Chef

Story Time:

One of the things I was looking for when I moved out to California was a mentor. I haven’t mentioned that to too many folks before now, but I did, honestly, have that exact thought. I had cooked with lots of other folks before that point, but, well, I had just never been all that impressed. I guess it was a mix of my ego, the confidence of youth, and, perhaps, bad luck...But I had never found anyone who was ‘so much better’ than me that I felt like I needed to listen all that closely to what they had to say. I have stated in other of these ‘newsletter stories’ that I was a bookworm, and that trick had allowed me the keyhole through which I could view a world of more exotic, more intellectual approaches to my chosen trade. But, to date, I had never met anyone who embodied the ideals and skills that I was seeking to absorb. I needed a chef, a real chef to bring me over that hill, to take me under their wing, to nurture my obvious talent... Instead, I met Eric Tucker. (Insert winky-face emoticon here)

I should not discount the fact that I learned much of what I know from other cooks and even chefs—John and Steve at Romeo’s, a kitschy Austin Italian joint, come to mind. John, who taught me to blacken chicken, had learned how to do it directly from Paul Prudhomme, the inventor of the technique; and Steve, who showed me the ropes on our wood fired pizza oven was a quiet, patient tutor whose first job was as an executive chef overseeing the menus of the multiple restaurants in the Comida Deluxe (Austin savvy folks will know it as the Chuy’s...) restaurant group. The consulting chefs who helped open the Brazos Brewing Company taught me how to make a hollandaise and Jason at Cenare gave me my first pair of checks and taught me how to sauté. Habib at Mother’s taught me patience and perfection as well as how to make a perfect hamburger bun (believe it or not, it involves jumping up and down...) There have been a number of generous teachers over the years who have each helped to teach me how to cook, but only one made me a chef.

When I went to San Francisco, I went to become a chef. I had some names in my pocket, not many, mostly from a (pre-internet) book of vegetarian restaurants for travelers that I had picked up at a discount book store. It was a little out of date, but accurate enough for me to know that If I wanted to work in high end vegetarian cuisine I had about three choices in the US: New York, Los Angeles, or San Francisco. My first thought had been, of course, cooking school, of which I could find only one that fit my (at that time) meat free agenda, The Natural Gourmet Cooking School in Manhattan. Exactly one weird, exhausting road trip later (it involves an ex-girlfriend, a night of debauchery in Washington D.C. on July the fourth, an awkward stay on the floor of an apartment on the Lower East Side, witnessing the death of a pedestrian in traffic and, finally, a conference at a school smaller than my parents house that involved graduates discussing jobs they had gotten that paid less than my current wage...) I decided that I was either not interested in cooking school, was too late for it, or, maybe, that I just wasn’t ready for New York.

San Francisco had more pages in the book than New York anyway. It had the Greens Restaurant, an institution whose cookbook stood as one of the most important textbooks in my self designed curriculum, and it contained a brief passage about a little place in San Rafael (just across the bridge from downtown) that sounded like my perfect choice: Milly’s Restaurant, a gourmet vegan destination... I was, at the time of planning that next step, a vegan, and as such, was obviously enamoured with the idea of finding myself settled into a cozy little gourmet vegan spot in the wealthy neighbourhood of downtown San Rafael...

I had also heard about Millennium from my boss at Mother’s Café in Austin; he knew a former employee who had moved out to San Francisco and found a sweet job waiting tables at a chic veggie place right downtown. Millennium wasn’t in my book, however, so I set the thought aside. I arrived in San Francisco by bus early one morning and checked into a youth hostel that became my home for the next 6 months(!) I quickly discovered that the cash in my pocket did not translate well from Texas dollars in to San Franciscan, and began schlepping my handmade single page, friendly, interesting (I hoped) resume to whoever would receive it. The Greens took a copy, but never called. Several other places did, but my big disappointment came after an hour long bus-ride into San Rafael, an ill fated trip that would have been quickly avoided by a high speed internet connection today—Milly’s was gone. The one that was my first choice, my great hope... just plain gone. No sign to mark its passing. I ended up at Herbivore, a brand new restaurant in the Mission district—Vegan, yes, which was nice, but mentor-less and too casual for what I had hoped to find. I was managing other cooks and writing recipes for this new job within weeks and found myself, yet again, unimpressed with what was on offer to be learned. Then, one day, wandering around my neighbourhood, I found Millennium by chance. Its sign made no mention of its vegetarian credentials, only my nagging memory of the name from my former boss’ mention drew the thought to mind—it was a scant three blocks from the youth hostel where my rucksack had found a semi-permanent home all while I had spent 3 or 4 months slogging vegan fast food two neighbourhoods away.

