Katie McGarrity

Burger-lovers all over St. Lawrence County were disappointed when Between the Buns in Potsdam closed last Tuesday. According to the Watertown Daily Times, the restaurant was seized due to “unpaid sales tax revenues,” coming to a grand total of $112,020.75 unpaid.

Meg Martin, the owner of Between the Buns, points to the increased food costs as well as increased minimum wage as the main reason for the restaurant’s unpaid bills.

“Unfortunately, we fell behind with our sales tax at the start…We have kept up with our bills, our payroll, and all liabilities and taxes, aside from sales tax, until recently,” Martin says in Northcountrynow. She hopes that this North Country favorite restaurant will not become one of many failed businesses in the St. Lawrence County.

Between the Buns, located where there was previously a Moroccan restaurant called La Casbah, provides a great atmosphere with burgers, a bar, trivia and live entertainment. “This specific area doesn’t have the best reputation because La Casbah didn’t last long,” Katie Pierce ’17, a Potsdam native says. “With the opening of Between the Buns, most people were excited because it brought a different option to the table, literally, with trivia nights and many TV’s for sports viewings.” It has, in fact, been a popular destination for St. Lawrence students since it’s opening in April of 2013 and is one of the few burger joints in Canton and Potsdam.

Morgan Danna ’17, who had hoped to celebrate her twenty-first birthday at Between the Buns last Wednesday, was disappointed when she heard of the closing. “I wanted to go with my roommates and then someone told me it had been shut down about eighteen hours earlier,” she states.

The owners, however, excitedly reported on the Between the Buns Facebook page as of Tuesday night the following statement: “We are so excited to report that we will be REOPENING OUR DOORS TOMORROW (Wednesday the 28th) AT 2PM!!! We have an agreement put into place with NYS to pay all debts and continue to stay current on all tax liabilities. We invite all loyal customers to come in and celebrate with us! We appreciate everyone’s support to the business, especially over the last week during this extremely difficult time, and we are blown away with the amount of support from so many people!!! We are grateful to be given another chance to serve the community and bring our 45 employees back to work!!! BTB is back, and we are here to stay, CHEERS!”

So, if you are in dire need of a burger and a beer combo, rest assured that Between the Buns is back open for business, and is hopefully here to stay.