It appears there was a deal moving forward to sell craft beer haven Toronado to a new owner, and that owner was even making plans to install a rooftop beer garden. But founder and longtime owner Dave Keene appears to have had second thoughts.

When the story broke in late March that the Lower Haight's beloved beer mecca Toronado, and the building it lives in, was being sold to a crypto bro who had been boasting online about launching a memecoin to go along with the bar, some uproar seemed all but certain. Could respected beer guy Dave Keene really have cut such a deal? Would fans of the famously cash-only bar ever accept such a fate?

That crypto bro, who clearly doesn't want that moniker, is named Orion Parrott. He's never owned a bar before, wasn't even much of a regular at Toronado — he likes Zeitgeist though! — and he tells the Chronicle that when he saw the bar go on the market in January for $1.75 million, he "had to jump on it."

"I’m told most dudes kind of vaguely want to have a bar," Parrott tells the Chron's Esther Mobley, "And yeah, that does sound fun, but this is a very special place, obviously."

These are not words that would reassure die-hard fans of the bar, or its dedicated staff, and nor does it seem reassuring that Parrott says he both wants to maintain Keene's legacy and keep the bar as-is, but also create merch and a "content" channel on YouTube, and build a roof deck beer garden.

The Toronado Drinkers Facebook group has a mix of reactions to Parrott's recently frequent postings, with some wanting everything to stay the same, some questioning his intentions, and some asking for credit cards to start being accepted — if not crypto coins.

The hostility of the staff was made apparent when Parrott, who is or was (as of last week anyway) under contract to buy the bar, showed up there to do a Chronicle interview, and a bartender angrily told him and Mobley both they couldn't take photos inside. They went ahead and shot a portrait of Parrott standing outside the bar, but also got an earful from Keene, who called Mobley on the phone to scream that he still owns the bar. And it sounds like he may be trying to sink the deal, saying that Parrott did not waive certain contingencies before a specific deadline, and therefore isn't under contract anymore.

Parrott, who has reportedly never spoken directly to Keene, tells the Chronicle "There’s a chance [the deal] doesn’t go through," but now it sounds like this will come down to a legal battle, if Parrott wants to put up a fight.

As a real estate broker tells the paper, even if he were to fight and win, he could still face trouble from the neighborhood and the bar's fans when it comes to the liquor license transfer, getting construction permits approved, and more.

So, yes, maybe the Toronado isn't getting sold just yet! Sit tight, beer fans.

Previously: Lower Haight Beer Bar Toronado Allegedly Being Sold to Crypto Guy Who Wants to Attach a Coin to the Brand

Photo via Google Street View