FOOD INDUSTRY NEWS MARCH 2022
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MARCH 2022
TANGLED ROOTS BREWING SETS THEIR SIGHTS ON CHICAGO MARKET
T
angled Roots Brewing Co. has been expanding its offerings in Illinois over its six-year history, and in the coming years, you may be able to visit a brewpub nearer to or in Chicago. “Our plan is to continue to open brew pubs in markets such as Chicago suburbs or even other areas of the state,” says Steve Scrima, vice president of hospitality. “We’d like to open two to three each year. I don’t know if we’ll always hit that number, but in a perfect world that’s what we’d like to do. Our plan is to definitely continue to expand, whether it’s one-off or whether it’s through acquisition, whatever opportunity comes our way. We want to be thought of everywhere in Chicagoland and hopefully Illinois.” Craft beer is big business, with sales around $22 billion in 2020, according to the Brewers Association, a national nonprofit based in Boulder, Colo. That same year, Illinois accounted for 295 breweries in the state, ranking 13th in the nation. In addition to the brewery in Ottawa, Ill., and a seasonal beer garden at Chicago’s Navy Pier, Tangled Roots also has four brewpubs, each with its own menu and theme: The Lone Buffalo, also in Ottawa, named for nearby Buffalo State Park; Lock & Mule, near the lock and dam in Lockport; Keg & Kernel, whose moniker comes from the local corn in DeKalb; Hangar Two, inspired by the former military base,
in Glenview; and by the end of this year in La Salle, The Rocket, which was a Rock Island passenger train that used to stop in that town. “We don’t want to appear like a chain, because we’re not. We try to keep everything as individual as possible,” explains Scrima. The common thread is, of course, the beer. “Our philosophy is ‘big things for small towns.’ We like to go into smaller, upcoming areas and you know, kind of be a main attraction,” Scrima says. “We believe in revitalizing historic properties.” The building that houses Lone Buffalo, which opened in 2016, was built in the 1800s, Scrima says, while the Lock & Mule’s site was built in the mid- to late 1920s. “That whole historic value, historic Illinois, keeping everything local, ‘farm to foam’ on the beer, locally sourced goods when doable is something that we pride ourselves on as well,” he says. “We really do our best to become immersed in the location that we’re in,” says Anna Wright, Tangled Roots’ senior marketing and experience manager. “We like to be engaged in the local community. We feel that by doing research and paying homage to the local community we start out on the right foot.” Tangled Roots brews all its own beer and is serious about sourcing local ingredients. Continued on page 19
AROUND CHICAGO ......................... 20 BUYERS’ DIRECTORY .................. 33-36 CHEF PROFILE ............................. 10 CLASSIFIEDS/BUS. FOR SALE ........ 37-39 DINING WITH MS. X ........................ 6
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LOCAL NEWS ............................... 16 NATIONAL NEWS ........................... 32 NUGGETS ................................... 24 PEOPLE SELLING THE INDUSTRY ........ 41 TRAVEL ..................................... 46
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