While Alford says he has no immediate plans for what comes next, he hasn’t ruled out returning to the bar business someday.
“I’ve been doing this for a long time, and it’s been the most fun I’ve ever had at a job,” he said. “I’m not rushing into anything right now, but starting something again is always going to be in the back of my mind.”
Before closing the chapter on TapHouse 61, Alford also credited Robertson, his brother-in-law and the bar’s founder, for making the concept possible.
“Without Joe, none of this would exist,” Alford said. “He kept this place alive from the Sly Bar days through TapHouse and through COVID. He’s always been more of a behind-the-scenes guy, but this place wouldn’t have happened without him.”
Even as TapHouse 61 closes its doors, Alford believes the type of neighborhood gathering spot the bar created will continue to exist somewhere in St. Pete.
“St. Pete’s not going anywhere,” he said. “These kinds of places might move around as the city changes, but there are still a lot of people here who want real neighborhood bars. That’s never going to disappear.”