But there it was, ‘Millennium Organic Cuisine’, a sign I later found out had been a compromise borne out of a fear that even in downtown San Francisco, no-one would darken the door of a vegan restaurant unless lured in by less jarring words. The apologetic tone ended at the sign. Once inside, Margaret Mead’s famous quote adorned the mirror in the lobby “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” I ventured in, just for a look at first...and was amazed and hooked, even before I tasted my first bite. I knew as I read the menu that not only had I found my mecca at last, I had found my mentor. It was enough, all apologies omitted, words written by a chef for foodies, not compromised language for the unenlightened. It described a host of wild and exotic foods, ethnic preparations, traditional techniques that should not have been found on a vegan menu... Odd, eclectic, exciting stuff. In short, Eric Tucker’s food. Within the week I returned for a taste and decided then and there that Millennium was why I had moved to San Francisco and that I would not rest until I had a job. My resume was filed, my follow up calls made. I became a nuisance until, out of pity, I was sure, Eric finally called me in to help with a catering job. It was the foot in the door that I needed and for the next two or three weeks I would drop by or call and see if anything else had come up. It did, it turns out, within just weeks of that first visit; a lead line cook left, a perfect position for me, and it also turned out that I was not under-qualified (as I had feared) but, in fact, over... Most of the cooks in the Millennium kitchen came there through, of course, the externship program of the very same Natural Gourmet Cooking School in New York City that I had decided for many reasons not to attend—entry level positions are easy to fill if you have a long list of people who are willing to work for college credit... As the food was unconventional, in house training was almost essential to fill lower level positions; as such, most of those jobs were filled by most of these green and eager folks just moving up the food chain. My timing, it would seem, with a long resume filled with line cooking experience was kind of providential; an experienced line cook was not what most of these cooking school graduates were in any way qualified to replace.

Luck had repaid me it seems, in more ways than one: Millennium was, it turned out, a sister to Milly’s in San Rafael. Eric had moved to the Bay Area from New York after a stint at the Natural Gourmet to work for Milly’s; like me, he had come to that school with experience but, unlike me, he had decided that it was worth it and stayed to attend. On graduating and moving to San Rafael, he had quickly moved up through the ranks at Milly’s, apparently taking over the kitchen within a year or so. When the folks behind Milly’s decided to move into the city, Eric’s position as head chef of the new venture became a condition to the investors. Millennium went forward and Milly’s, along with its founders, eventually fell to the side, and the investors, Anne and Larry Wheat, took the reins instead. Basically, I had finally found what I had come out hoping to find.

At Millennium, I finally felt challenged. There was never an easy ride; every cook came to the table with ideas, every cook was qualified and competent and trained and every menu was an exercise in pushing a boundary. At the centre of this firestorm of creativity sat Eric Tucker, quiet, unassuming, childish at times, even prone to wild mood swings, but unquestionably the unmoving centre of it all.

Eric did not teach me to cook. Most of that I knew before I walked through the front door. He did not teach me how to boil a noodle or how to smoke a block of tofu, although, on occasion, he may have guided my technique or made a suggestion. Eric taught me how to taste. How to take all those techniques and ideas and to put them together in a bowl and to taste them. His method of teaching was ’no.’ Or, more often, ‘not quite.’ Like a good bandleader from my days in rock & roll, he would bring in his own ‘songs’ or recipes and teach them to us as needed, and then he would take our ideas and help us craft them. I remember bringing in an idea for a cactus gumbo, it needed another element, ‘a roux?’ I suggested...’how about toasted cormeal instead?’ he countered. Minutes later I had my best recipe to date with the aid of his one simple idea. He had that knack for taking a good idea and pushing it to the next level. Eric taught us to cook by never accepting something as being just ‘good enough.’ At times he drove me crazy; his repeated refusal to even attempt some of my ideas felt like censorship, but, in retrospect, it wasn’t my name on the menu. And, to be fair, I was getting more ideas past him (or more songs on the record, if you will) than any of my co-workers were. So much so, that within the year I made sous chef.

