A good drinker never pours another man’s troubles.
A new watering hole coming to downtown Royal Oak will apply that age old proverb to South Michigan suds sippers.
When the North End Taproom opens its doors at 111 S. Main St. in early August, patrons will be able to serve themselves. The brew pub will have 40 taps from which guests can pour their own beer, wine and seltzer.
It’s a new concept that owners Jonathon and Katheryn Stoia were instrumental in bringing to the state. Michigan was one of five states that did not allow self-serve beer and wine taps at restaurants and bars. The Stoia couple went to Lansing to lobby for legalization of the self-dispensing machines. State legislators passed a senate bill changing the law in 2022 and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the bill into law last August, according to Oakland County newsweekly The Spinal Column.
“Basically my wife and I moved out of state for a few years, saw these concepts out of state, moved back and realized that this type of establishment didn’t really exist in Michigan,” Jonathon Stoia told What Now Detroit.
Patrons use prepaid key cards to access the self-serve taps, which can be mounted on lounges’ walls and tabletops. According to the state law, the machines will limit each customers’ prepaid order to 96 ounces with beer capped at 16 ounces, while no more than 12 ounces apiece of wine and mixed cocktails are allowed.
No straight liquors can be dispensed from the self-serve taps, Spinal Column reported. The weekly explained each customer’s key card deactivates once they reach their limit, and a staff member at the establishment has to okay them to buy more prepaid drinks.
“It was everywhere else. It was just kind of a fear from the Legislature that we would be kind of like putting a keg in the middle of the room and everybody could pour themselves,” Jonathon Stoia said. “The main benefit is that you can pay by the ounce so you can try a bunch of things without ordering a full pint. And it’s a bit more of an interactive experience. Pretty much, you can try a bunch of (beers) that you would not necessarily try normally.”
He and Katheryn are both Oakland County natives who grew up in south Michigan. Katheryn is a school teacher by trade and Jonathon is a veteran mechanical engineer. The couple moved to California’s Bay area and lived there eight years while Jonathon built and designed cars for Tesla. That’s where the couple was introduced to self-serve beer taps. When they moved back to Michigan to be close to family, they found a dearth of such businesses. The couple did some digging and discovered the taps were illegal statewide.
They decided to take action to get the law changed and their interest in the concept led them down the path toward opening their own taproom.
“We just kind of went down a rabbit hole when we got back and decided, ‘Let’s go for it,'” Jonathon Stoia explained. “It was just a blended interest of wanting to do my own thing and liking beer in general as well as an interest in technology. Just a blended interest in all bits of this industry that got us into doing this and we just went for it.”
North End Taproom will be one of Michigan’s first restaurants to employ the concept of customers pouring their own drinks.
The East Market Brewing Co. opened Lincoln Tap in Royal Oak last September, serving craft beers sourced from the Detroit-based brew company.
North End Taproom will serve small plates of American food like burgers and creative bar fare to pair with the beers, wines, ciders, kombucha, cold brews, and craft sodas. Wristbands that patrons buy at the front door with serve as their key cards and staff on hand will monitor for underage drinking.
The taproom will join downtown Royal Oak’s robust Main Street corridor, sited just south of Eleven Mile Road next door to Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters.
North End will have shuffle board and other board games along with several TV’s for sporting events. The new owners envision it as a fun backyard hangout with friends. They’ll host a soft opening with friends and family July 28 before unveiling the taproom to the public early next month.
“Basically, we just want a new social gathering place that’s a little bit different than the places around that gives people a new fun experience and a place to go hang out.”
