By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Musil family is trying to spin an old downtown spot into a community hangout with a new twist.
Shaun Musil who had been a long-time employee of the local Coca Cola distributor, quit his job and purchased the Paisley Pear along with his wife, Heather. The Musils are maintaining the restaurant and retail space, and have added a wine bar. The new business is now called the Paisley Pear Wine Bar, Bistro and Market. The wine bar opened for business this weekend.
“We have some ladies that come on the dot at 10 a.m. every Saturday. It is really neat to see how people hang out and talk and tell stories. They say, ‘We remember when Jack and Jill was here,'” Musil said. … “We want this to just be a community hang out.”
The Musils have three children, Brandon, 15, Corey, 12, and Meghan, 5, and Shaun and Heather hope they can make the business a family affair.
Brandon and Corey have already helped bus tables and wash dishes for the bistro and Meghan, 5, sometimes helps her mother make desserts. Shaun said he wants families not to be afraid to bring their children to the Paisley Pear in the evening even though it is technically a wine bar.
“Us having three young kids, we want to make this a family experience, a very nice relaxing atmosphere,” Shaun said. “It is not fast food by any means.”
Heather added, “I guess our goal is to have a place you can come day or night to relax with your friends and enjoy an hour out quietly and get to enjoy the company.”
The bistro, wine bar and market have all been moved into 1100 Main St. A remodel helped expand the dining space to 64 seats.
The bistro will still serve fresh-made quiche, sandwiches, salads, soups and pastries. Its menu will include old favorites, including the ham and havarti sandwich and green on green salad, among others. Kim Rohr, the cook with the cafe will be staying on under the Musils.
The bistro will be changing its menu in about a week to include a fall menu with soups. A children’s menu has also been added at the bistro to include items such as grilled cheese and peanut butter and jelly.
In the evening, the wine bar will serve appetizers and a rotating dessert. Some of the appetizers include a cheese board, chips and salsa, queso, meatballs and a bread board.
The wine bar carries a variety of wine types and labels, including some from local vineyards, such as Resurrection, Rosewood and Shiloh Vineyard. They have reds, red blends, sweet reds, sweet whites and champagne.
Shaun hopes to stay customer friendly, and he and Heather plan to make changes to their offerings based on the likes of their customers.
Wine can be purchased by the glass, bottle or flight. A flight is four 2-ounce glasses of the customer’s choice of wines. Shaun said this is a good way for people to sample a variety of wines if they are not sure what they might like.
Customers can also order beer, soft drinks or coffee. Cappuccino will be served in the mornings.
“I think we created this because, one, he wanted to own his business, two, we wanted it to be family friendly, and three, it was also just a place to go to get away,” Heather said. “We love the atmosphere of trying to get somewhere different, so we hope when you come into this place, The Paisley Pear, you take a step out into somewhere else.”
The Musils hope to stage wine tastings at the bar eventually and rent the venue for special events such as bridal parties. The Musils also would like to host live music. Shaun thought about putting up some TVs, but the customers expressed they liked the atmosphere without them.
The market carries a variety of wine accessories and gifts, including Breville appliances, Bridgewater candles, Rewind candles, Salsa in a Snap, and Stonewall jams and jellies. Some of the mixes and jams and jellies that will be used to make items for the bistro and wine bar will also be offered in the market.
“So if someone likes what they tasted, they can take it home and make it themselves,” Heather said.
The Musils do not want to compete with the Hays Downtown Market, but on days the market is not open, the Paisley Pear may offer produce from Shaun’s dad’s farm.
The Musil kids are also trying to convince their parents to add ice cream, but mom and dad haven’t quite decided on that yet.
Shaun said he wants to be a good downtown partner and has already been working with other downtown businesses to network.
The bistro will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. The market and wine bar will be open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and 10 a.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.