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Swamp Shack OK, On the River “lucky” to be open

By CORINNA RICHARDSON corinna.richardson@thefacts.com
Corinna Richardson

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Jan 23, 2021
Jan 23, 2021
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Swamp Shack owner Drew Ryder reflects on the challenges his restaurants have faced throughout the pandemic at the Lake Jackson restaurant on Friday. The restaurant went from having six to eight catering jobs each week to only two in a six-month period at the start of the pandemic.

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Diners eat at Swamp Shack in Lake Jackson on Friday. Swamp Shack owner Drew Ryder says business at both his restaurants is down, but On the River in Freeport is “lucky” to have made it to 2021.

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Swamp Shack owner Drew Ryder reflects on the challenges his restaurants have faced throughout the pandemic at the Lake Jackson restaurant on Friday. “It is a struggle. I have no plans to close either restaurant, but things have to get better,” he said.

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Mardi Gras-themed decor hangs on the walls of Swamp Shack in Lake Jackson on Friday. “The Cajun food genre was underserved in this area,” said owner Drew Ryder of rebranding the restaurant to a Louisiana-style kitchen.

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A waitress takes a customer’s order at Swamp Shack in Lake Jackson on Friday. Swamp Shack owner Drew Ryder says the restaurant’s sales are down 18 percent this year, but his catering business and On the River operation are in significantly worse shape.

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Swamp Shack owner Drew Ryder stands at the bar of his restaurant in Lake Jackson on Friday. “It was a pretty devastating year in Freeport,” said Ryder of his second restaurant, On The River, in Freeport.

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A cajun-themed mural on the wall of Swamp Shack in Lake Jackson on Friday. “I spent the better part of 33 years building up the restaurants,” said owner Drew Ryder when reflecting on the possibility of having to close one of his two restaurants.

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A Swamp Shack employee cleans the dining area of the Cajun-themed restaurant in Lake Jackson on Friday.

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A mural on the wall of Swamp Shack in Lake Jackson on Friday. Owner Drew Ryder hired four local artist to paint murals throughout the restaurant.

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This social media post by Breakthrough Consulting created a bump in business at Swamp Shack.

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LAKE JACKSON

Between Swamp Shack in Lake Jackson and On the River in Freeport, Drew Ryder and his employees averaged six to eight catering events each week for the past 12 years — a rough average of 364 events each year.