‘Chef’ is a funny word. I think of it like ‘poet’: it’s something that you cannot call yourself. Chef, technically, just means chief, or boss, in this instance, the boss of a professional kitchen. At one point, I, like most people, thought it was a name that was applied to someone who is a really good cook—I now know that although cooking is important, maybe even the most important part of a chef’s job, it is only the tip of the iceberg. A good chef must be an efficient manager of goods, ordering, receiving, organizing an inventory; a good chef must be a hard worker, setting an example for his or her crew; a good chef must be a good listener and a good teacher, Eric knew and, I’m sure, knows some critical piece of data about every person in his employ, a favourite song, a joke that always gets a smile, which word makes them cringe... A good chef must inspire people to try new things, to expand their horizons. Lots of people are chefs these days, ‘personal chefs’, ‘bbq chefs’, ‘top chefs’, ‘T.V. chefs’, and, I guess, by my rule of that title being one that only others can bestow on you, that they have as much right to that word as anyone else. But when you are like me, unschooled, never having gone through a formal apprenticeship, that word means much, much more. Eric, when he promoted me, gave me that title for the first time. In my mind, he literally made me a chef. For that I am forever grateful.

Eric is not perfect. He, if he’s reading this, is cringing; he’s one of those guys who doesn’t do well with praise. So, to balance, I’ll admit that he wasn’t always the best communicator (neither am I); kitchens are high stress places and we all drop the ball. He is the best cook I’ve ever worked with, but even he will admit to a baroque streak, a tendency to keep adding elements until the plate is within moments of being completely overwhelmed. He and I used to laugh with manic glee as we rushed to assemble these monstrous incredible structures of flavour, texture and form in time for dinner service. Eric is imperfect alright. And fun. There are a thousand stories of colourful histories we concocted to dupe the newer and/or more gullible members of the staff in order to keep ourselves entertained. But never (...well, almost never,) out of cruelty.

He’s also...too far away, and Nicole and I miss dropping in on him. There is not one time I can recall that he couldn’t make me laugh if he really wanted to. And these days, for reasons I’ll omit, there are days when I wish I could find some way to be there for him as well.

Eric had a successful run with Millennium’s first cookbook; so much so that they asked him to write another. Eric honoured me and showed his true colours by inviting me to not only help with the new book, but to also share a full writer’s credit, something he was in no way obligated to do. Eric not only gave me my dream of being a chef, he gave me my dream of being a published author as well.

In 1995, living in Austin, I still wanted to be a rock star, maybe a writer. At New Year’s I decided that I was tired of fighting for too small a niche in too competitive of a scene; I knew I loved cooking and that if I applied myself, I could make a go of it. A year and a half later, I was the sous chef at one of the top rated vegetarian restaurants in North America. Don’t ever let anyone tell you there is something that you cannot do.

Eric Tucker is not the world’s biggest celebrity chef. He is well known within a community, but I can assure you he is among the best. His palate is flawless, his instincts are perfect and by at least one measure, he is someone whose influence will last long past his already substantial career. a few years back, I was able to travel to Philadelphia to help Eric cook a dinner for that city’s prestigious ‘Book and the Cook’ cookbook festival...On hand, besides myself were 3 other folks who had worked with Eric and gone on to become chefs in our own kitchens...I can track at least a half dozen other folks, just from my ‘class’ who have gone on to lead kitchens, become personal chefs, open catering companies, or even to help revolutionize the industry with ‘dinner club’ style moveable restaurants. Sean Baker, a sous chef from the year after I left went on to open ‘Gather’ in Berkeley and in 2010 was named Esquire Magazine’s ‘Chef of the Year.’ And even here in Ottawa, miles away from the left coast, another of Eric’s protégé’s, Caroline Ishii of Zen Kitchen, has been garnering a number of rave reviews...Eric doesn’t just make great food, he makes great cooks...

Eric Tucker came from New Jersey; he went out to San Francisco in 1992, a few years before I got there, and within a year and half he was the chef at the restaurant where he had come to train. This year, the restaurant that he helped to start and still holds on course with his steady hand is 17 years old. I know now that in restaurant years that is the equivalent of about one million. I went out to San Francisco to find a mentor, instead I found a chef, my chef, and I found a friend. Thanks, Eric.

branch newsletter summer 2011

Greetings Summer Folk!

