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Patrick and Julia
Bisch have opened The Open Bottle, a craft beer store and taproom, at 7101 W.
183rd St. in Tinley Park.
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Southland Savvy
Patrick Bisch is a self-confessed "beer nerd" to
the point that he chucked his job in the IT field to open a craft beer store
and tap room called The Open Bottle last month in Tinley Park.
"I love to talk beer," Bisch said from the store
at 7101 W. 183rd St.
"We are fully
submerged into the store," he said describing how he and his partner and
wife, Julia Bisch, who left her job in the hotel industry, started planning for
the store about a year ago.
"We wanted to do something we were passionate
about," he said.
The couple's passion was ignited in 2010 when they were
frequent customers of Hackney's downtown location.
"We went there a lot and I knew they had a great burger
menu and a great beer menu," he said. "One day I discovered Bell's
Two Hearted Ale. That started it all."
In late January, the couple opened The Open Bottle. Unlike
many of the new tap rooms popping up in the south suburbs, they are a retail
operation that has a tap room and not a craft brewer.
"We have eight taps to complement our store," he
said. "That allows our customers to taste the beer and take a bottle home.
It's enough to get people interested in beer."
Bisch said he offers daily tastings (one-ounce pours) to
introduce people to some of the unique beers he carries.
He said the tap beers rotate frequently, though they try to
focus on local brewers. "We just ran out of Pollyanna from Lemont,"
he said. "We kick a beer every
day."
The Open Bottle carries more than 300 kinds of beer, Bisch
said, adding that more is coming.
"We have more shelf space that needs to be
filled," he said. The shelves are divided into Eastern, Central and
Western United States.
The store has four tables and seats eight at the bar. It
offers a variety of small bites and encourages people to bring in their own
food.
"We love to see people bring in their own," he
said. "We just had an elderly couple that came in with Subway sandwiches
to have with their beer. We love to see that."
The Open Bottle also has an arrangement with Rich's Pizza
Place across the street to deliver food to the store.
Kids are always welcome with parents. "We have a number
of craft sodas for the kids."
The couple are well acquainted with the area. Bisch grew up
in Mokena and his wife grew up in Palos Heights.
They chose 183rd Street because of its traffic, and
proximity to Interstate 80 and the Tinley Convention Center.
"We had a lot of customers who came in after the recent
Tinley Golf Expo at the convention center," he said.
If all goes well, Bisch said expansion was a definite
possibility.
"We have plans for more locations," he said.
"In different areas."
Regular store hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday and
Wednesday, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday to Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m.
Sunday. The store is closed Mondays.
For information, call 708-263-0449 or visit them on Facebook
at The Open Bottle or check their website at www.theopenbottle.com.
New Gas N Wash opens
A new Gas N Wash has opened at 174 W. Court St. in Kankakee,
according to the company's website.
Like the store's first on 191st Street in Mokena, the
Kankakee Gas N Wash features a convenience store called The Market, which
contains a drive-through Dunkin' Donuts and a liquor department called the Beer
Cave. The site also has nine fuel pumps at its gas station, with three diesel
pumps for trucks. There also is a drive-through $3 car wash, which is still
being completed.
The facility is open 24 hours a day and has a staff of about
40 full-time and part-time workers.
The three-acre site is owned by Len McEnery, of Mokena,
along with Leon Baine and Tracy Erickson. The partners also own a $3 Car Wash
at U.S. 45 and 52 in Bourbonnais.
S&S Clocks closes
S&S Clocks and Gifts closed its doors at 20881 S.
LaGrange Road in the Frankfort Town Center Mall in Frankfort for the last time
last monthafter more than 35 years. Its owners retired.
New Fuller's Car Wash
opens
Fuller's Car Wash opened last month at 1725 E. Lincoln
Highway in New Lenox, next door to Lincoln-Way Central High School.
The car wash had been planned for the corner lot for several
years.
The wash offers full-service car washes and detailing from 8
a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, and
exterior washes from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
For information, call 815-320-3880.
