"Just a beer tavern is all it was," says Lewis.

No more.

When it reopens this weekend or early next week, Louie's -- as it's now called -- will feature a full bar and kitchen and, Lewis hopes, a wider-ranging clientele.

He says some patrons -- like playgoers and other tourists -- went elsewhere because they wanted hard liquor and a different atmosphere than Players provided.

"We hope to get them all now," he says.

He hopes to create a feel similar to Eugene's Sixth Street Bar and Grill, where he says the patrons vary in age from 21 to 80.

To do that, he's lined the long, narrow bar's walls with mirrors, refinished the bar itself, the arches behind it and the hardwood floors. He's brought in new dark oak tables with high seats and hung old-fashioned photos on the walls.

"It's definitely different," he says of the bar that was long known as the Log Cabin.

The bar closed Jan. 5, and Lewis hopes to reopen at 4 p.m. Friday, if the final pieces of the remodeling effort come together. If not, it'll open at 4 p.m. Monday.

Lewis, who owns the building, ran several bars and nightclubs in California before moving to Ashland in 1980. He says he hasn't tried to make a nice place out of such a small bar since he bought his first tavern for $1,000 at age 21 in Long Beach, Calif.

But despite the space constraints, he's pleased with the result.

"We just refurbished this 100-year-old bar," he says. "It's really nice in here."

He's convinced that reasonably-priced drinks and a menu that ranges from sandwiches, burgers and munchies to full dinners will make the place a success.

As with any change, the new look wasn't without its detractors -- at least initially. Take Tita Soriano, a 21-year-old Southern Oregon University junior.

"I wasn't too happy about it at first," says Soriano, who says lots of college students enjoyed playing pool and hanging out there. "Everybody was kind of disappointed at first."

But a peek into the new place changed that, at least for her.