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Smoke and Tonic Cigar Bar and Cocktail Lounge is the vision of owner Justin Michael and his wife Audrey Buck. Justin and his business partner, Charles Lyon, started working on making the vision become reality in 2019. Smoke and Tonic is a premier craft cocktail lounge offering a fully negative-pressure fume room for clients to enjoy premium cigars with their drink of choice. The ambiance of the bar is based off of the 1920’s prohibition era, featuring a doorbell that must be pressed in order to be let in the bar, and strongly inspired by a rare cocktail recipe book written by Ernest Hemingway and 30 other famous authors of the early 20th century.
In March 2020, Smoke and Tonic received all necessary approvals to open to the public, then the world went into a pandemic with COVID-19 which forced the opening to be delayed. When the State of Oklahoma entered Phase 3 of reopening the state in May 2020, Smoke and Tonic finally opened their doors to the public. While we were welcomed with open arms by customers who have turned into regulars and friends, Smoke and Tonic still falls short of being able to meet monthly financial obligations.
Because of the timeline of Smoke and Tonic’s opening and unaware of a worldwide pandemic that would greatly hinder the scheduled opening, Smoke and Tonic does not qualify for any federal funding that is available to other companies and small businesses that were open as of February 15, 2020. To date, between the manager (Sherri Scarpa) and the owner (Justin Michael), Smoke and Tonic has found many ways to save money, including having to regretfully reduce employees and operating hours. However it has not been enough. Smoke and Tonic is facing thousands of dollars to pay the state for things like taxes and licensing in order to remain open.
We are asking for those who love Smoke and Tonic to take a moment and help us so we can remain open. The management team, in hopes the business could ride out the pandemic, has kept the struggles relatively quiet until now. Unfortunately, what has been done on management part just hasn’t been enough. With the money we are able to raise, we firstly will make sure all licenses and state operation mandates are put in place in order to stay open. If there is any money left over from it, it will be used internally to make sure Smoke and Tonic has the supplies, inventory and items necessary to maintain business for those who come in.
For those who have stood by Smoke and Tonic’s side from the beginning, the team is forever thankful for each and everyone of you. The team is well aware that customers have a choice in where they go and partake in bar activities, and for those who repeatedly choose Smoke and Tonic are not taken for granted.
#SmallBusinessRelief
In March 2020, Smoke and Tonic received all necessary approvals to open to the public, then the world went into a pandemic with COVID-19 which forced the opening to be delayed. When the State of Oklahoma entered Phase 3 of reopening the state in May 2020, Smoke and Tonic finally opened their doors to the public. While we were welcomed with open arms by customers who have turned into regulars and friends, Smoke and Tonic still falls short of being able to meet monthly financial obligations.
Because of the timeline of Smoke and Tonic’s opening and unaware of a worldwide pandemic that would greatly hinder the scheduled opening, Smoke and Tonic does not qualify for any federal funding that is available to other companies and small businesses that were open as of February 15, 2020. To date, between the manager (Sherri Scarpa) and the owner (Justin Michael), Smoke and Tonic has found many ways to save money, including having to regretfully reduce employees and operating hours. However it has not been enough. Smoke and Tonic is facing thousands of dollars to pay the state for things like taxes and licensing in order to remain open.
We are asking for those who love Smoke and Tonic to take a moment and help us so we can remain open. The management team, in hopes the business could ride out the pandemic, has kept the struggles relatively quiet until now. Unfortunately, what has been done on management part just hasn’t been enough. With the money we are able to raise, we firstly will make sure all licenses and state operation mandates are put in place in order to stay open. If there is any money left over from it, it will be used internally to make sure Smoke and Tonic has the supplies, inventory and items necessary to maintain business for those who come in.
For those who have stood by Smoke and Tonic’s side from the beginning, the team is forever thankful for each and everyone of you. The team is well aware that customers have a choice in where they go and partake in bar activities, and for those who repeatedly choose Smoke and Tonic are not taken for granted.
#SmallBusinessRelief