Double Clutch Brewing Company Gears up for Fall Launch in Evanston | Eater Chicago

"After three years in the making, a suburban brewpub is at last planning to debut in October at 2121 Ashland Avenue in Evanston: Double Clutch Brewing Company will be an expansive bar, restaurant, and event space with a stage for live music and a display of rare and vintage cars. General manager Steve Milford — who has worked toward this opening since 2016 and previously held the same title at Empirical Brewery in Lincoln Square — says the 12,000-square-foot venue is designed for private events and weddings, with an industrial feel featuring exposed brick, vaulted ceilings with skylights, vintage neon signs, and numerous retractable garage doors to improve airflow and divide the space. The brewery will offer about 18 taps, roughly half devoted to the German styles favored by head brewer Scott Frank (kölsch, helles lager, and hefeweizen) alongside familiar craft options like IPAs, and will showcase an unusual 14-barrel system with fermenting and serving tanks laid on their side in view of patrons the way German tanks are arranged. Chef Patrick Wasserman’s not-yet-finalized menu plans include creative takes on bar favorites — think shepherd’s pie dumplings — alongside bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers, Buffalo wings, double cheeseburgers, meats from an on-site smoker, and a full bar and wine selection. This is the first brewery project from CCH Management, the hospitality group behind Napolita Pizzeria & Wine Bar, Pescadero Seafood & Oyster Bar, and the Dock locations." - Naomi Waxman