Dog parents notwithstanding, most Sibling Revelry (29305 Clemens Rd., 440-471-8589) customers are thrilled to see the Westlake taproom expand its offerings. Last week, the three-and-a-half-year-old brewery added a liquor license to the mix. The possession of a liquor license requires that establishments serve food, so management has rolled out a new menu containing pub snacks. State law, however, forbids dogs inside eating establishments, so from here on out our furry friends (and their parents) are now relegated to the patio.
All in the name of progress.
As for the new liquid offerings, Sibling Revelry now offers glass pours of two types of bubbles, four whites, four reds and a half dozen specialty cocktails. House-brewed hard seltzers have also begun to make an appearance.
“We’re easing into it – it’s pretty simple,” explains GM Michael Lucas. “We don’t ever want to take away from the fact that this is about the beer, but we’d like to add to it.”
Perhaps more significantly, the brewery has launched a food program. To start, the small kitchen turns out simple bar bites like “bottomless” hot popcorn, large Bavarian pretzels with beer cheese and honey mustard, and meat-and-cheese boards. The goal, of course, is to keep people in their seats drinking beer or booze for longer spells, notes Lucas.
“What we’ve noticed is that a lot of people are coming in here just for a beer and then they go off and have dinner someplace else,” says Lucas. “The owners want to capture that market. We have a great clientele, a great following and we want to be able to give them a little bit more.”
Up until now, food was offered in the form of visiting food trucks and pop-ups, but the plan going forward is to do everything in-house. Construction on a proper kitchen will commence on or around January 1, with the goal of rolling out a larger pub menu by St. Patrick’s Day. The operation will be modeled after fast-casual eateries, where guests walk up to a counter, order, pay and go back to their seats. Runners will deliver the food when it’s ready. Items will be casual, shareable and family-friendly.
Since opening in 2016, the award-winning brewery has taken possession of nearly all of the 20,000 square feet in its building. In addition to the 85-seat taproom and 45-seat event space, Sibling Revelry has greatly expanded its production space while upping output and expanding its sales footprint. The 30-barrel brewhouse now has the capacity to produce 10,000 barrels per year.
“All of our growth has been 100-percent organic – slow and steady with more repeat customers,” says longtime brewmaster Pete Velez. “To me, those are better sales because people are buying because they like it and not because they feel like they have to because it’s over-incentivized.”
Nearly two dozen beers are available in the taproom and throughout the Midwest, with popular styles like IPA, American red ale and Belgian-style tripels leading the pack.
“The whole idea of this brewery, when we started it, was to create beers that people will want to drink more than one of – more balanced, drinkable and session-type beers,” Velez adds.
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