First, Thin Man Brewery came for the Elmwood Village. Then, they came for Black Rock. Now, they have their sights set firmly on Clarence, thanks to the opening of their third brewery taproom inside Brennan’s Bowery Bar. Thin Man’s current locations reside at 492 Elmwood Avenue and 166 Chandler Street in Buffalo.
Brennan’s, which is located at 4401 Transit Road in Clarence, was the perfect chance for Thin Man to expand their growing empire into the Northtowns, thanks to a banquet space that was being vastly underutilized at the restaurant, according to Owner Mike Shatzel.
“The decision to open a third taproom was for a few reasons,” Shatzel says. “The banquet room was underutilized and costing Brennan’s money to keep. So, we threw some ideas around and a Thin Man tap room [in that space] seemed to be the best idea. Thin Man was also building Chandler and another outlet to move a lot their beer was a great option. Locally made beers from Thin Man, Flying Bison, Big Ditch and Resurgence were selling very well there already so a major influx via a taproom seemed like a no brainer.”
Opened in 1970, Brennan’s specializes in Irish pub fare as well as local food staples and over two dozen taps, including many local options, and nearly three dozen more beers available in bottles and cans. Shatzel says that Brennan’s is a great fit for a new Thin Man space, and judging from the response to the news of the opening online and via social media, he probably is right in that assumption.
“From the responses to the announcement [of the opening] on social media, I feel people are excited about the opening. Putting a taproom at one of the busiest intersections in Western New York, inside a restaurant that has been open since 1970, was a great opportunity for Thin Man to spread its reputation outside the city.”
Thin Man’s third location officially opened last month, coinciding with Zwanze Day, the annual event celebrating Brasserie-Brouwerij Cantillon held around the globe on the same day with each pouring that year’s release brewed specifically for the festivities by the Belgium-based brewery. Shatzel adds that there really was not a better opportunity to introduce the new taproom to the public at large. Thin Man’s Elmwood location has held Zwanze Day festivities for the last number of years.
“The decision to host Zwanze Day there rather than Elmwood was a chance to show the new taproom to 150-200 craft beer zealots and really spread the word that Thin Man has a new space of sorts in Williamsville/Clarence.”
For more information on Brennan’s Bowery Bar, please visit http://brennansbowery.com. For more information on Thin Man, please visit https://thinmanbrewery.com/.
Brian Campbell is a co-founder/Brand Manager of the BNBA’s enthusiast arm, Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column for Step Out Buffalo. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at buffalobeerleague@aol.com, on Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague) and Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague).