Seasonal to perfection: The staff at The Eddy works hard each spring to spruce up after a winter hiatus

For the past nine years, The Eddy, located on the Reno riverwalk, has opened its doors as close to March 17 as possible—and closed them again whenever the weather becomes untenable. Any given Saturday afternoon in between, scores of people wait in line for a drink and a hang at what has become downtown Reno’s surrogate “best friend’s backyard.”  

It takes a lot of blood, sweat and tears to transform this haven of chill from its winterized, dormant state (after closing in December) into the bustling beer garden beloved by locals. I caught up with co-owner Phil Buckheart and general manager Jered Caudle during a cleaning session to chat about what it takes to get the Eddy open, what it is like to staff and run one of Reno’s busiest bars, and how it feels to be the kings of chill for nine years running. 

“We lay out our early February timeline of what needs to happen to be open right during March; our goal is always Paddy’s Day weekend, rain or snow, no matter what,” Caudle said.  

Opening a dormant bar is not as simple as just opening the gates and turning on the music. More than 350 working hours are needed to get the place up and running for the season. The Eddy is home to three separate bars, bocce ball courts, cornhole courts, astroturf lawns and seating that all needs to be cleaned, inspected and painted. 

“Every year, we get better and better,” Buckheart said. He attributes part of the bar’s success to the team’s collaborative nature. “Management has good ideas, and our bar staff crushes that, where our bar staff has good ideas, and we can take those and crush those, too,” he said. “It just trickles down the whole way, and without that, I don’t think it would be the success that it is.” 

The Eddy staff keeps returning for more. The managers report an employee retention rate of 90% each season. A few years ago, they decided to focus on hiring the best barbacks they could, to support the bartenders contending with The Eddy’s large crowds. They found that the barbacks who flourished in this environment had the strong work ethic they were looking for in bartenders.  

“We needed to focus mainly on our barbacks so they grow up to be better bartenders,” Caudle said. “If you’re going to work hard, and you’re fun to be around, you’re going to mix well with our staff, and with our return rate, we need you to mix well with our staff.” 

As much as the community may view The Eddy as a college party from afar, Buckheart and Caudle corrected me when I referenced it as a college bar. “I could serve a 21-year-old’s birthday party and then a 60-year-old’s birthday party right next to each other,” Caudle said. “On any given day, the vibe is so different and unique here.”  

But wherever there are warm summer nights, young people will be out partying, and The Eddy has a reputation with college kids. “Since day one, we’ve fought fake IDs,” Buckheart said, boasting about how large their collection of fake IDs is at the end of each season. “Even the city acknowledges it. The police acknowledge it.” 

In its ninth season, The Eddy has no plans to slow down. This year, the managers will add some new things in an effort to bring folks downtown. They have acquired the pizza restaurant located in a shipping container in the corner of their space, which a third-party operator previously ran.  

“We are targeting all the complaints we have heard about the pizza in the past to make service faster and the pizza better,” said Caudle, who has previous pizza experience. The new pizza concept will have an updated menu and more staff to ensure customers get their pizza hot. The Eddy will also be debuting new, ticketed live music offerings, focusing on popular regional acts people request. 

Things may change in downtown Reno, but The Eddy will continue to strive to bring the undeniable Northern Nevada summer feeling to the people. Caudle said it best at the end of the day: “You’ll feel a cool vibe with good music and sunshine with people hanging out with a beer in their hand. Not much else matters more than that, right?” 

The Eddy is located at 16 S. Sierra St., in Reno. Learn more at theeddyreno.com.