After 3-year run on H.B.’s Main Street, Legends Sports Bar set to close, be replaced by Surf City Ale House

After a brief three-year run on Main Street in Huntington Beach, Legends Sports Bar will close Friday.

“I want to thank the community for embracing us and having a great time here,” co-owner Matt Peterson said Wednesday. “Who knows? We might be back in the future.”

A new tenant, Surf City Ale House, is on tap to move into the space at 301 Main St., according to Peterson.

Peterson said when the operations group decided to bring the sports bar into Huntington’s Main Street market, the idea was to give it three years to try and establish a brand in the city. He said he hopes the new business will be successful, noting that the downtown area is a “very competitive market.”

News of Legends’ pending departure became public when Peterson’s letter notifying the Huntington Beach Downtown Business Improvement District of his plans was shared on social media.

“I enjoyed my time with the BID, the board and BID management,” Peterson wrote in the letter. “They have worked and will continue their efforts in making downtown an even better place to work and visit. Each of those folks gives tirelessly for the greater good of the neighborhood. It was a pleasure to participate with you all.”

Peterson, a former BID president, thanked the organization and community for their support, adding, “We will miss being here, for sure.”

He said the operator of the incoming Surf City Ale House is “well experienced and brings what I hope is a welcome concept to downtown.”

Under Peterson’s year at the helm of the BID, the organization funded a pilot public safety program that brought extra security to Surf City’s downtown. Peterson also tried appeasing some BID members who wanted to drop out of the public-private partnership because they said they didn’t see enough of a benefit in being part of the group.

Legends’ flagship location — in Long Beach’s Belmont Shore — will celebrate its 40th anniversary in September.

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