A popular restaurant has left a booming downtown Bradford to fill a much-needed void in the Kane area.
Kelly’s Restaurant, a staple along Main Street for six years, has relocated to the Kane Country Club along U.S. Route 6 on the outskirts of Kane, about 30 minutes from Bradford.
The business reopened at 11 a.m. Tuesday, and so far, the relocation is being deemed a success. Individuals have already made reservations to the restaurant for parties.
“I’m excited about this, and my employees are (too). It’s a good business decision,” said Kelly’s Restaurant owner Kelly Martin of Bradford.
The decision for Kelly’s Restaurant to relocate seemed to be a quick one, said Bradford’s Main Street Manager Anita Dolan. And it was, according Martin.
Initially, Martin wanted to run restaurants at both locations, but a family matter prompted her just operate out of the Kane area.
“These things happen from time to time,” Dolan told The Era on Wednesday afternoon. “Main Streets across the country are ever-changing.”
It looked like everything has worked out, though. Martin said it’s a dream of hers to head a restaurant on a golf course. And a restaurant for the Kane area is a need, she said.
The business opened on Tuesday at the country club; the plan was to have the eatery open on Monday. Martin is leasing the space at the country club.
“We will still be honoring any gift certificates. The restaurant will continue to be open to all of the public, no membership necessary,” a sign posted outside Kelly’s in Bradford partly states. “We are accepting reservations for all parties and get-togethers as there are four dinning rooms and an outdoor patio.”
Big plans are in store for the new restaurant location, including a wine tasting event and comedy nights, Martin said.
And with the new location comes additions, including a soup and salad bar at night.
Back in Bradford, looking ahead, Dolan would love to see an Italian restaurant open. It wouldn’t take much to get the building back in operation as an eatery.
Martin plans on selling the building in Bradford, which she calls a beautiful structure. In all honestly, though, Martin said she doesn’t want “to part with” with the structure.
“It’s a nice property,” Dolan said. “People still remember to it as the Downbeat.”
Since 2009, the building had been Kelly’s Restaurant. That same year, the structure underwent facade improvements, including painting and an awning, according to Dolan.
“We loved having her on Main Street,” Dolan said, adding that she hates seeing businesses move out of the historic district.
Kelly’s Restaurant isn’t the only eatery to make an exodus from Bradford’s Main Street in recent years. The Main Street Broaster, briefly under new ownership, shut down in 2014, and plans for the Colella Mob Grill and Bakery to open in downtown never materialized.
While Kelly’s Restaurant is no longer a fixture on Main Street, other businesses are setting their sights on downtown. Over the coming weeks, Santo Vida Natural Wellness Center will open its doors and Chef’s Catering will relocate to Main Street.
Hours at Kelly’s Restaurant are Monday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., perhaps later for golfers, for example. The bar will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Depending on how things go at the country club, the restaurant could be open Sundays.
For more information, call the restaurant at 814-837-7072.
