It’s been a while since we’ve shared an update with you about what’s going on at Exile Brewing Co., but fear not, there is plenty of news to share!
First things first… the beer! Over the past few weeks, Ruthie, Betty, and Hannah have started to make appearances at bars and restaurants throughout Des Moines. They’ve popped up at a few local favorites, like El Bait Shop, and we’ve just begun to introduce the girls to Ames. To find out where we’re currently on tap, check the lower half of our “About” page. If you don’t see your favorite bar or restaurant, make sure to ask next time you’re in, you never know where the girls might show up!
Back at the Fitch Soap Building, we’ve completed a few small projects and are excited to announce the opening of our private party room! Equipped with a full bar, the space is perfect for holiday parties and all private gatherings. If you would like to reserve the room for your party, please contact Nikki at np@exilebrewing.com or by calling 515-883-2337.
Finally, be sure to stop by the The Fitch Studio Building Open House tonight. Located just across the street from us, and bearing the same historic Fitch name, The Fitch Studio Building has served as home for many Des Moines artists, from painters to glass blowers and everything in between. The open house starts at 5pm and lasts until 9pm. Come celebrate our community and history together!
Who? Exile Brewing Company… and you!
What? Opening night
When? Friday, August 10th, 4pm – 2am (21+ 11pm-2am)
Where? 1514 Walnut Street, Des Moines, IA, 50309
Why? The time has come. This Friday, August 10, we invite you to celebrate with us as we begin our journey by unlocking the doors and welcoming the public for our opening! The Annex, the restaurant portion of Exile Brewing Co., is the stage for our first act and we’re eager to start the show. Featuring the menu of Chef Tim Garton, dinner service will begin at 4pm and end at 11pm.
After the first night of dinner has ended, the party will continue in our Beer Hall with tankards upon tankards of beer and a full bar until 2am. Following an early knockdown by Mother Nature, the beer garden has recovered and is poised to go deep into the late rounds (we all love a good comeback story)! Whether it be from the sky or cheersing glass, beer garden v2.0 is here and ready for the most torrential downpour. For those that enjoy a more intimate environment, with hints of Lady Liberty reflecting from below, The Annex bar will remain open until 2am.
We invite you to join us on this memorable night. The time has finally come. To celebrate, to see old friends, to meet new friends, and to burn bright!
During the past few weeks we’ve gotten the bulk of our construction work underway. After more than two years of planning, designing and chipping away at various parts of the project we are finally reaching the homestretch leading up to opening. The construction crew has been digging trenches for plumbing in the restaurant, building footings in the basement to support our brewing equipment, tapping into the downtown water main and prepping for the next 1,000 things that need to get done before we open in July. Our beer offerings are set, the menu is being finalized and each day we are more and more excited to open the doors and start serving people from all over Des Moines! Thanks for following our progress, more to come!
After having yet another location slip through our fingers we decided to take a drive. It was a beautiful October afternoon and we wanted to see if there were any eye-catching buildings sporting a sign listing a realtor. As we turned north on 15th St. from Martin Luther King South the dilapidated building above caught our eye. Pat Morris, the head chef at Tursi’s Latin King was sitting in the front seat. Pat is the ultimate realist. He had roundly rejected all of the previous sites we considered. ”Oooh my God, can you believe the vermin that must be crawling through this place?!”, “Ugh, the mold here is killing me, no way…”, “This is just bad. Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, horrible”. These were only a few of the comments we heard during our search for the right location. When I saw the for sale sign on what I would eventually learn was the old Fitch Company Soap Manufacturing building I timidly commented, “That place looks kind of cool…I’ll bet it has high ceilings.” Bob didn’t say a word. Pat took a deep breath and sighed. ”You know…that place actually doesn’t look so bad.” That statement, which barely qualified as a vote of confidence, was all we needed. A non-negative comment from Pat Morris is 1,000 times better than Jim Cramer screaming and slamming the “Buy” button. We took down the realtors numbers and were touring the building less than 48 hrs later.
