No fries, no problem: Downtown Wilmington bar has a new owner following change in state law

Following a recent change in state law that would make it more difficult for some bars to serve food, one downtown Wilmington cocktail lounge is changing hands.

Courtney Osgood and Jeremiah Ramos opened Sauce’d in 2021 at 224 S. Water St. with the concept of combining fun, creative cocktails with French fries. They had to stop serving what they called their “killer snack” after the passing of House Bill 125 in March, which requires bars serving hot food to get health inspections from which they were previously exempt.

Previous coverage: This Wilmington bar won't be serving its popular fries after this weekend. Here's why.

A new owner

Instead of making costly changes, Osgood turned to DePersia & Associates, which specializes in brokering deals in the hospitality business. They quickly arranged for a new owner to take over the business, effective as of early April. Michael Fowler was a former partner of the longtime bar Goodfellas in downtown Wilmington.

Sauce’d is located in the former Le Catalan space on Wilmington’s Riverwalk. Their air-fried fries were recently named the “Best in North Carolina,” according to a list compiled by LoveFood. Osgood said that they have enjoyed creating the state's first and only cocktail lounge and fry bar and they hope the community will continue to support the business.

What's ahead?

Osgood said Fowler likes the Sauce’d concept and is committed to keeping the cocktail lounge alive and well -- at least for the moment.

"I expect there will be some changes down the line, as there typically are when a new owner takes over," she said.

Osgood added that she's seen too many businesses close in a short amount of time and she's happy that Sauce'd will continue.

"It really means a lot," she said.

Osgood, meanwhile, said she plans to concentrate on her public relations business, CKO PR, and is planning a move to Florida.

“Owning a small business, a consumer facing business, has definitely given me a much greater understanding of what it’s like to run a business on the operational side,” she said. “So, I’m looking forward to helping other small businesses launch, scale, reinvent themselves... and hopefully learn from some of the mistakes that I made so that they don’t have to make the same ones.”

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Allison Ballard is the food and dining reporter at the StarNews. You can reach her at aballard@gannett.com. 

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Sauce'd cocktail and fries bar in Wilmington, NC, has a new owner