Butcher and Barrel redeFINING dining

The long-awaited opening day of Huntingburg’s newest restaurant, Butcher and Barrel, is this Saturday.

True to its namesake, the new restaurant specializes in top-quality steaks and smoked meats, as well as an extensive list of craft cocktails, wines and a wall of whiskey.

Some may know the owners, Jay Maxey, John Patton, and John Schroeder, and their penchant for barbecue. Their lifelong friendship and love for the area brought them all back together several years ago.

“We all ended up raising our families back home in Huntingburg,” said Schroeder.

He joked that their love of cooking and eating had led them to the barbecue when they all returned to the area.

“We started getting into Kansas City BBQ Society competitions under the team name ‘Rest In Pork….Meat to Die for,'” he explained. “We really didn’t have the equipment or know exactly what we were doing, but somehow, we always ended up placing in every event. So we felt we must be doing something right.”

With kids getting older and time decreasing, the trio stopped competing, but their friendship remained. Then, a few years ago, they started discussing creating a barbecue take-out business with plans to establish a restaurant eventually.

However, the real estate market on Fourth Street helped them move directly to establishing Butcher & Barrel.

“When a couple amazing buildings on 4th Street came available, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity,” Schroeder explained, adding that though any place in Dubois County would have likely worked, 4th Street was where they wanted to be.

“You honestly couldn’t go wrong locating anywhere in our county, but there is something truly special about what’s happening on 4th street in Huntingburg,” Schroeder said. “The vision of where the city wants to go with business development, improvement in infrastructure and attracting people through events made it the perfect choice.” 

Of course, how could they pass up opening the restaurant in the nearly 100-year-old bank building at 416 Fourth Street, which is on the United States Department of Interior’s National Register of Historic Buildings? Through extensive interior remodeling, the transformed building, with 20-foot ceilings, a wall of windows, and a mezzanine overlooking 4th Street, will offer visitors an amazing experience.

While the back office attached to the building has been transformed into a modern kitchen, the front features elements reflecting the new restaurant and accents pointing to its history.

The vaults now offer private dining areas, including the large, centrally located vault RP Olinger was accidentally locked into while working late one evening. Olinger owned the bank building and used it as the offices for Olinger Construction Company. The story goes that he added the small porthole in the 20-plus-inch concrete and steel wall afterward to ensure that anyone who ever went through the experience again had enough air to hold them until someone opened the vault.

But I digress.

“The renovations have been extensive, but we are making every attempt to use as many of the historic elements as possible,” said Schroeder. “We had to take a vault door off of one of them (about 2000 lbs), but we were able to find a really cool way to repurpose it.”

However, the bank wasn’t the original location of Butcher and Barrel. That was the former Overtime building next door.

“Ha, boy have we heard a lot of rumors here, and some have been pretty creative, but most not true,” said Schroeder about the move. “Our dream was always to do this in the former Overtime building, and we had everything designed to do that.”

He explained that, while making the necessary renovations, they ran into complications, including bringing the historic building up to current fire and ADA codes.

“This itself can be a very cumbersome process,” Schroeder explained. “There simply came a point where the obstacles we were facing were not going to make it feasible to open in a reasonable time.”

They had originally planned on opening in March but had pushed that to June, with a drop-dead date of opening by November.  

“With that in mind, the owners of the Overtime building (which I am one of) couldn’t guarantee completion by that date,” Schroeder explained. “So, in late May, we had to make the shift to the bank building and after thorough evaluations, the decision was made we could make it happen. So, on June 8, we started swinging hammers and it has gone exceptionally well. The place is built like a bank, (pun intended) so a lot fewer surprises.”

Schroeder offered assurances that the group is committed to fully restoring the Overtime building. They have nearly completed the first of two construction and renovation phases, including two fully renovated units for short-term leasing. Each unit is 1250 square feet and has two bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, a full kitchen, laundry and a great room overlooking 4th Street. 

“We will also use a section of the building to start establishing our catering operations,” Schroeder added.

He explained the second phase of the updates on the Overtime building will include the outside façade. 

