WEST HAZLETON, Pa. — A restaurant In Luzerne County is in the process of installing a pretty "cool" attraction just in time for Valentine's Day.
Damenti's Restaurant is again bringing back its popular ice bar at its new location near West Hazleton.
Four ice carvers were working well into the night, cutting and stacking large ice cubes inside these three gazebos outside Damenti's.
Damenti's is well known for installing an ice bar during the winter, which it did for years at its former location in Mountain Top.
But a fire in March 2014 destroyed that restaurant.
Four years later, owner Kevin McDonald opened his new location in Sugarloaf Township.
This is the second time he's had an ice bar built at the new location; however, this year's theme is a bit different.
“We’re doing three castle ice bars, and each castle will have a throne in it. And we're having a little contest with the carvers called Game of Thrones,” McDonald laughed. “And whoever builds the nicest throne wins something extra.”
“This is fun! This is fun. Because I normally do wood, and I carve all by myself, so I can come up here and hang out with my old buddies,” said ice carver Dennis Beach.
The castles are expected to be ready for public viewing just in time for Valentine's Day, with a beverage station set-up inside the restaurant, where people can buy drinks.
The owner says half of the proceeds from those drink sales will go to charities he's chosen.
This year, McDonald says anyone wanting a free ice carving lesson can come out and watch the professionals work.
Whitney Wrobleski from Mountain Top is Damenti's head bartender and took up the offer.
“I always see pictures of everything that he does, and he made the ice sculptures at the old Damenti's with firecrackers coming out of them,” said Wrobleski.
McDonald says the ice castles will stay up as long weather permits.
Damenti's is open Tuesday through Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m.