Well, the solstice is coming, the peak, the longest day, it is time to be outdoors, to be reveling in the full long light of the sun! Our patio is here for you, we have cast off under sail (literally...) for the summer season...For those that have not been out recently, last fall, the old wall had to come down—we all loved the old patio, but it’s state of disrepair was beyond our abilities to fix. We decided, however, that if we had to do it, that we would go all the way...Tom Lillico, John Brewer, Heather Cranek and Denise and Steve Busby (as well as many others) have all stepped up over the last few months with a bit here and a bit there and we have managed to create a new space that is not only larger (licensed for up to 40 people!) but airier (is that a word?), brighter, and more comfortable than ever—incorporating rough cedar posts, burlap, a recycled sail, shiny tables and hanging baskets of edible flowers into a cozy nook far from the cares of Kemptville or, for that matter, the world. And don’t worry, the grapevine survived and looks healthier than ever!

So, besides lounging on the patio, how shall we spend this summer? Well, if you’re around here you’ll have lots of choices...We’ve already had a pile of amazing music, with a pile more on the way—some memorable moments have included a sold out night with Ottawa’s favourite daughter, Lynn Miles (featuring Keith Glass), The Dandelion Festival, shows with Oh My Darling, Petunia, Greg Kelly, and a full house for a Bob Dylan birthday tribute night; some things coming up include a Sunday afternoon with Dave Martel (this Sunday!), the return of Folk Music Award winner Ariana Gillis (Thursday, June 30) and a personal favourite, Lynne Hanson (June 25)...We’ve also got Ontario Craft Beer week next week with a ‘six beers in three courses’ theme menu running all week long, designed to celebrate the diverse and exciting beer culture of the Ottawa Valley (3 course menu starts next Tuesday, come kick it off with a BBQ on the patio this Sunday afternoon!)

Art on the walls:

This month we are proud to feature work from ArtScene, the groovy collective from Spencerville: Although many know about events such as the Spencerville Fair, Veteran’s Memorial Highland Games, and more recently the Country Christmas Remembered festival, they may be pleasantly surprised to see how a commercial heart is also beating in the village of Spencerville.
Highway 416, while bypassing the village, makes it very reachable by anyone seeking to get off the beaten track. The village’s many heritage stone buildings tell a story of a community that grew up alongside a grist mill, the recently restored Spencerville Mill, which traces its roots back to the mid 1800’s. For six years the Mill has hosted a fine art show and sale; it is this core group of local artists and entrepreneurs who took it one step further...
A committed group of artists living in and around the scenic village of Spencerville recently combined their efforts and invested in a lifelong dream to open a Gallery they call ArtScene Spencerville. The founding artists, who have shown together annually at the nearby, historic Spencerville Mill, have a wealth of experience and involvement in this community. They wanted to not only have a place to showcase their own work on a continuing basis, but also to enrich the artistic awareness of this historic hamlet. The old Spencerville Hotel, which has been converted to apartments and retail space, is the location for this lively group. The open space is an ideal setting for the works of painters, photographers, potters, jewellers and a sculptor. Located in the centre of the village, the historic building has always attracted the interest of locals as well as travelers en route to the Nation’s Capital.

July Art:

Marguerite Boyer and her students:

During the long winter hours this past year, a group of artists, ranging from beginners to experts have been meeting once a week to paint under the tutelage of local artist, Marguerite Boyer. The studio time offers individuals an opportunity to discuss their paintings, to receive encouragement and to share their knowledge. For the first time ever, for some of them, they will be displaying their work, at the branch restaurant. They would like to thank the owners for giving them this opportunity. Please feel free to drop in and view their work.


June Music:

Starting, well, 2 Fridays ago, Frank Western, aka, ‘the man in the coonskin cap in a pigpen’, as he was so eloquently described by Dr. Robert Zimmerman in his 1968 classic, Subhonourarium Homesicle Blueperiods #12 and 35, along with his blushing bride with the banjo on her knee, the fabulous Miss Birdie Whyte, began what can only be described as an Irregular Friday Showcase, Talent Show and Wild West Revue (and Occasional Snake Oil Demonstration.) Irregular, as, it would seem, not only does it not occur every Friday, it can also be said that there is nothing regular about either the ringleader, Mr. Western, or his sidekick, Ms. Whyte. The music, however, is above reproach. Come see for yourself this Friday (June 17th) as well as on some other (...irregularly scheduled, naturally,) Fridays yet to come. Saturday features a couple of road weary veterans, John Allaire is Ottawa based and has more than a few awards and accolades under his belt after 20+ years touring and gracing stages across Canada; his co-hort in this endeavor is Bill Toms, who for over a decade played guitar in what has been described as Bruce Springsteen’s bar band, the Houserockers. With about a dozen album credits (including one produced by the Boss himself,) with them, with others and even just on his own, Bill certainly can be called a road warrior in the truest sense of the word...in short, these two gentlemen have certainly earned the label chosen for this brief tour: “Hearts of Steel,” come check it out this Saturday, June 18, 9pm, $5.

