We reported this past summer that the team behind San Diego's Regal Beagle and other area restaurants had taken over the East Village space which previously housed now-defunct Monkey Paw Pub & Brewery for the opening of a new bar & eatery. Bottle Rocket opens next week and will offer an elevated tavern menu with a devotion to local craft beer and spirits.
Coronado Brewing acquired the Monkey Paw brand in summer 2017 and did little to improve the East Village brewpub. In April 2018, Monkey Paw's founder Scot Blair - who also owns Hamilton’s Tavern, South Park Brewing Company and was still a stakeholder in the Monkey Paw brand - filed a lawsuit against Monkey Paw alleging breach of contract and associated claims seeking $33,534 plus interest as part of a promissory note that was dated September 1, 2017. News broke in May 2018 that Coronado Brewing Company had listed Monkey Paw Brewing for sale after less than a year of ownership due to the associated litigation. Monkey Paw Pub & Brewery ultimately closed for business last summer.
In came Matthew Guilbert, Logan Henry, Jesse Melton, Adrian Beacock, and Elias Delgado, most of which are alumni of the umbrella of local area bars that include The Regal Beagle in Middletown, The Regal Seagull in Encinitas and Sidecar Bar in Bay Park. The former Monkey Paw space received an interior redesign to convert it into Bottle Rocket, a neighborhood gastropub concept with an approachable tavern fare menu. Expect dishes like smash burgers, a hot chicken sandwich, wings, house fried pickles, chicken satay, a pair of salads, and chicken, beef, and Impossible vegan cheesesteaks. There will also be a full bar with unpretentious cocktails and 30 taps, with five devoted to wine, one for hard kombucha, a couple hard ciders, one macro beer and the rest will be rotating craft brews. The back space previously devoted to Monkey Paw's brewery operations will be converted into a game room in the near future.
Bottle Rocket is located at 805 16th Street will open on Monday, November 25, from 11:30am to midnight.
Bottle Rocket is located at 805 16th Street will open on Monday, November 25, from 11:30am to midnight.
