For years, the Unicorn Sports Bar has been the kind of place where a pool game could run late and restaurant workers could stop in after their shifts. Now the Ruston bar is preparing for a change of hands.
The Barker family plans to close the Unicorn in mid-October. Gary and Nathan Wescott, the father-and-son team behind downtown Tacoma’s Odd Otter Brewing Co., are working to buy the property. Nathan Wescott confirmed the planned purchase to The News Tribune, though the details and paperwork were still being finalized.
The address has served drinks since 1934, and the Barkers have owned the property since 2009. For regulars, the sale marks the end of a familiar version of the Unicorn.
The closing also follows a dispute over Ruston’s restriction on alcohol sales after midnight. Bar manager Trevor Barker said business slowed after the rule took effect in 2024. The family previously told The News Tribune it felt targeted by the restriction.
The prospective buyers have experience giving a Tacoma drinking spot another chapter: the Wescotts took over Odd Otter after its announced closure and reopened the downtown brewery. They have not announced what they plan for the Unicorn space.
For now, there is time for one more visit to the bar as regulars know it. The pending sale leaves an intriguing question about what, if anything, its new owners will carry forward.
What brought this particular family to its decision to sell? The News Tribune’s reporting follows the story behind the handoff. Read the article here.
Discover more of Tacoma in today’s Tacoma Local Minute. Catch the rest of today’s local news, events, and updates in the full issue here.