By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
It’s always been a happy place, but on Friday, Oct. 18, it was a bit happier than usual.
As the premier of a new ABC television show, “Happy’s Place,” was filling out TV screens, Happy’s Place Tavern in Berne was holding a special party to celebrate the new show starring Reba McEntire.
“It went well,” said Happy’s (the one in Berne) manager Ben Farrow. “We had a lot of new faces and people we hadn’t seen in a while.”
Happy’s (the one in Berne) offered drink and food specials for the occasion. The chili special sold out shortly after the one-hour show ended, Farrow said.
Among the drink specials was a Reba, with Jagermeister, Peachtree and cranberry. An Emmette was comprised of Jack (Daniels) and sour.
ABC’s affiliate in Fort Wayne, 21Alive, did a story on Happy’s in Berne prior to the premiere. The word went up the chain and Happy’s (in Berne) has received a video highlighting Reba and other cast members, said Farrow, a Geneva resident.
The bar, owned by Troy McMillion for a couple of decades, dates to 1934.
McMillion told 21Alive he seeks a happy environment by making sure all his patrons have a drink in their hands.
“What makes it Happy’s Place is that everybody is welcome,” Farrow told 21Alive. “It doesn’t matter your background, how much money you have or don’t have, everyone is treated the same.”
In the show, Reba McEntire portrays a woman who inherits her father’s bar and restaurant and finds out she has an unknown half-sister.
