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player ready...When Tap House Grill decided to expand beyond its eight Chicago area locations, franchise owner Mark Grimes was faced with a choice.
He had operated the restaurant company’s Highwood location for nearly five years, but didn’t want to conform to Tap House’s new fees and menu. So the Lincolnshire resident decided to go in his own direction, renaming the spot at 260 Green Bay the Road Barrel Crossing Tap & Grill and relaunching in December with a new look and menu.
“In the process of re-concepting, I decided let’s cut the menu down and focus on less items and execute them better,” Grimes said. “Let’s bring back the local feel by using local ingredients and farmers.”
Almost everything on the menu is made in-house, from the pickled vegetables served in a mason jar accompanied by a wooden board of grilled bread, to the Snickers bars dessert garnished with bourbon-soaked cherries, according to Grimes.
Barrel Crossing also works with local suppliers, such as Milwaukee Pretzel Company, which provides a soft pretzel appetizer so large it has to be served in a pizza box.
The menu will change seasonally to incorporate local produce in dishes, Grimes said.
“It’s still comfort food but just sort of raised up a little,” Grimes said.
The drink menu is similar to the one at Tap Hous, with an emphasis on craft beer and bourbons — the spot’s new name is a nod to the two barrel-made beverages and its location next to the Highwood Metra station. Both beverages are offered in flights for drinkers looking to expand their pallets. The beer selection changes on a regular basis, Grimes said, and customers have been known to stop in after spotting something they were interested in on the online menu.
“We constantly reprint the beer menus,” Grimes said. “The people who love craft beers like we do…they don’t want to see a beer (on the menu) that’s not there. It’s frustrating.”
Along with changing the menu, Grimes also opened the space up by removing walls separating the bar, private party area and main dining room.
He said he brought the number of TVs up to 11 and changed from low tables to high tops in front.
“It’s feeling good,” Grimes said. “The whole place just feels like an upgrade. There was nothing wrong with it when we switched it. We just thought it would be weird just to put a new name in front and change the menus.”
The construction was done during weekday lunch service because Grimes felt it was very important they not send the wrong impression by temporarily closing.
“There’s some businesses in town that haven’t made it and I didn’t want our guests to have that perception,” he said.
Staying open also allowed employees to explain to regulars what was going on and get feedback. They also tried to help existing customers with the transition by keeping some items from Tap House Grill on a “favorites” menu. Grimes’ main goal is to maintain the wide appeal of his restaurant, which brings in seniors who have lunch and play cards alongside local workers, families looking for an affordable dinner, commuters stopping in for a drink at the bar, and industry workers late at night.
“A lot of people say you can’t cater to everybody, but you kind of have to, especially when you’re in a neighborhood like this,” Grimes said. “I think it’s important to have different offerings that let people come to your restaurant more than once a week. We encourage the whole community to come in and enjoy the place. I think to be appealing to the whole market is necessary. We don’t want to have anyone veto us.”
Samantha Nelson is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press