Robby Takac of Goo Goo Dolls remembers The Old Pink

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Old Pink is gone. The iconic bar in Buffalo’s Allentown neighborhood was destroyed by fire early Monday morning and demolished the same day.

The bar meant a lot to the community, its employees and its customers. A GoFundMe has been created to help raise money to help the owner, Molly Brinkowrth, and staff.

Since then, many people from all walks of life have shared their memories.

On Thursday, 7 News spoke with Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls who spent many years at The Pink and shared his memories.

“I was a patron for a long time and ended up DJing here for about 10 years, on and off in the early 90s,” Takac said. “I spent a lot of time here. A lot of memories. It was just a place where everyone would hang out at the end of the night.”

He said everyone was welcome without judgment.

“It was a place where misfits could come and relax and feel normal,” Takac said. “So there were a lot of musicians here. A lot of artists here and a lot of creative people talking all night and dreaming. There were so many bands, so many musicians in this bar from all over the world.”

Takac said almost every band that came to his Buffalo studio spent time at The Pink.

“Almost every band that has come to record at my studio here in Buffalo has spent many, many hours here and fallen in love with this place,” Takac said. “Ian Gillian from Deep Purple did a record with us and he actually put the Pink Flamingo on the cover of his album.”

Takac said those who spent time there will always remember it.

“I grew up here, I lived here, I wandered these streets… everyone from homeless people to rock stars… they all belonged in this place… everything has worked,” Takac said. “It was more about how you thought and less about what you had or that sort of thing. It’s time to move on, but people will always remember that.”

7 News spoke with Molly Brinkworth, longtime owner of The Old Pink, on Wednesday.

She shared the same sentiment as Takac, saying in part that the customer made the bar feel like family.

You can watch a full interview with Takac below.