Several Spring Street businesses are undergoing changes in their upcoming hours of operation, including some temporary closures.
Purple Pub closes indefinitely
The Purple Pub has closed indefinitely following the death of its owner, Thierry Breard. He was 53.
A sign in the Pub’s window confirmed the closure.
The Purple Pub has been a longtime Williamstown institution, operating almost continuously from its founding in 1975 until the beginning of last month — with a three-year exception between 2007, when the Pub’s original building burned down, and 2010, when Breard purchased the business, bringing it back to Spring Street, according to The Berkshire Eagle.
A memorial service for Breard was held on Oct. 19 at the Williams Inn, according to an obituary published in iBerkshires.
The Log extends its hours
The bar inside The Log By Ramunto’s is extending its hours past 9 p.m. and will be open as late as 1 a.m. on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, according to owner Emma Mulligan.
In addition to drinks, the bar will serve pizza slices while they last.
Mulligan said the opportunity to expand the bar’s hours came after the Purple Pub’s recent closure. “[Teddy Anagnos, the bartender at the Pub] was looking for a job, and I was looking for a bartender,” she told the Record. “He brought a lot of his old regulars from over there. He’s been in town for a long time, so he has a lot of people he knows, students included, so it was very helpful.”
Mulligan emphasized how keeping a late-night spot open on Spring Street fills an important need for the Town. “There’s not a lot of places on Spring Street or even in town that people can hang out late at night,” Mulligan said. “Some nights, I’m sure it’ll be crazy. Some nights, it’ll be a little more dead, but it’s definitely worth being open.”
Plates closes temporarily
Plates Mediterranean Bistro began a two-month temporary closure on Monday. Owner Ahri Frank told the Record that the closure would allow for a family visit to Turkey and minor kitchen renovations, as well as a short break for the chefs. Frank said that he chose to close the restaurant during the wintertime off-season for Williamstown tourism.
When Plates reopens in mid-January, it will offer a slightly different menu, according to Frank. “It’s always nice to make some changes,” he explained.
Frank has been paying close attention to customers’ feedback on the menu, which he last changed in April. The lamb shank, lamb burger, and mushroom ravioli are customer favorites and will certainly be staying, according to Frank. However, other dishes may change.
“We have to work on the flatbreads,” Frank said. “We’re going to have flatbreads, no question, but different.”
Despite the changes, the menu will retain its strong Mediterranean influence, inspired by Frank’s upbringing in Turkey. Plates’ summer salad was a contemporary twist on one of Frank’s favorite childhood snacks: a slice of watermelon with bread and feta.
The bistro used to be called Pera, after a historic district in Istanbul. Pera opened in 2013 and was Frank’s second restaurant. “When I came here, there were no Mediterranean restaurants,” Frank said. “There were Indian restaurants, Thai restaurants, contemporary American restaurants, but nothing Mediterranean. Nobody serving falafel, nobody serving lamb burger, nobody serving hummus. I said, ‘Okay, they need that.’”
The new name, which debuted in 2024, was inspired by the Turkish plates that adorn the walls.
Over the next two months, the Plates kitchen will undergo renovations, including a new floor and equipment update.
Frank said he looks forward to his restaurant’s reopening. “It’s my baby,” he said. “I have a strong connection to the restaurant.”
Ducky’s replaces the Apothecary
Ducky’s World, a vintage clothing store, will open on Spring Street this December. The owners Lilyanne and Ryan Phillips, a husband and wife duo, previously ran an iteration of the store in Albany, N.Y.
“We look forward to adding a new and fun element to the mix of Spring Street businesses,” the pair wrote to the Record in an email.
“‘Ducky’s World’ will be vintage clothing based, and will have an evolving mix of other items,” they wrote.
The new store will move into the retail space previously occupied by the Williamstown Apothecary, which closed last November due to major financial challenges. Ducky’s will be the second thrift store on the street. ABC Clothing Shop, another thrift store, has operated up the street since 2024.
According to Associate Provost Chris Winters, the College first tried to find a different pharmacy to take over the space. “We tried very hard to interest other pharmacies to fill the space, as it is a well-designed pharmacy space,” he wrote in an email to the Record. “However, ultimately, no pharmacy expressed interest.”
