Formerly: Lantern Buffet
Tucson, Arizona · Founded 1934 · Building: 1929
A working Tucson bar at 538 E. Ninth St., where local reporting places alcohol service since 1934.
The Buffet Bar operates in Tucson's Iron Horse District at 538 E. Ninth St. It began as the Lantern Buffet in 1934 and remains a longstanding neighborhood bar under Bair-family stewardship.
A 2011 owner interview said the building was constructed in 1929. This date requires confirmation through property, permit, or historic-inventory records.
Source: Bucket List Bars, "The Buffet, Tucson, Arizona" video interview (2011).
The current business identifies its original name as Lantern Buffet and dates its opening at 538 E. Ninth St. to 1934. Arizona Daily Star reporting says alcohol has been served in the same building since that year.
Source: The Buffet Bar official website; Arizona Daily Star, "The Buffet looks back on Ted Bair, inventor of the 'happy minute'" (2016).
Ted Bair bought The Buffet.
Source: Arizona Daily Wildcat, "Buffet Bar Turns 90" (2024).
Ted Bair died. Later reporting says his children Rex Bair and Robin Dutt, with Rex's daughter Crystal, continued running the bar.
Source: Arizona Daily Wildcat, "Buffet Bar Turns 90" (2024); Arizona Daily Star, "The Buffet looks back on Ted Bair, inventor of the 'happy minute'" (2016).
The Buffet marked its 90th year. Reporting identified Rex Bair, Robin Dutt, and Crystal Bair as the family members running the business.
Source: Arizona Daily Wildcat, "Buffet Bar Turns 90" (2024).
Every claim gets rated. A business's own website can never earn "documented."
A 2016 Arizona Daily Star feature reports that The Buffet has served alcohol in the same building since 1934, and the current business website identifies a 1934 Lantern Buffet opening. Primary liquor-license and business records were not located in this review.
Local reporting has described it as Tucson's oldest bar, but the reviewed evidence does not include a citywide comparative study or complete licensing chain. Other Tucson venues also make earlier historical-origin claims.
Multiple local accounts credit Ted Bair with initiating the Happy Minute. The reviewed evidence does not independently establish every detail of the promotion's original terms or timing.
The Buffet Bar was purchased by Lisha Smith from Ted Bair in 2008.
The reviewed record does not support that transaction. A 2024 report says Ted Bair bought The Buffet in 1982 and that members of the Bair family continued running it after his death in 2016.
Source: Arizona Daily Wildcat, "Buffet Bar Turns 90" (2024).
City licensing records conclusively prove The Buffet is Tucson's oldest continuously operating post-Prohibition bar.
Arizona Daily Star reporting supports alcohol service at the location since 1934, but the cited evidence does not include city licensing records, a complete continuity chain, or a comparative review of all Tucson bars.
Source: Arizona Daily Star, "The Buffet looks back on Ted Bair, inventor of the 'happy minute'" (2016).
The building was constructed in 1925.
The candidate's 1925 date is unsupported in the reviewed material. A 2011 owner interview said the building was built in 1929, though official property or preservation records are still needed.
Source: Bucket List Bars, "The Buffet, Tucson, Arizona" video interview (2011).
The Buffet has remained a current neighborhood bar through changing ownership generations, with the Bair family associated with its operations since Ted Bair bought it in 1982.
The current business says it opened as the Lantern Buffet in 1934 at 538 E. Ninth St. A 2016 Arizona Daily Star article likewise reported alcohol service in the same building since 1934.
The official website identifies the original business as Lantern Buffet.
A 2024 feature said Ted Bair's children Rex Bair and Robin Dutt, along with his granddaughter Crystal Bair, were running the bar. Exact present ownership and legal entity remain unverified.
Local reporting credits former owner Ted Bair with starting the Happy Minute tradition, but a primary record of the promotion's original rules and date has not been located.
538 E 9th St, Tucson, AZ 85705
(520) 623-6811
The Fourth Avenue Merchants Association lists Monday hours of noon–2 a.m. and Tuesday–Sunday hours of 6 a.m.–2 a.m. Confirm current hours before visiting.