Sunday the 19th heralds the return of Canada’s closest reply to the question ‘Sufjan Stevens?’ With the words, ‘Dave Martel.’ Which is to say, indie, pop, performance, talent, skill, harmony, quality, lyricism, stage presence...all bundled together in a package, set to go, and displayed for your approval. For just $8 you get to see this world class performer, his four piece band and an opening set with Kemptville’s very own Ben and Heather Mullin, two people who seem, (to us at least,) to sing, speak and even think in perfect harmony and pitch. Come early for BBQ on the patio, paired with Kemptville’s best selection of craft brewed local beer in honour of Ontario’s official Craft Beer week. Music starts at 4pm, there will be an $8 cover for the music.
Friday June 24th is another Frank and Birdie show, followed by Ms. Lynne Hanson on June 25th. Lynne is a songwriter with a knack for a hook that keeps on reeling you in, day after day, month after month and even year after year...I’ve spent years listening to each of her three outstanding records and am still astonished to find great new bits and deeper depths with every listen. Highly recommended. This duo show (Saturday, June 25th) will be $8 and will start at 9pm.

If you missed 2009 Canadian Folk Music award winner Ariana Gillis’ last show at the branch, ask anyone who was there if it was worth seeing. I’ve heard ‘That’s the best show I’ve ever seen in this room,’ I’ve heard, ‘I can’t believe I just saw that in Kemptville,’ and, honestly, I’ve even said some fairly superlative things about it myself. But don’t take my word for it; Ariana is a star on the rise, she is young, incredibly talented, beautiful, and someday soon you’ll be saying, ‘I can’t believe I had a chance to see her at the branch...’ just don’t follow it with ‘...I wish I had...’ Thursday (...technically a Friday, since you’ll be off work on Friday...) June 30th, $10.

We are closed on Canada Day, but Saturday July 2nd we’ll be open and ready to rock with Brock Zeman, Ottawa’s hardest working country rocker. If you like barroom dust, tales of broken women and burned out honky tonk wranglers, songs about whiskey, life and a life of whiskey, then you’ll already know Brock Zeman, he’s that guy, two stools down, telling you the best story you’ve ever heard. Except this time, he’s got a guitar...9pm, $5.

Tuesday July 5th is my 40th birthday. You can do what you like on those round number birthdays, or so I’ve heard. Turns out Ringo Starr, the drummer and lead comedy actor of my favourite band (you know, the Bee-at-uls...) turns 71 just 2 days later. What do I want? I want to celebrate my 40 years so far by celebrating not only Ringo’s but all four Fabs legacy...and I want to do it singing with a bunch of my best friends...I have issued a ‘Fab 4 40th’ challenge to local music types, asking them to pay tribute to the Beatles with either a song for each Beatle or a medley, parody or even just a passing nod...We will start early and stay late and we will have fun. I hope you’ll all help me kick off my next decade in style! Tuesday, July 5th, 6pm or so...no cover...

Huntley Slim and the Suburban Cowboys are back on July 9th with their brand of what I call ‘Newgrass’ or ‘Punk Pickin’ or maybe even just ‘Twang’ music...these youngsters play original music on bluegrass instruments, they play fast and they play well...the stops that they have made at the branch in the past have always sent home lots of folks with grinning faces...that could be you! 9pm, $5...July 16th.

The week of July 10-16 is music city at the branch...the 10th is my Loose and Juicy acoustic jam, always a good reason to dust off your bazoukis, washboards, mouth-harps and castanets; Tuesday brings us the Alex Bien band from Toronto, an indie folk four piece that will feature acoustic solo sets from 2 other members (7pm, free!)...Thursday brings Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk (and Reeves) on their Cross Canada ‘Summer of Colour’ tour...Frank and Birdie perform that Friday and on Saturday...Well, the folks from River City Junction stopped in for cups of coffee and a Rubber Boots Buffet a couple of weeks back and after about 20 minutes we’d made new friends, then, after a listen online to their jammin’ hot brand of Classic Rockin’ Blues, we realized that we may have found the new fix for all you Roosterman addicts out there...Come on in Saturday, July 16 and see for yourself! 9pm, $5. Quite a week! I’ll buy a beer for anyone who makes it out to all 4 shows!

