ELLENDALE — Changes have come to Ellendale Municipal Liquor Store and Grill in the form of new products, pricing and menu items all in hopes of area residents falling back in love with the mainstay establishment.

“We want people to love this place again like they used to,” Tami Hallum said.

Hallum, who is also a full-time travel agent with Certified Travel in Albert Lea, is the new bar manager at the facility. She accepted the position about three months ago.

“They needed some help,” she said. “I really wanted to get involved and see if we can turn some things around for them.”

Some of Hallum’s ideas are already being implemented.

New inventory has been brought in and she’s reviewing prices to ensure the business is competitive with other establishments in the surrounding communities. She has also noticed a previously overlooked demographic within the Ellendale area.

“There are a lot of wine drinkers here, which really surprised me, and we didn’t have that much allocated space for wine,” Hallum said.

In response to the realization, she expanded the business’s inventory.

“We’ve added a lot and they are selling very well,” Hallum said.

New equipment has also been purchased and recently installed in the kitchen, and a new menu will soon follow.

It is Hallum’s desire to stray from the typical menu items that most expect to see on a menu and shake things up a bit. One of the additions customers will soon see is pork wings.

“It’s like a mini bone-in barbecue rib and it is so tender,” Hallum said, noting that customers who like barbecue ribs or chicken wings should love the new item. “They are so good.”

Hallum has no plans to stop there. Wine and craft beer tasting, live entertainment and deejays are all possibilities she is looking into hosting monthly/bi-monthly activities to help bring customers back in to reacquaint themselves with the bar or perhaps encourage some to make the short jaunt over to Ellendale for an introduction.

Some things, however, should never change. Ellendale Municipal Liquor Store and Grill is a community bar and grill, and it always will be, according to Hallum.

“They own this,” she said. “This is theirs.”

As a result, Hallum hopes to see the community’s support, which she said is vital to the success of the establishment.

“We’re going to do everything we can, they need to do their part,” she said.

Ellendale Municipal Liquor Store and Grill is open Tuesday through Sunday. The business opens each day at 11 a.m. and closes at 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday; and 6 p.m. Sunday.

For more information about Ellendale Municipal Liquor Store and Grill, including events as they are scheduled, visit its facebook page at Ellendale Municipal Liquor Store.