“Phase 3 is still undetermined, but the space will be amazing and have a full-service kitchen, a bar (with license) and seating for 80 or so,” he said. “There are a few ideas floating around, but we can take our time and find the right fit.”

With the opening of Butcher & Barrel, the group is hoping to bring something unique to the area.

“Our goal is to redefine dining. We want to give this area all the elements of fine dining—chef driven cuisine, amazing atmosphere, top notch service but without the pretentious stigma that comes with fine dining,” Schroeder said.

That means everyone on the group’s team, from the general manager to the guest experience manager and all of the front-of-house family members, is dedicated to giving visitors a personalized experience every time they come in. 

“We have a lot of great places to eat in Dubois County, and they each have their own identity. Our goal wasn’t to compete directly with those options, but to hopefully complement what already exists,” Schroeder said. “We want to be that special place you come to entertain guests, business partners/customers, celebrate special occasions or to simply have an amazing experience on an otherwise ordinary Wednesday evening.”  

Executive Chef Joshua Emmons fostered a love for cooking at the former Stocked Pot and Fat & Sassy at a young age. That love resulted in an international education as a chef and experience working with renowned chefs around the country. Along with the core menu will be aged steaks, smoked meats and seafood; Emmons and his team of trained chefs have been given the creative freedom to compose an incredible menu.

“They are professionals, they know how to create amazing flavors, so we are going to turn them loose,” said Schroeder. “Every month we plan to have fresh new features for limited times. We want people to know that every time they visit, they can either stick to their favorite or allow us to take them on a totally different culinary journey.”

And, of course, the bourbon. As a new business, it won’t necessarily have access to those hard-to-find allocated options since there are strict limitations, including providing historic sales records—something it doesn’t have yet.

“Many of those options are fun to collect and look great on the shelf, but due to their cost typically are not the top sellers,” Schroeder admitted.

The floor-to-ceiling bookcase behind the immaculate bar will offer over 150 options of bourbon, scotch and Irish whiskeys. In addition to this selection, the restaurant has hired Amanda Troutman as its “Spiritual” advisor.

“A lot of places can make great drinks, we are hoping to build more of a connection between our guests and our drink options,” said Schroeder. “Amanda builds all her craft cocktails from scratch, making her own bitters, simple syrups, and all fresh ingredients. This makes such a difference.”

The restaurant will also feature an extensive list of tequilas.

“This isn’t your father’s tequila with the worm in the bottom; they are truly great sipping options,” Schroeder said. We currently have 25-30 tequilas on our opening menu and hope to expand that.”

There is also an extensive wine list and plenty of domestic and craft beer options.

For guests, dinner entrees will range from $20 to $40, while the lunch menu will average $14 to $20. The full menu is available here.

The three friends are taking different roles in the restaurant. Maxey, with his personal chef experience, will work with the full chef team to craft the flavors behind the scenes. Patton will be the restaurant’s pit master, providing his own popular version of barbecue and inspired sides. Schroeder is over the front of the house, business growth and development, and business operations.

They are proud of the team at the restaurant.

“This was very humbling. We knew we could cook (and eat), but we found out real quick only knowing how to cook will not make you successful in the restaurant business,” Schroeder said. “So, we went out and got folks that fit our culture and could bring us their expertise to make this a success. We have assembled a tremendous team of people who love the food industry and our communities….the perfect blend.”

Butcher and Barrel opens its doors this Saturday. Moving forward, the restaurant will be open Wednesdays and Thursdays from 4:30 to 9:00 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. but the group plans on expanding those hours in the future. You can contact the restaurant at 812-684-9888 or go online to www.butcherandbarrelhuntingburg.com for a reservation.

You can also see more about Butcher and Barrel and learn more about the staff on Facebook here.

The three owners are thankful for the community they call home. They began this endeavor with two goals: to fulfill their passion for bringing people together for food, drink and friendship and to give something back to the community that has given so much to them.

“We are truly blessed to live in such a supportive collection of communities. Everyone has been so supportive of what we are doing; it has been humbling. This support has affirmed our decision,” Schroeder said. “Our hope is to give people one more reason to slow down, connect with others and treat yourself! So, come on in, put your phone down, have a cocktail or two and celebrate today because you’ll never get today again.”