NE BBQ closes

Cloquet’s NE Bar & Grill is closed for good, its owners announced on Facebook last week and in an email to the Pine Knot News.

The last day for the restaurant, which specialized in smoked barbecue meats but offered a range of menu items and an extensive, Minnesota-based drinks list, was a month ago, on Oct. 15.

Co-owner Nate Radoush said they made the decision to close the doors “with great sadness.” “We appreciate all the support we received from both staff and those who visited, and wished in earnest that we could have continued to provide a unique product to this community,” he wrote to the Pine Knot. “Financially, this was no longer viable to continue operations.”

Co-owner Elise Hermann, who was really the face of the bar and restaurant and whose dream it was to open in the former Cloquet Eagles building, said they loved their patrons and were sad to end the business.

“Unfortunately, we are receiving more inquiries now than we ever did while in business. That said: If you love a place, support it and patronize often. We have several surviving businesses in town that need that type of support,” she wrote on the NE BBQ Facebook page.

Radoush said he will be listing the property for sale within the next couple of weeks but he is still open to entertaining future endeavors in this industry.

“Again, a special thank you to all the hard work by NE Bar & Grill employees and those guests who had provided support for the last two years,” Radoush said.