D.C. Cobb’s to honor Public House gift cards after abrupt closure

After the unexpected closure of Woodstock’s Public House, local restaurant D.C. Cobb’s is stepping up to honor any outstanding gift cards at all four of its locations.

All Hart Alliance locations will accept Public House gift cards including all D.C. Cobb’ locations in Woodstock, Huntley, McHenry and East Dundee; Hart’s Saloon in Hebron; and Hart’s Garage in Pingree Grove. The restaurants will accept the gift cards until May 15, Hart Alliance owner Dan Hart said Sunday.

Hart was inspired to take on the outstanding gift cards because of his connection to Public House owner Brian Loprino since 2003 and as a way to say thank you for supporting the community for the past 20 years.

“I started in the restaurant business with Public House,” he said. “Brian was my mentor in the restaurant business and it’s a shame to see what happened to them, so we decided as a restaurant group to honor those gift cards for them.”

Woodstock’s Public House, inside the historic Old Courthouse Center, closed unexpectedly last week. A sign on the door, handwritten on a yellowish piece of paper, simply read “closed.”

Public House had been inside the Old Courthouse since 2014, but was closed from October 2022 to September 2023 during the renovations of the city-owned former courthouse, the centerpiece of the Woodstock Square in which the city has invested millions of dollars.

Public House co-owner Kathryn Loprino, who didn’t respond to messages seeking comment for this story, said last year that Public House celebrated its 20th anniversary.

Kim Keefe, a Woodstock real estate agent, was going to cover the costs of Public House gift cards to replace them with other restaurants when D.C. Cobb’s announced Saturday that they would take them. Keefe personally replaced over $1,000 worth of gift cards to Woodstock’s Duke’s Inferno, she said.

“We have to support our local businesses,” Keefe said of the Public House closure, “It’s a really tough situation.”

Woodstock Mayor Mike Turner said the city is in the early stages of talking with businesses interested in taking over the space.

“I’m optimistic that we will find a replacement restaurant for that space,” Turner said, noting that the city is doing what it “can to move quickly” in doing so.

This story has been updated to clarify Kim Keefe’s contribution to replacing the gift cards.