January 27, 2022
Erik Weber/Aversa PR
Good Bad and Ugly, a new dive bar in West Chester, includes the town's only pool table at a local pub and other games including shuffleboard and foosball. The saloon-style decor is inspired by the spaghetti western films of Clint Eastwood and Quentin Tarantino.
West Chester has a new underground speakeasy that doubles as a dive bar and western saloon, the latest concept from the restaurant group behind Stove & Tap.
Good Bad and Ugly is celebrating its grand opening Thursday afternoon at the same West Chester location as Stove & Tap, the rustic American restaurant that has additional locations in Malvern and Lansdale.
Housed underneath the storefront at 158 W. Gay St., Good Bad and Ugly's 2,000-square-foot space includes an 80-foot-long bar and seating for 52 people. The decor takes inspiration from old fashioned spaghetti westerns, with nods to the owners' appreciation of filmmakers Clint Eastwood and Quentin Tarantino.
"Good Bad and Ugly in West Chester is our homage to something that we all love – a good dive bar," said Stove and Co. Restaurant Group's Justin Weathers. "We wanted to put our own Stove and Tap twist on a dive bar with delicious food in baskets that you eat with your hands, games to play, TVs to watch, sports to cheer for, well-made drinks, a great mix of beers on tap and by the can, and design that is sensory overload to keep the energy light and fun."
The bar will be open five nights a week from Wednesday through Sunday, with happy hours running nightly from 4-6 p.m. The location was formerly a nightclub, but Weathers and Stove and Co. partner Joseph Monnich wanted to give the place a modern and colorful atmosphere that's more inviting.
"We want a spot that you can come as you are — whether it's dressed from work, casual from home, or stylish for a night on the town," Weathers said. "We want to tell all sides of the story — the good, the bad and the ugly. All are welcome and invited. We're bringing the fun back to the bar game in our region, but with the same level of quality you would expect from us."
In addition to Stove & Tap, the restaurant group is behind several other eateries in Philadelphia's western suburbs. Those include Revival Pizza Pub in Chester Springs, Al Pastor in Exton and DePaul's Table in Ardmore. This is the group's fifth grand opening during the pandemic and its first bar, bucking the trend of closures in the restaurant industry. The space also will be open seven days a week for special event bookings.
The bar's menu will be led by Stove & Tap West Chester's executive chef Yasser Wolf, featuring wings in several flavors, french fries and tap fries, burgers and chicken fingers.
Weathers praised the variety of West Chester's dining scene and the community that supports it. With Good Bad and Ugly, he said the goal is to offer something new and different.
"With all we just went through the last two years, the world needs a good bar right about now," Weathers said.
