Go inside Heist’s gorgeous new 3,000-square-foot taproom expansion

Though it shares a common wall with Heist’s main dining room, this 3,000-square-foot area tentatively known as the Taproom is largely self-contained. It has its own kitchen, bathrooms, bar area… you get the picture. This isn’t simply an addition, or even a clone. It’s an overall improvement.

“Hopefully this turns into a place where people want to come be comfortable,” says Heist owner Kurt Hogan. “They can eat something, definitely drink something, and just hang out.”

The back wall alone, a cobbling of variously sized slices of reclaimed wood, took 450 man-hours to prepare and install.

Beer menus are going digital via a pair of TVs flanking the bar.

A 4K projector makes the room suitable for your next work conference, and a stage will allow for live music.

It’s simultaneously a place for beer-seekers to grab a post-work libation, or for wedding reception guests to throw down in style.

Local rockers Ancient Cities will be performing at a soft-opening party January 26, with a full-strength grand opening slated for the 28th.

Capacity is rated at 238 people (which might be a bit uncomfortable once furniture is factored in, they say), so they’re capping it at an even 200 people.

Compare this to the 200-250 capacity of their main dining room, 40-50 of the mezzanine, and 50 in the back bar (“Then there’s the patio,” adds general manager Spencer Farrell).

20 people can belly up to the new bar, versus 14 at the main bar and 12 in the back.

“This will suffice for 99 percent of the parties we get throughout the year,” adds Hogan.

While Heist is certainly making a name with their in-house beverages (they’re the fourth-highest-rated brewery in town, according to Untappd), outside offerings will also grace their taps for the first time.

12 lines will be dedicated to Heist’s beers, with six more designated as guest taps.

“This is going to be a super beer-centric side of Heist,” says Farrell, but patrons can certainly find the whisk(e)y selection for which Heist is well-known.

Head brewer Eric Mitchell will be curating those guest taps, as well as managing a “Belgian-centric, sour-centric” list of 30 to 40 bottles. These won’t be your usual grocery-store fare, leaning more on the “cellerable” side. The bottle list will help them fill gaps of “what we don’t specialize in right now,” according to Mitchell.

Once they open on the 28th, expect the Taproom to be staffed Wednesday through Sunday, opening by 4 p.m. and “we don’t close till the last person leaves,” says Farrell. Expect the window of operation to expand as the customer base increases, but they’ve intimated they’re not necessarily looking for the lunchtime crowd.

How will this affect the beer releases that Heist is becoming known for?

“This is the end of the rainbow,” Farrell says of the Taproom. Folks queuing for future Heist bottle and can releases will be getting to know this room rather well. (I’ll see y’all in line for February’s barrel-aged Cataclysm III release, at the very least.)

“We can actually use some of the parking lot too,” says Farrell. “Maybe there’s our little mini-fest, where it’s a super-big beer release in the summer, and we can get our variants (on tap) out there, and corner it off, have cornhole boards, picnic tables, a grill, that kind of stuff. The sky’s the limit.”

Heist has certainly become well-known for its party-hosting ability over the years, and this Taproom is another jewel in their crown.