By Ned Chala
Residents in Ellicottville and the surrounding area have been questioning the Ellicottville Depot’s fate since it sold last summer to the local ski resort. In the agreement BarBill, an East Aurora based restaurant, has leased out the facility and stated it would open in February, 2026. According to local discussions as they were refurbishing the iconic hot spot, they found details that needed more attention. A new logo has been placed over the pre-existing sign by the entrance on 219 illustrating The Ellicottville Depot is now “Wayne’s Depot”. The Villager did some late season digging to find out exactly who “Wayne” is.
back for hockey games in which “Wayne will pad up when he visits Ellicottville.”
As we tried to contact the owners of BarBill we only reached a partner of theirs who gave us the scoop with the stipulation we wait until after ski season to share the news. The partner Nisanayi Aptaller said hockey icon Wayne Grestsky is partnering with the owners to make the celebrated restaurant and bar even more enticing. Aptaller told The Villager they are also planning on putting an ice rink in the back for hockey games in which “Wayne will pad up when he visits Ellicottville.” Gretzky is known for hockey, but also had a restaurant in Canada called Wayne Gretzky’s in Toronto. He has been in town a few times in the past and was in talks before about investing in Ellicottville.
Since his retirement from the NHL, Gretzky has done many other projects and now his sights are on the oldest food establishment in town. Aptaller was asked when The Villager could interview Wayne and she gave a vague answer which we interpreted to mean, “Don’t call us, we’ll call you.”, but the excitement won’t let that deter us from finding out more. She said, as was told in articles from this past fall, the building will not change much except for certain needed changes for the planning board to accept. The Villagerasked about the ice rink as well and was told it’s only in talks now. When we find out more about Wayne’s Depot we will share the news. Aptaller hinted that a full disclosure will be made on April Fools’ Day.
* Nisanayi Aptaller is Turkish for Aprils Fools. Enjoy the rest of your read!