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Changes are Planned Down at Smackwaters (1 of 2)
18 Jan 1980
Smackwater Jacks, Ormerod St., Burnley
The Egon Ronay recommended restaurant downstairs at Smacks. After two and a half years of American style dining, drinking and dating, owner Graham Harker is planning changes.If his secret plans to renovate the upper floor are approved he hopes the bar will accommodate even more than the 300 who pack it at weekend. Looking back to when he and his partner Thomas Hawke took over the condemned warehouse and transformed it into one of the town s noisiest and busiest bars, Mr. Harker described it as atmospheric. Don t go to Smacks for a quiet drink, there is a powerful music system blaring out continuously and a disco on Wednesdays and Sundays. Smacks is definitely a place to be seen with dress ranging from sharp to casual and most men drinking bottles of Schlitz or Budweiser. There is a loyal regular clientele and there is a waiting list for bar jobs. Michelle Roupee and Barbara Wilkinson are regulars from Rossendale. Burnley lads Lee Woodward and Chris Turner agreed the ambience is friendly and the food good. Indeed it merits a mention in the Egon Ronay Just a Bite guide. Again the style is American with burgers and steaks cooked over charcoal. The origin of the name was revealed by Mr. Harker as being taken from Carole King s Tapestry album dedicated to a New Orleans jazzman called Smackwater Jack.
