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The transformation of the old café inside Hauppauge’s OTB Racing Forum is complete.
The latest Long Island installment of the Village Idiot Pub is set to open next Wednesday, July 10, at 11 a.m.
VIP at the OTB even has its own entrance, which was just built. So that means even after the trotters stop running and the gates come down on the betting parlor, folks will be able to drink, eat and watch the games well into the late-night hours.
Even on Mondays and Tuesdays, when the Forum is closed, the Village Idiot will be open.
“Before it was just a functioning café, really bare bones,” said John Sarno of Silver Lining Restaurant Group, which now operates five Village Idiot spots in Suffolk County. “We put down new flooring, upgraded the bar, got rid of the old wallpaper and updated the kitchen,”
Now, it’s a full sports bar and restaurant with room enough to seat 80 people comfortably.
The VIP crew is also setting up its own TVs to stream the NFL Sunday Ticket. So aside from the ponies, locals could head to the Forum to watch all the out-of-market games every football season. Sarno and his partners are hoping great food, happy hours, as well as delivery and takeout will further entice the non-betters to the building.
VIP at the OTB won’t have a full menu like at the other locations.
But that’s just to start.
“We want to find out who we are first and if we have to carry new inventory, we’ll adjust the menu,” he said, adding there’s four draft lines with room to expand the beer offerings.
“If the business is there, we’ll add more.”
The address is 690 Motor Parkway in Hauppauge. VIP at the OTB will be open seven days a week.
— photos courtesy of Village Idiot Pub/Silver Lining Restaurant Group