Frank and Birdie will be back the next Friday (July 22) and one of the coolest indie-roots songsmiths we’ve ever had at the branch will be back that Saturday...You may have heard him on the last trip through, when he joined local favourite John Carroll for a night of great tunes, or maybe even from the spins his buzzy new record has gotten on CBC Radio’s ‘the Vinyl Café’; Toronto’s Ron Leary, the man with the magnificent chops, sings ‘songs of love, devotion, poverty, revolution, murder and numerous odes to the highway life...’. Ron Leary (with his folk trio) plays July 23rd at 9pm, $5

July wraps up with awesome tunes by a couple of Ottawa’s brightest rising stars...they’ve been performing as Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons in ‘Grievous Angel’ a theatrical music show that has garnered rave reviews from near and far, but on Saturday, June 30th, they will be showing you that they are not just two folks who can do justice to a legend...they are, in fact, at the moment of birthing a legend of their own. Anders Drerup was the lead guitarist, a vocalist and one of the songwriters for branch favourites Silver Creek before heading out on his own, and Kelly Prescott is warming her way into all of our hearts with her catchy, groovy rock n’ rootsy country blues album that has been spinning constantly on the trusty old branch stereo ever since we got our copy...Saturday, July 30th, $8.

August, I may as well warn you, is coming on strong as well; with a Jerry Garcia Birthday Tribute, as well as confirmed dates with Trevor Alguire, Brandon Agnew, Christo Graham and Alex Leggett (see below for dates) and with more names yet to come...I guess what I’m sayin’ is stick around; it just keeps getting better!

June Calendar:
Friday 17 ~ Frank Western and Birdie Whyte ...7pm, free! Now most Fridays!
Saturday 18 ~ John Allaire and Bill Toms (Springsteen produced)...9pm, $5
Sunday 19 ~ Dave Martel... 4pm, $8 Ben and Heather Mullin opening...
Sunday 19-Saturday 24 ~ Ontario Craft Beer Week, Try our "six beers in three courses" tasting menu with a BBQ kickoff this Sunday for Father's Day featuring live music from Dave Martel (BBQ is served from 2pm, music starts at 4pm, $8 cover...)
Friday 24 ~ Frank Western and Birdie Whyte ...7pm, free!
Saturday 25 ~ Lynne Hanson, as good as it gets!...9pm, $8
Sunday 26 ~ Open Stage 3-6pm
Thursday 30 ~ Ariana Gillis multiple folk music award winner...9pm, $10

July Calendar:
Friday 1 ~ CLOSED for firecrackers, bbq and cold cheap beer day...
Saturday 2 ~ Brock Zeman Red Dirt Country Rockin'...9pm, $5
Tuesday 5 ~ Chef Bruce (40) and Ringo's (71) Birthday Jam featuring songs of the Beatles--A 'Fab Four Fortieth Birthday' 6pm, free! Everyone is welcome, call ahead to sign up to play...also featuring wood fired Texas bbq on the patio!
Saturday 9 ~ Huntley Slim 'Newgrass'...9pm, $5
Sunday 10 ~ Chef Bruce's Loose and Juicy Acoustic Jam ...3-6pm
Tuesday 12 ~ Alex Bien Band Toronto folk-rocksters ...7pm, free!
Thursday 14 ~ Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk and Reeves ...7pm, free!
Friday 15 ~ Frank Western and Birdie Whyte ...7pm, free!
Saturday 16 ~ River City Junction Blues and Classic Rock...9pm, $5
Friday 22 ~ Frank Western and Birdie Whyte ...7pm, free!
Saturday 23 ~ Ron Leary ...9pm, $5
Saturday 30 ~ Kelly Prescott and Anders Drerup (aka Gram and Emmylou of Grevious Angel, appearing here as...themselves!) 9pm, $8
Sunday 31 ~ closed... for... something...maintenance?

August Calendar:
Tuesday 2 ~ Jerry Garcia Birthday Tribute ...Deadheads Unite! ...7pm
Saturday 6 ~ Trevor Alguire, he's back! ...9pm, $10
Saturday 13 ~ Brandon Agnew ...9pm, $5
Thursday 18 ~ Christo Graham, CD Release Party! ...9pm, $5
Saturday 20 ~ Alex Leggett ...9pm, $5