North Bay Village's Shuckers Waterfront Grill, formerly Shuckers Bar & Grill, is set to reopen more than a year after a deck collapse injured dozens of patrons.
The bar at 1819 79th Street Causeway will open for a private party Wednesday night before opening to the public Thursday at noon.
"They're going to really love the place, it's beautiful," said Shuckers General Manager Joe Portela. "We can't wait to see them, we've missed them as much as they've missed us."
About 100 people were on the deck at Shuckers last June watching the Miami Heat in Game 4 of the NBA Finals when it collapsed into the shallow water of Biscayne Bay.
Officials said 33 people were injured, with 24 hospitalized and two suffering serious injuries.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue officials said at the time that something in the deck structure "gave out."
Along with a new bar, a new draft system and a remodeled interior, the new Shuckers features a safe and secure deck, according to Portela.
"They just over engineered it, made it as strong as possible," Portela said. "This deck will be here for a long time."
Many former employees returned to work at the new Shuckers Wednesday.
"We promised them when everything happened that they would be our first call, which we did, and we got a lot of them back," Portela said. "They were very happy to be back."
