The new owner of the Rip Tide Lounge is not ready to give up on the bar’s iconic stolen sign just yet.
In June, when the bar was still run by longtime owner George Ciampa, Rip Tide posted on social media that the sign, located on the side of the building, had been stolen and announced that it was offering a $500 credit to the bar for its safe return. After more than a month of no leads, Rip Tide announced in August on social media that the credit was being doubled to $1,000. New owner Mike Vienneau has now more than doubled the credit offer to $2,500.
“Despite our best efforts to find the sign, we just haven’t had much luck,” Vienneau said.
He added that the decision to up the credit was made to “sweeten the pot” so that others might be more inclined to help bring the sign back.
In January, the town’s favorite bar was bought from Ciampa for $1 million, with the official transfer taking place last month. In a June interview, Jamie Ciampa, who ran the bar under old ownership, said that the new owners were going to keep the sign behind the bar as a tribute.
If the sign is not returned under the current credit value, Vienneau said, he is considering transferring the credit reward to cash value.
He said that he is still hopeful that Marbleheaders will be able to help find the sign, and added that the bar is willing to continue increasing the reward until it is returned.
“It’ll just keep going up until we get it,” he said. “That’s really what our thought is: keep increasing the reward until the sign turns up.”
“Maybe it won’t, maybe it will — only time will tell,” he added.
Under Vienneau, the bar will be undergoing a number of changes, including the addition of two large glass windows at the front of the building, a new kitchen, and a new and expanded affordable menu. It will have a grand reopening sometime in the fall, according to the bar’s Instagram page.
In an Instagram post, the Rip Tide has asked anyone with information on the sign’s whereabouts to send a direct message to the bar’s Instagram account @riptidelounge.