A restaurant that began grilling steaks and pouring Happy Hour drinks before University Place became a city will close its doors Jan. 19.
The Keg Steakhouse & Bar - which opened Aug. 17, 1981 at its Mildred Street location - will not renew its leases at its UP (Tacoma) and Renton locations.
Doug Smith, vice president of operations with the British Columbia-based steakhouse chain, confirmed the news with Patch on Tuesday.
"That is, unfortunately, the case," he said, attributing much of the decision to the struggling economy.
"It's a sad day. We had lots of memories there."
The company notified employees about the pending closure over the weekend. The Keg employs 43 people in UP and another 52 in Renton, which opened in 1990.
The Keg's three other Washington locations - Kirkland, Factoria and Lynnwood - will remain open.
Smith said not renewing the leases in the South Sound was a difficult decision. He added that the company wanted to give its employees enough advanced notice of the closure, particularly given the holiday season.
"We feel we owe it to our staff to give them the appropriate amount of time," he said.
