How to Make Money Running a Gas Station: Put a Speakeasy in the Back - WSJ
People cross city and state lines to wait a couple of hours for a drink at the Farmer’s Cellar.
They order $18 mezcal cocktails infused with shiitake mushrooms, red onion and jalapeño herb oil. Between rounds, they might sample crispy pork belly or a $45 espresso-dusted ribeye.
But what really separates the Lakeville, Minn., eatery from other hot spots is the location: inside an Amoco station.
“You go into the gas station, as weird as it sounds, look to the left and there’ll be like a soda pop cooler. That’s the door,” said Stephanie Manley, a Farmer’s Cellar regular. “Once you get in there, it’s like you’re in a whole different world.”
The room, which holds around 70 people, is an intimate setting with burning candles and chandeliers. Velvet wingback chairs flank a fireplace and a stained-glass window obscures the parking lot outside. It’s a disorienting sight for newcomers who have just passed gas pumps and rows of soda and Slim Jims and tugged on various cooler doors in search of the secret handle.
(snip)
Speakeasies long ago outlived their purpose as clandestine sellers of alcohol, but their appeal has endured. There are bars tucked behind businesses in cities across the country. Customers are drawn, at least in part, to the idea of a place accessible only to those in the know.
More..
https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/food-cooking/speakeasy-gas-station-bar-restaurant-minnesota-5542ff51?st=eriTse&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
free
(Nice photos)
= new reply since forum marked as read
