Five years ago, a nondescript red brick building in the heart of historic St. Elmo became the home of a friendly little gathering spot for cold beer and good company when Chris Calhoun opened the doors of The Tap House.
"When we remodeled the building, we tried to reclaim as much of the building as possible, to create an old school saloon feel with a modern twist," Calhoun explains.
And the "old school" feeling has extended to his clientele, which range from neighborhood regulars, downtown office workers looking for a tasty lunch, and visitors exploring the nearby attractions. The mark of any successful business is repeat customers, and Calhoun and his staff have earned the loyalty a wide range of supporters over the past half decade.
But one thing Calhoun is not is someone who rests on past accomplishments. Far from it, as evidenced by the sheer number of changes just in the past year, most notably the addition of Empyreal Brewing Co. in the space adjacent to The Tap Room.
"We have expanded our in-house beer selection with Empyreal Brewing Co. to seven-pulse draft lines keeping ciders, IPA's, and experimental small batch brews flowing" Calhoun says proudly. "We continue to push local breweries as well and always have five to six local taps along with our own line, so a choice of up to eight to twelve local beers out of the thirty we have on tap. The focus is always on the beer!"
Something else that is new is the launch of the Mug Club, which will be limited to 50 members with two tiers to choose from, and features a nice 20oz stainless steel mug and a 67oz stainless steel growler. The club gets you 20oz pours for the price of a 16oz pour, discounts on food, discounts on beers, and access to new release beers from Empyreal Brewing along with some other cool features coming up.
To join the Mug Club, you will need to sign up in person. The cost is $95 for Tier 1 membership and $150 for Tier 2 memberships.
"We have also expanded our spirits and just got our liquor license approval two weeks ago, so now we have a larger wine selection, two draft cocktails, draft sangria, draft champagne for our mimosa and sangria pitchers," Calhoun says. "We also are rolling out a nice bourdon, scotch and whiskey lineup along with a decent well selection and some fun house-made cocktails."
And there's more than just beers and booze, there's also burgers and other tasty treats. the menu has a new lineup of house-made items like salsa, pimento cheese, hummus, and more. And of course, burgers.
"We now feature 100% certified angus beef burgers and a hell of a burger selection. We are also doing monthly house-made specials! For a small kitchen, we are crushing the food service. We now do table service as well."
They would like to invite everyone, both regulars and newcomers alike, to their anniversary party on Saturday, April 9. They will be hosting raffles and other fun events in the parking lot with music spinning from a live DJ along with food and drink specials starting at Noon and running until 5:00 p.m.
And if there's one thing everyone who has ever visited The Tap House has learned over the past five years, nothing stays the same except for three things you can always count on: great food, great beer, and great service.
Visit them at 3800 St. Elmo Ave. in the heart of historic St. Elmo. Open Tuesday through Sat: from 11am to 9pm, and Sunday from 11am to 8pm (closed on Mondays). Learn more online at taphousechatt.com.