'It definitely leaves a void': East side community reacts after fire shuts down Hooligan's bar

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The lights are off, caution tape is up and gates now block Hooligan’s Super Bar from the public.

“We’re all in shock, because everything’s been going so bad. And now this. It’s like getting kicked when you’re down," Hooligan's employee Charles Hoenigke said.

He said he worked at the bar for about a year, as the business found its way to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We’ve been kind of up, with the exclusions of how many people you can have. Things were working fine.”

But Friday’s fire, on Nov. 13, caused Hooligan’s to close, at least temporarily.

And though it’s only been a couple of days, its absence is already felt.

“Last night, Saturday night, it was very strange to look across the street and see the building completely dark, normally it’s lit up and lively," Hacienda Beer Company Front House Manager Alyssa Garris said.

No word yet on a cause from Milwaukee fire officials – who say it took about 45 minutes to put out the flames.

Hoenigke said he’s now looking for another job, until Hooligan’s reopens, and its regulars can return.

“It was like a house. It’s like a barbershop, you know, where everyone hangs out and does their thing," he explained.

“It’s sad and I hope that they’re going to come out on the other side of it even strong," Garris said.

CBS 58 reached out to the owner, who declined to comment.