used to tend bar at Neitzsche’s for about 10 years, from 1997 until 2007. It’s where she met her husband, John. It’s where she’s hung out with friends and watched the neighborhood evolve and thrive, despite an intense streetscaping and renovation project that made it hard to traverse the street for the better part of a year. She, along with her husband and House of Charm owner Sam Marbella, are finalizing the process of buying Neitzsche’s, news she’s happy to share with her beloved Allentown neighborhood and those who are struggling with the loss of the Pink and Brick Bar. 

“We’re anticipating closing on the building within the month,” Weber says. “We took over the business in February ‘24… We’re still friends with John Rubino, who is still the current owner for another couple of weeks now. That’s how John and I got looped back into the ownership fold. We’re longtime Allentown residents as well. We’ve been here since the late ‘90s, and we have a lot invested in this community. We raised our two boys here in Days Park; we see the comings and goings of a lot of different businesses in Allentown, and Nietzsche’s has just really been that anchor that’s always been there. I think it’s more important now than ever to pull that business back up again.” 

Marabella likewise has been a fixture in Nietzsche’s for decades, both as a patron and as a performer. 

“You’re not supposed to fall in love with your businesses and buildings, but I’m just in love with Nietzsche’s,” he says. “I’ve been a musician that’s been playing there for my whole adult life, and it’s really dear to me. I’ve known the owner for 30 years. I really care about it so much, and so do my partners.” 

Among the first orders of business will be a temporary—TEMPORARY—closure of the bar for two weeks at the end of February, Weber says. This is to allow for some upgrades to the bar, including plumbing and electrical updates; considering the possible cause of the Brick Bar fire might have been an electrical malfunction, this short closure should be viewed as an investment and preemptive problem solving and insurance rather than a frustration. 

And the bar might still open for a show or two during that time, Weber and Marbella say; closing the bar to allow that work to be completed will allow the process to be more efficient and expedient. 

But before that closure, the incoming ownership team, which also includes David Arakelian, wants to be the good neighbor to the staff at Brick Bar that it and others were to the Pink employees when that fire happened. 

Next Friday and Saturday night, January 17 and 18, Nietzsche’s will be hosting a benefit, in which proceeds from entry fees will go to help those bartenders and servers who are currently out of a job. 

“We talked to Paul Baggs, the bar manager at Mulligan’s, and he gave us his blessing to do this. A lot of his staff right now are people who came over from the Pink, so they’re getting hit twice,” Weber says. “A lot of these bartenders are lifers; this is their career. There’s no health insurance for a bartender. But this is what Buffalo does right. Buffalo comes together, and we help each other out, so that’s our hope.” 

Tickets are being sold in advance for the benefit and can be purchased here for $20. 

An online ticketing program is just one of the behind-the-scenes upgrades that will be greeting Nietzsche’s patrons in the coming months; Marbella promises the spirit of the beloved bar will not change, but there will be “improvements” to help make the experience even better. 

That sums up the future for the venue, Marbella says. “It’s very much consistent to what it is and what it has been. I love Nietzsche’s because it’s always the same, but I want the sound to be better. I want to see more music, and I’d like to think everything just needs to be raised up and expanded.” 

Stay tuned for information about grand reopening events in the spring and more details about the changes coming to Nietzsche’s, but those who are worried about the place becoming sanitized or drastically changed under the new ownership group, Marbella and Weber want people to be reassured. They grew up in that establishment, in many ways, and they will keep the same spirit at the heart of their new venture. 

After all, it’s the people who make Nietzsche’s a special place, one where everyone is welcome. 

“It’s just the culture. It’s the cool people; that’s where the cool people hang out. It’s the freaks and geeks, and I love it. It’s inclusive, and that’s sometimes what gets lost,” he says. 

Thanks to the Webers, Marbella, and Arakelian, who share a love of the funky, artsy, eclectic, and somewhat unusual space at the west end of Allen Street, Nietzsche’s spirit will remain intact and will carry forward into the future.

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