Don't call it a Comeback: they've been here for years Matawan family takes over former Poet's Inn, reopens Dougout Bar BY KAREN E. BOWES Staff Writer Above: Bartender Megan Reynolds of Morganville pours a beer behind the Dougout Bar, located at the old Poet's Inn on Route 79. Left: Manager Heather Lanzaro inspects the 200-year-old beams in the cellar of the old Poet's Inn, now called the Comeback Inn. Lanzaro's brother, Doug McTaggart, has re-established the Dougout bar at the Route 79 location. MATAWAN - Fans of the old Dougout Bar are invited to Comeback Inn to where they once belonged. The popular bar, formerly located on Main Street near the Route 34 intersection, has re-established itself at the old Poet's Inn, at the corner of Main Street and Mill Road. Owner Doug McTaggert took over the 200-year-old landmark structure just six weeks ago, resurrecting his namesake watering hole and keeping the restaurant business "as is." Once the favorite hangout of Revolutionary War poet Philip Freneau, the circa-1796 building has been an inn for two centuries. Head cook Ernie Cruz, Matawan, has worked at the establishment for over 20 years, outlasting several owners and face-lifts to the building's decor, some good, some bad. Last week, Cruz talked about the history of the building, saying the old structure sometimes has a way of opening doors on its own, or making strange sounds. A dishwasher once quit, Cruz said, because he heard slamming doors and people talking when no one else was in the building. PHOTOS BY KAREN BOWES When this happens, Cruz does the obvious - he makes the ghost something to eat. "I say, Welcome Mr. Freneau," Cruz said. "What would you like for breakfast?" Manager Heather Lanzaro, like most, doesn't believe the place is haunted. "He did it," she said, pointing to Cruz. "He was outside slamming doors." Haunted or not, the inn and its most famous patron has a special place in the history of Matawan. Freneau, who was the personal secretary to Thomas Jefferson and the second president's official French translator, is believed to have kept a room at the inn. Cruz thinks his spirit is still in the building. "There was a guy," Cruz said. "We've got his spirit here. He was a poet." It may not be such a far-fetched notion. The Monmouth County Historical Association library and archives Web sites lists Freneau as dying after getting lost in a storm while intoxicated. Cruz said he thinks Freneau was headed toward the inn. His telling of the story is short and to the point. "There was a storm," Cruz said. "He walked from Freehold. By the time he got here, he dropped dead." While redecorating the bar portion of the restaurant, Lanzaro came across a 1965 newspaper article from the now defunct Evening News. The article, set behind glass and yellowed with age, tells a history of the building, how it was once used as a voting station by the Monmouth County Freeholders, and the local tax collector kept his office in the main lobby. And although no accreditation is given to these fun facts, perhaps none is needed. When it comes to the imagination and the romantic lure of a drunken, dead poet, maybe it's better not to have all the facts. The Comeback Inn featuring the Dougout Bar is located at 89 Main St., or the corner of Mill Road and Route 79, in Matawan. Call (732) 290-8400 for more information.