So I broke into The Grange last night…

Just kidding…I couldn’t even jimmy the door open.

OK, let’s start over. The Grange’s owners, Darren, Jen and Colin, were nice enough to invite my wife and me over to the old Angel space last night in preparation of their early September open. Over a few glasses of wine, we discussed the new space and plans for the future. For those that loved the old Angel layout with all that great woodwork, there’s good news….its not going anywhere. As Darren has said, they love the interior and just want to brighten it up a bit. That includes a new, much lighter wall color above the wood paneling, and hardwoods in place of the old dark, red rugs. (No worries…all that great tile flooring around the bar remains).

Rumors about The Grange using the courtyard out back have some merit, as both Darren and Colin especially would love to use what is now the Gypsy Camp’s outdoor storage space on big celebration nights (St. Patty’s Day in particular). But for right now the landlord isn’t on board. We’ll just have to see if they can wear him down as foot traffic picks up.

Ultimately, what seems most important to our city’s newest pub owners is the “feel” of The Grange. All three owners reiterated over the course of a very enjoyable evening that success for them is creating a great gathering place for the community, similar to the public houses they grew up around in their native Ireland. That means you will be seeing the owners on-site all the time (with Colin and Jen behind the bar, managing day-to-day operations), nightly events, and in general a much more jovial atmosphere.

In my personal opinion, this is sure to be yet another coup for Decatur. These aren’t folks that are looking to assert a new image on the city. They simply love how Decatur reminds them of home and want to become a part of the community, perhaps even strengthening our existing connections (and of course make a little cash doing it). With this sort of philosophy and high-interest from residents (I think around 10 people peered in the windows over the course of the evening), it has a great chance of becoming one of the top gathering spots in the city.

(I know I promised pictures, but decided that they would be more worth while closer to the opening, once most of the interior renovations are made. So hold tight and I should deliver in the days leading up to opening)

The Grange’s Darren Comer forwards along this note from Beer Advocate regarding the Brick Store’s new joint in the Rue de Leon space….

So it’s a go. Those strapping Brick Store lads will be opening another restaurant on the corner of Ponce de Leon and Church street in the old Rue de Leon space (originally a gas station/ body shop from the 1930’s). The concept aims to be Atlanta’s 1st real “Beer cuisine” restaurant/ bistro. Rotating seasonal menu’s focusing on locally grown produce, dairy & meats (a la 5 Season’s) including 14 draught beers & around 100 bottled. The idea is to focus primarily on small farms, small wineries, small spirit producers & small breweries. Shooting for a November opening. More details to follow. Comments or suggestions are always appreciated. Oh yea, the name…LEON’S full service.

Sounds awesome…especially knowing that these “strapping lads” really know how to follow thru on a  concept.  Grant Park’s loss is Decatur’s gain!  And the name…intriguing, no?  The “full service” part makes me wonder whether they will be doing certain things to the building to hearken back to its original use.

And many thanks to Darren for this heads up.  Its great to see Decatur’s newest pub working with the community rather than against it (which always seemed to be the case with the Angel).

Cheers!

In a moment of levity, Scott created this “pub shed” to go along with his “green shed”, which I posted a couple days ago.  What exactly is a pub shed?  The map below shows you.  Its the areas of Decatur that are “served” by a pub (within a 1/4 mile).

While overall its a much smaller total coverage area than the green shed, it ain’t shabby.  (The Grange is included) Plus whatever downtown may lack in green space, it makes up for with pubs.  So until you get the lush fields at the town center that you desire, I’m sure many of you are already capable of emptying enough glasses nearby to convince yourself that Roy Blunt Jr. Plaza is a field of soft green grass.  Just don’t be surprised if I still call the cops when I find you rolling around down by the Stephan Decatur bust.  Enjoy!

Scott's "Pub Shed"

Thanks Scott!

Darren, one of the owner’s of “The Grange Public House”, was good enough to shoot me an email yesterday and give out a few more firsthand details about our city’s latest pub.

“…The owners are my siblings, and myself, all hailing from Ireland and aiming to bring a bit of Dublin to Decatur. At The Grange, what you won’t find is the American version of an “Irish Pub,” you’ll find a “Dublin Pub,” with the feeling and experience you’d get walking into a pub in the heart of contemporary Dublin, today. [ I subsequently asked Darren about the differences between the two and he told me that the best contemporary comparison (without going to Dublin) would probably be Tom Cruise's "Far and Away" vs. the recent Oscar-winner "Once". - The Grange will be much more like the later]

The name “The Grange” is really the intersection of our lives in Ireland and our lives here in Atlanta. Back in medieval Ireland, The Grange, located in the town monastery, was where food and beer was produced and stored. It was also a popular gathering place for the community. That’s what we want The Grange Public House to be for Decatur. We all grew up beside a well known Grange in the foothills of the Dublin mountains.

The Grange will be owner operated and serve pub-style food along with an international beer & wine list, all at a reasonable price. [he also stated later that the menu will start out with a few staples and evolve over time] It’ll be a place where friends & family can go for a nice drink and meal as well as good conversation.

We’ve been busy with minor renovations: brightening up the interior and refreshing the exterior, grafting toward an early September opening. We’ll keep you posted.”

Best of all, Darren’s gonna let me come take a look around and snap a few photos some time next week! So look forward to that!

In celebration of its 11 year anniversary, the Brick Store Pub is in the midst of “11 Days of One-Off Kegs”. And man are there some interesting sounding brews on this list.

Rusty Diamond over at Decatur Beer & Beyond blog has the daily run down, which spans June 14th-24th.

Hurry Up! You’ve already missed the Great Divide Espresso Oak-Aged Yeti Imported Stout and the Terrapin Southern Fried Brown Ale! Don’t miss today’s Oskar Blues Chubbourbon! (yes, that’s Old Chub aged in bourbon barrels…can I invoke the drooling noise more than once in one day?)

Inside the Sprawl wonders if the Brick Store’s investment in Grant Park will ever come to fruition and rattles off a number of rumors as to why things may be held up.

“Rumored completion dates have come and gone, but there still appears to be minimal progress at the location. Now, we have heard rumors that the project may never come to pass. Several reasons are cited. One alleged reason is that dealing with city of Atlanta has proven to be more arduous than originally suspected. Further, unanticipated costs (one of which is an $80,000 grease trap) may have discouraged the current location. Another issue is the complete lack of parking. In a city dominated by cars, the parking issue can be a deal killer.”

Regardless of the reason, pictures seem to show that things are moving very slowly at the location. May I perhaps again suggest looking into the purchase of a certain vacant Decatur British pub that needs inhabiting?? I can’t take anymore “hour” waits!! Seriously, who has a three page waiting list during a tornado warning!?

Sob, sob…I’ll be up the stairs and to the left if anyone needs me.

h/t: InDecatur