Small town bars are much more than that. They are, above all, meeting points in places where depopulation and the unwanted loneliness of the elderly pose great threats. When the hustle and bustle of summer goes away, families return to the city and only a few stay during the winter, bars are the essential social center where neighbors share their daily lives.
But the life of these establishments is also shaky. In small towns, the only bar they have is a municipal bar and the town halls have recently had a lot of difficulty finding people willing to invest in these companies that, although they require a lot of sacrifices, find the satisfaction of offering a fundamental service in places where there is sometimes the only social center.
In fact, the government of La Rioja is proposing a new line of aid to social centers in small municipalities. This was announced on Tuesday by President Gonzalo Capellán during the Debate on the State of the Region after highlighting these centers as “a resource that boosts social life and promotes the strengthening of ties between neighbors.”
Without the greeting from the person at the bar door, you feel much lonelier.
Medrano Bar Raises Its Shutters Again and Closes in Sojuela
The people of Medrano know its importance well, and after more than two years without a bar, its little more than 300 residents have found service again this summer. Aitor Fernández has worked in the hotel business in the Moncalvillo area for about thirteen years and has run the Ventosa restaurant for ten years. “The mayor and the people of Medrano came to Ventosa and told me that the bar was being auctioned. After seeing what the facilities looked like, “a luxurious restaurant”, Aitor and his wife, María Martín, also opted for this bar. “It is the neighbors who benefit the most from the town’s bars being open, in Medrano they needed it.”
Today, in Medrano, they offer more than 50 meals on weekends, consisting of classic Riojan dishes, and have a bar service all day. “Medrano is a city of bars, here locals of all ages meet, it is a meeting point and a social center so that older people do not feel alone,” says Aitor Fernández, satisfied with the trip. Experience tells him that for these businesses to work, you have to work, “you have to do things so that people come, you can’t wait behind the bar for a customer to come in”, but he is convinced that the investment will also serve well, being an area with a lot of traffic to the mountain.
However, in the opposite situation, they find themselves in Sojuela. On September 30, the supplier of their municipal bar leaves the company for personal reasons and the bar will be closed while waiting for other people to take over. The tender documents will be launched in the coming days and the City Council will provide all the facilities: “We have set a symbolic price, 50 euros per month, which includes water and electricity,” says the mayor, Diego Fernández.
At the moment, the manager is on vacation and the neighbors see the importance of his bar: “in all cities, it is the meeting center, social work is done more than economic, especially in winter when there are fewer people living there. ” and they go out less,” he emphasizes. In fact, at other times, when Sojuela finds itself without anyone to manage the establishment, the neighbors themselves organize themselves into teams to maintain the services.
Change of life to run a rural bar
Nearby, in Daroca de Rioja, there was also money behind the bar counter. The summer began with the closure of the municipal bar, the only one in the town, and its 60 registered residents, who then began to multiply, went to other towns to share time with friends or family. “The elderly did not go out, we did not even know who was in the town. Without the greeting of the person at the door of the bar, we feel much more alone,” explains a neighbor. Until they offered it to Roberto and he did not think about it: “I had worked as a waiter, but my dream was to have my own business. In addition, in winter it is only open on weekends, so he will be able to make it compatible with his other dream: to release an album as a singer.
Roberto has been running the Daroca bar since July 25. “People were looking forward to it, it’s an essential meeting place, in small towns there are no other leisure activities,” he emphasizes. He gives a good evaluation of the first month and, although he knows that the pace will slow down after the summer, he is happy: “They welcomed me very well, the people are great, they care about me and that I feel comfortable. to continue having the service” explains Roberto.
Everyone agrees on the welcoming nature of the clientele in small towns. Leonardo’s family decided to change profession and for about eight months have been running the Bar Sevilla, in Azofra, on the Camino de Santiago. Since their arrival from Brazil, they had dedicated themselves to construction, but the previous owners were about to close their doors and they started a business in the hotel business. Adapted to the pilgrims’ schedules, they open the door at 6:30 in the morning and spend many hours behind the bar that they organize as a family. It was a risky bet, but they are satisfied. They know that “where people live in these bars”, they improve the situation of their neighbors a little.
