LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Andrew Masterson, co-owner of Captain’s Quarters Riverside Restaurant, captured the attention of social media after intentionally filling the interior of his restaurant with water amid flooding in Louisville. 

Masterson said the extra attention was a shock, but his goal was to bring levity to an inconvenient circumstance.

“Really, just to let our fans and customers know that we’ll be okay. We’re doing the best we can to mitigate the losses and make it a little bit faster for us to open back up,” he said.

Masterson said the restaurant has a well-water pump that brings water out of an aquifer under the restaurant. They typically use it to cool the kitchen during the summer, but during this past flooding event, and for other flooding events over the past 10 years, they have filled their restaurant to offset the muddy waters.

However, Masterson said the method only works for up to five feet of water, anything more, and the outside water flows in through unexpected crevices.

“Once it gets to certain areas of this building where we might have exposed duct work, more windows where more river water can seep through, it overwhelms the amount of water that we can pump in. It cannot possibly keep up with the amount of water finding ways into the building,” Masterson said.

While floodwaters were sitting at nine feet inside the restaurant, Masterson said it’s always worth the attempt.

When it works, Masterson said flooding his own building saves him nearly $100,000, with half of that money going toward what would be labor costs cleaning up mud and debris.

Masterson said they still have insurance coverage. 

“We have managed to maintain that insurance and insurance knows that we do what we’re doing to try to mitigate the losses and also speed up the reopening, so it’s never been an issue in the past,” Masterson said. “And I certainly hope with all the attention we’ve gotten that it’s not going to be an issue in the future.”

Masterson said Captain’s Quarters is aiming to reopen for Derby week.