Nye's returning to northeast Minneapolis

MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) - Christmas is coming early for fans of Nye's Polanaise Room.

Daina De Prez makes her living tickling the ivories, but for the first time since her favorite piano bar closed a year and a half ago, De Prez is no longer singing the blues.

"I'm so excited," said De Prez. "I'm over the moon excited."

Nye's had its swan song in April of last year after the owners sold the land to make way for a new six-story apartment building.

The owners say after hearing how many people miss the beloved institution, they decided to revive the popular piano bar in the corner building where the polka bar used to be.

"Am I happy? Oh yeah," said De Prez. "It’s just the best gig and I fit it so well. I love the patrons and I love the people singing. It was such a joyous event every night."

Owners say the new Nye's won't have food, but it will serve craft beer and cocktails along with some new lavish touches to recreate the magic of the original.

"I bet we have better bathrooms," said De Prez. "I bet the lighting works. I bet the plug-ins work. That's all the stuff that was wrong with the old building. The basement was flooding. There were so many things to fix. It was beyond fixing. People would say why don't you leave it open. You can't. It needs a total re-haul. Guess what? It got a total re-haul."

De Prez says she'll be back on the bench behind the piano as well as soon as she gets over the fact that the iconic watering hole is bellying up to the bar for another round.

"I just found out today, so I've just been bouncing around like Tigger. Ok? That's exactly how I feel," De Prez said.

The owners say the plan is for construction to start next week and for the new Nye's to open around Christmas.