The Joinery

[Pete]

[size=3]Multi-level food and beer concept set to takeover Tapwerks building

The Community Through Beer (CTB) group – proprietors of Social Capital, The Patriarch and 1884 – has started renovation work on all three floors of the former Tapwerks building at 121 E. Sheridan and Bricktown.




The new project will be named The Joinery and will feature CTB's signature focus on local craft beers as well as a full menu.

The first floor will feature a large bar and around 50 beers on tap. The main kitchen will feature a 'slightly elevated' menu.

The second level will be a full-service indoor golf simulator bar. Five simulator booths will be rented by the hour and a putting green will also be available.

The top-level will be a space for private events with a full bar and catering kitchen with a capacity of up to 200.

The contractor is CORD construction services and the architect is Gardner Studio.

The entire building has already been gutting and the goal is to be open before the end of the year.

After being quiet during the peak of the pandemic, Bricktown is in the process of making a comeback. Rendezvous Pizza recently opened next to the Bricktown Brewery and has been experiencing robust crowds. Across the street, the 10-story Marriott Renaissance is nearing completion and will be the district's first full-service hotel. Chico Blanco restaurant and bar on the canal should be opening soon. And the two-level Old Spaghetti Factory is starting construction, also on Sheridan.

[HangryHippo]

Awesome!

[fromdust]

I miss Tapwerks and their most ultimate tap wall, but this seems like it will be a great use for this old building. Looking forward to visiting.

[Pete]

Just FYI, but that space was in pretty bad shape towards the end of Tapwerks' run.

This group is making a massive investment (like Social Capital) and completely renovating that building from top to bottom.

Tapwerks looked a lot like the Spaghetti Warehouse when it closed. Tons of deferred maintenance really piles up in 100-year-old buildings.


And along with Rendevous, it will be great to have some local non-club places in Bricktown. Places I think lots of locals will patronize.

[Urbanized]

Just FYI, but that space was in pretty bad shape towards the end of Tapwerks' run.

This group is making a massive investment (like Social Capital) and completely renovating that building from top to bottom.

Tapwerks looked a lot like the Spaghetti Warehouse when it closed. Tons of deferred maintenance really piles up in 100-year-old buildings.


And along with Rendevous, it will be great to have some local non-club places in Bricktown. Places I think lots of locals will patronize.

Can 100% attest to all of this. TapWerks had a dear place in my heart, but for the past few years (and "few" is being charitable) there was little if any reinvestment. Or even basic upkeep, frankly. Was fortunate enough to meet with one of the partners of The Joinery (also the owner of CORD) in December about this project and have been busting at the seams to share the details, but they were not mine to share. Their plan (and earned reputation for execution) is exactly what this building, Sheridan Avenue and the larger Bricktown District have needed for a long, long time.

And yeah, the building was sadly pretty trashed after years of deferred maintenance.

Rendezvous is also a homerun. Greatly needed, with a great local group operating. Like CTB, it's a group that doesn't sit on its laurels and instead continues to freshen and reinvest at every opportunity.

[Pete]

I've been told Rendezvous has been booming and that makes me very happy because I love everything about that place and want more reasons to go to Bricktown.

I wish HeyDay would get their act together and I'm beginning to worry it's never going to reopen.

[shawnw]

I've been told Rendezvous has been booming and that makes me very happy because I love everything about that place and want more reasons to go to Bricktown.

I wish HeyDay would get their act together and I'm beginning to worry it's never going to reopen.

I thought we already got indication that the BT HD was permanently closed? I forget who posted about that...

[Pete]

I thought we already got indication that the BT HD was permanently closed? I forget who posted about that...

I posted about it because it sure looks like they are a goner.

But it hasn't been 100% confirmed.

[Urbanized]

I thought we already got indication that the BT HD was permanently closed? I forget who posted about that...

I posted about it because it sure looks like they are a goner.

But it hasn't been 100% confirmed.

