COVID closed an iconic Gautier restaurant forever. The building is getting new life.

An Ocean Springs couple has bold new plans for what was the Tiki Restaurant and Lounge for more than 50 years.

The Tiki, one of Gautier’s oldest businesses, closed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and didn’t reopen.

Realtor Phil Torjusen confirmed this week that it sold last month to Dr. Gregory Horn and his wife, Karen, with hopes that it will reopen at the first of the year as The Horn Island Grill.

The Horns have operated Love Shack Bar and Grill on Government Street in Ocean Springs. Dr. Horn told the Sun Herald this week that Love Shack was leased property and the lease will end this week.

“The Love Shack will transition to Horn Island Grill” in Gautier, Dr. Horn said. “It will be a seafood and steak venue, but also have live entertainment.”

They are shooting for an early January open date, maybe even New Year’s Eve, for the new Tiki property if all the permits are completed, he said.

Torjusen said the couple told him they plan to keep part of the Tiki history with some of the tables and also portraits on the walls.

The Tiki had an open-air downstairs bar on the water and an upstairs dining room.

Torjusen said this is one of three water-front sales this year playing a key role in revitalizing the area of the city that includes the Tiki.

He said that the Mary Walker Marina north of the Tiki sold in the spring to Jimmy and Laura Boleware, formerly of Ellisville, with plans to bring that property back to its prime.

Then the Tiki marina was surveyed separately from the restaurant and sold to Eddie Pearson, a businessman located in Gautier, he said.

As the former mayor for Gautier, Torjusen said he remembers giving the family-owned Tiki a key to the city three years ago.

The Love Shack was known for entertainment, including karaoke and booking bands, and Torjusen said he expects a similar venue at Gautier’s new Horn Island Grill.

This story was originally published December 9, 2021 at 5:50 AM.