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That's when Mickey Dawson will shut his doors for good Tuesday, July 30, after 24 years in business.
Reluctant to say goodbye, patrons gathered at their local watering hole, described by most as "an institution," unsurprisingly.
"It's our neighborhood home," said Irini Killian of Ridgefield Park, tears in her eyes. "It's the 'Cheers' of Bergen County."
"'Cheers' wishes they could be us!" someone somewhere in the dimly-lit pub chimed in.
Others laughed and clapped in agreement.
Others who came for a last hoorah include Dr. James Pruden and his wife, Liz Clement, a Holy Name Medical Center nurse. The two made headlines in 2020 as they become some of the state's first COVID-19 cases, just before they were set to tie the knot.
The two met in 2017 at church around the corner, and ultimately married each other three years later.
"We cultivated our relationship here, it blossomed at this bar," Prudent said in between sharing memories made with his new friends-turned old.
One time, he and Clement bought 25 shots of mini Guinness for the bar. Dawson took a photo before they passed them around to their friends.
Pruden credits Kenny Lo for teaching him his favorite line dance to "September" by Earth, Wind & Fire, at The Cottage.
Lo started coming to The Cottage for the soccer, but stuck around for the karaoke and when he discovered Dawson and his bartenders "poured the best Guinness."
Oh, and of course, for the people.
"It's sad," he said of the bar's closing, "because this has been a staple — a big part of the community."
Cliche, certainly, but The Cottage is where friends became family — "an amazing family," Pruden emphasized. "It's got a character that's unique. It's an institution."
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