Bye Bye Waterloo Brewing Company

H

Hornius Emeritus

2,500+ Posts
Yes, the place that I spent so much time in over the years is now gone. Bulldozed down. The Gingerman is next and may go today or tomorrow.

It's a sad day in Austin. But I guess we need more Condos downtown.

I will hoist a Full Moon Pale Rye in malty tribute later on this afternoon.
 
Very sad. But then, DINKs in their late 40s from the bay area want to call vibrant downtown Austin home. We should feel privileged to make way for them, that we may touch the hem of their garments as we withdraw.
 
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wait, wait, wait. wtf? i know waterloo has been knocked down for 1-2 months but gingerman is getting dozed? i was there a couple weeks ago during sxsw and it seemed like business as usual.
 
I was there the first day it was open, and the last day it closed.
I have to admit I teared up a bit as I walked down the stairs for the last time. It was a vibrant happy place that made kick *** beer.
 
Captain Ed,

Okay ... I just found out the true poop re: the Gingerman.

It turns out I was talking out my ***. The Gingerman's lease runs out in April, 2009. After that they will move to another location, hopefully downtown.

That's what I get for listening to my friends. They were saying it's going away THIS WEEK.
 
It's sad to see some of the things happening to downtown. I support trying to make it a liveable place for as many as possible. We can't continue to build houses out in Burnet and expect people to drive in from all over. But at the same time, there doesn't seem to be any real effort to keep a true Austin only feel down there.
 
We got another year of the Gingerman, but there is still some chance they will try to save the building (~100 years old). They have already agreed to save the front facade and may try to incorporate some of the rest of the building. The Gable's initial proposal for the sight was rejected by the council a few weeks ago.
 
Alright, well you can walk into a movie theater and buy a beer. And, I don't mean just like a paper cup, I'm talking about a glass of beer. And, in Paris, you can buy a beer in McDonald's. You know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Paris?
 
Mac- you are 100% correct, but think about it this way: what made Austin so truly special was our cheap good times.
We had the best cheap good time in the world, the best cheap good time ever. If you liked cheap good times, Austin, from the late 1960's until about the mid 90s or so, was your kind of town like none other.

The problem is that there's no money in the cheap good time, and people are daily arriving with money to spend, so it's over.
 
That's one way to look at it. I did know where a lot of free happy hour spreads were. Or at least who had beer nuts and pretzels.
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The effort I am referring to is the fact that a majority of the businesses in the 2nd st area are locally owned. My not be much but it's more than nothing.

but I get your point Mac
 
I know two local businesses, gomi and lucky soles, in the 2nd st area went under/moved due in large part to hostile management. the chronicle did a story on it a few months ago. i would say less than half are locally owned.

and even though some high end boutique or jewelry store is locally owned, i don't think that it necessarily means it has an austin feel, although it's better than nothing.

but with austin growing and more money coming into the town, i think the cheap good times are getting harder to find. like others have said, "there ain't no money in cheap good times."
 
I spent a lot of time on the 2nd floor of Waterloo, even on the day it closed.

I loved that place.

Cheap food, great beer, central, great roof, pool, and outstanding bartenders and servers.
 
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When I would go to Waterloo, and couldn't make up my mind what I wanted to drink I'd get their sampler...sometimes I'd just do it for a little variety. One more great place bites the dust...thanks for the memories.









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just to be clear, we all know that Waterloo Brewing Company has been closed down for many years.

Now the news that the Showdown is closing at the end of May is of more immediate concern.
 
When you don't live in Austin like many of us and come back for a visit it becomes so obvious how much Austin has changed not only from the business side but the people as well. It was inevitable. Austin is quickly becoming a transient city like Dallas or Houston.
 
Those of you complaining about central Austin not staying 'Austin' should put your money where your mouth is and buy a $2 million chunk of property and open a bar that does $15K on a really good night, before any expenses, $1K on a bad one...
 
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