A couple of weeks ago I asked Hogan Properties' longtime property manager and he said pretty firmly that it was being remodeled before reopening. He's a longtime friend and colleague, and I think he'd tell me if they weren't coming back (which of course I would not necessarily be able share here if so haha). But he seemed convinced. That doesn't mean that HeyDay is telling him something different from their actual plans, but I definitely wouldn't throw dirt on the place yet.

I also heard at one point that they had shuttered this one to concentrate their efforts on the main location, and that makes a lot of sense, especially considering current labor crunch.

[boilerup35]

I imagine they will serve even more expensive beers than social capital and the patriarch. They are known for giving the fantastic duo of smaller pours and higher prices

[Pete]

I personally don't mind paying a bit more for a well-run place.

We have plenty of places in town for cheap beer.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^^^
This x100. A cheap place can be fun sometimes, and so can dive-y. But I know I'm by far not the only person who is also at times willing to pay extra for atmosphere.

[boilerup35]

It could be because of the lack of competition, but in Chicago and many other large cities the prices are lower for craft beer and they give a bigger pour. 12 oz pours for lagers and 10 oz for pale ales is downright chintzy. The prices would be reasonable if they included the liquor tax, but they do not.

[shawnw]

I will say that, I get their monthly newsletter and the one from 4 days ago still lists Bricktown in the footer.

[Urbanized]

I will say that, I get their monthly newsletter and the one from 4 days ago still lists Bricktown in the footer.

Yes, I'd also seen that.

Honestly they'd struggled to find their footing pre-pandemic, and a remodel makes a lot of sense, indicating that they had re-thought a few things about the original configuration.

[Pete]

HeyDay fully remodeled that space at great expense just before moving in.

And at least a week ago, nothing was happening inside.


I sure hope they come back, though.

[Urbanized]

HeyDay fully remodeled that space at great expense just before moving in.

And at least a week ago, nothing was happening inside.


I sure hope they come back, though.

Yes, they did. And agree that there isn't activity at the moment.

But like I mentioned in my post just above yours, I suspect whether or not they re-open (which hopefully DOES happen) that they want to re-think the approach they were previously taking pre-pandemic, because it wasn't blowing the doors open. A remodel (or probably more accurately a reconfiguration) does make some sense.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^
Also would make sense that there wasn't activity yet if they were putting a bunch of effort into their main place, because that is something EVERYONE in the service industry is having to do right now.

I've spent the entire pandemic re-thinking just about everything about my business - and I now have a list of about ten major new initiatives that I KNOW are going to make lots of new revenue - but don't have time or capacity to take them on because I'm working seven days a week hiring and training and in some cases doing frontline work myself. Including I'm typing this from my desk at work between Zoom interviews, on a Sunday night.

I'm gonna give that place some grace right now.

[Teo9969]

What are the black things under the structural beam?

[catch22]

I could be wrong but looks like some kind of retrofit beam brace. Could be a beam stiffener also, if at some point in time people felt the building was “bouncy” yet still structurally sound. Each pair is tension tied to the other, and then up to the column connection.

[Pete]

Went by today (Wednesday) and they have a big crew in there working away.

A lot of money is being spent on this project.

[therhett17]

I hope they refurb the old, painted advertisements on the side of the building!

[shawnw]

Owner was at the last ULI event and had some cool stuff to say about it. Looking forward to seeing if it turns out the way he described.

[Pete]

Photo from Cord Construction.

They are moving along but based on poking my head in, still have a ways to go. They have basically rebuilt that entire structure from the inside.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^
I got the full tour a couple of days ago from the owner of Cord, who is also founder/partner in the operating group. He feels like sometime in March at the latest, perhaps earlier.

Also, this place is going to be a massive hit. It’s been a while since someone has done a high-level, creative concept in Bricktown that primarily targets locals while still catering to the visitor market. They’re hitting exactly the right notes. It’s also more elevated than anything they’ve done at this point, which is saying something.