liam's hours lunch: tues-fri 11am - 2pm brunch: sat 9am - 1pm
dinner: tues-sat opens at 5:30
Liam's Lounge Cheese & Shoppe NOW
N E P O
lounge & cheese shoppe hours tues-fri: 5pm - late sat: 10am - Midnight
Rhonda + Scott Foster Create Yet Another Unbelievable Gastronomic Hub There really aren’t words for what Scott and Rhonda Foster mean to so many in Thomasville and how fine the line is between their lives and their work.
goats ate before their milk made your cheese. And Scott and Chef Tyler Bailey will still be making everything but a leather bootstrap savory {not that they couldn’t do that}.
It’s all a labor of love and so this expansion—The Lounge & Cheese Shoppe—is nothing but double the personality, devotion and ambience—plus double the spirits, charcuterie and cheeses that we’ve been packing Liam’s to the walls for years to get our hands on.
Speaking of Rhonda’s quest for the perfect accouterments, when it came to finding the right crackers for their cheeses, the struggle was real. “I’m telling you,” Rhonda says, “I tried the thin ones and they’d just break right off on the cheese, and then the thicker ones would just tear up your mouth.”
The Lounge & Cheese Shoppe has a rustic, pub feel with its 100-year old barn wood, sleek blue walls adorned with antique embellishments and brass reading-room lamps.
She goes on, “So then I told Scott, you guys are just going to have to make some crackers. Tyler made a cracker the other day and it was amazing. I told him he’d better be careful because he might just be making crackers all day.”
Don’t know Jackie Ellis Johnson? Oh, yes you do. Her creative touches are all over Thomasville’s most beloved eateries and retail establishments. A Thomasville native and University of Alabama grad, Jackie took a big leap at a young age, going into business for herself, and hasn’t looked back. With clients all over the country, she does everything from project management to merchandising, branding, storefronts and of course, interior design. Find out more at jejohnsondesign. com.
Rhonda says that Scott and Tyler are also planning on getting into the house-made pickle, relish and jam business, to accompany their cheeses and to be sold at retail—they may even dabble in house-made pâté and terrine.
How did you first meet Scott and Rhonda and how did your relationship evolve to this job? I helped Rhonda and Scott with the first remodel of Liam's restaurant four years ago, but I have always been a huge fan of their food {especially the truffle fries} and what they bring to downtown Thomasville.
We love Scott’s tenacity to try absolutely anything edible—it’s up there with Bourdain’s, and like Bourdain, he loves to share it with others—by way of Liam’s kitchen rather than the television—and thank God for all of us, right? We get to savor it.
What special touches do you love the most in the new expansion? It is so hard to choose! We wanted every inch of the space to feel complete... from the antique pine boards, custom beer tap system, vintage lighting and navy lacquered walls… it is a very special space.
It has a 30-foot bar, 55-inch TV, 12’ x 6’ cheese and charcuterie counter, beer tap handles with characters from Where the Wild Things Are, a four-sided glass cheese cooler, a Shel Silverstein quote etched into the back wall, a meat hanger chandelier and more brews and spirits than you could shake a glass at. On the wall behind the bar are shelves dedicated to individual spirits: vodka, gins, bourbons, scotches, tequilas, boutique liquors and even a Georgia-made spirits section. “We said, if we’re going to do it up, we’re going to do it up right,” says Rhonda one morning, when I meet her over on the Liam’s side to go over the details. Scott, in his element, even before 9 in the morning, walks by with something in a ramekin that is so spicy, I can smell it from three feet away. Rhonda, looking mildly disaffected, gives him a sideward glance. “Can we try not to kill the staff today, please?” Worry not Liam’s-lovers—Scott and Rhonda will split their time between both venues. Rhonda will tell you the kinds of rocks the
Townie Tip: Make your reservations for Cinco de Mayo now. We mean drop what you’re doing and call Liam’s. It’s going to be the best one yet and we may have sampled some tequilas that went down like Agave-heaven-in-a-bottle. The Lounge & Cheese Shoppe opened on Tuesday, April 12. What are you waiting for, Townies? Go see what Scott and Rhonda have done. —Jennifer W.
The Cheese Shoppe 411
What roles did you play in seeing this to completion? I am responsible for the interior design of the space. Rhonda always knows exactly what she wants so it is up to me to make it happen! She is wonderful to work with because she understands what it takes to create the visual experience. What, in your mind, is the most unique item in the Lounge & Cheese Shoppe? Melissa Rigsby [of Relic’s] created a custom light fixture for us that is actually made from an antique meat hanger. It feels perfect hanging over the cheese and charcuterie area. Who else did you bring in to help complete the look and feel of the expansion? Melissa Rigsby, Tommy Allmond, Edwin Rivera, Matt Turner, Jason Wilson... so many great people! What's next for you? Staying creative and getting a drink at Liam’s new bar! How will you look back on this project? It has been an absolute privilege working with Rhonda, Scott and the Liam's team. They are very special clients of mine and I can't wait to celebrate the opening of the new space!
• The Cheese Shoppe has over 150 cheeses from the U.S., France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Canada, Israel, Turkey, Switzerland and Sweden—that’s 14 countries, and counting. • If you thought their selection was massive before the expansion, Rhonda and Scott have widened their cheese and charcuterie selections by around 50%.
Jackie Ellis Johnson
The Lounge & Cheese Shoppe is now Where the Wild Beer Taps Are.
• There is a retail counter to the immediate right of the entrance, where meat and cheeses may be purchased on the go.
happy hour
• The retail area {and menus} will also have honey, pickles, crackers, jams and other accouterments available.
tues-fri: 5pm - 7pm sat: 3pm - 7pm
• Scott and Chef Tyler Bailey plan to cook up many of the pickles, jams and crackers themselves.
craft beer 1/2 off
• All of the above are available for call-ahead platters, quick to-go orders, gift baskets, and special event setups that they’ll prepare ahead of time to feed from 2 – 50 people.
all spirits $4 off
• The Shoppe will also feature an expanded selection of charcuterie: craft salamis, hams—they’ve even got a leg of cured lamb prosciutto from Edwards Virginia Smokehouse, which has been shut down completely since a tragic fire in January.
house wine $5 three cheese board $10
• To truly experience the four-sided glass cheese cooler {that is very likely taller than you are}, you’ll have to just come see it for yourself.
Jackie, Rhonda, Scott and Edwin Rivera in the new lounge.
+
L I A M ' S
W O U L D
L I K E
T O
martinis $5
Chum-slash-design genius, Jackie.
T H A N k :
Bellator Development
T.W. ALLMOND, TW'S DESIGN GARAGE + BUILD • ACTS, TALLAHASSEE • TAPPED BEER STEVEN DRINKELL, FINE PAINTS OF EUROPE • MATT TURNER, METAL FABRICATION + SALES
113 east jackson st.
downtown thomasville
229-226-9944
Liam's Lounge & Cheese Shoppe
liamsthomasville.com
facebook: Liam's of Thomasville
join us during due south open all day on saturdays
Whispers Shhh… look to fall for Liam’s Beer Club’s first ever Brew Fest… this is serious business for you beer-drinking folk… Psst…rumor has it that Tyler might be cooking up single-dish orders on the late-late night tip… hot chicken anyone? Mark your calendar for Saturday, May 14 for a tap takeover with Service Brewery… proceeds to go to their more than benevolent causes…
Book the lounge for your private event. Call 229-226-9944
Wanna hear the game on the lounge’s new 55” TV without the bar’s background noise? …download Tunity, a free app that lets you hear what’s on the TV through your phone’s headphones… don’t have yours with you…? Rhonda’s got disposables…