Nevin's Owners Plan New Self-Serve Taproom Inside Pete Miller's

EVANSTON, IL — Evanston may have just lost a longtime Irish bar, but it will be gaining its first foray into the self-serve craft beer experience. The owners of Tommy Nevin's Pub plan to open up a new casual taproom and lounge inside Pete Miller's Steakhouse across the street.

The 2,000-square-foot north dining room of Pete Miller's will house a taproom with about 100 seats, Ed Carrella, CEO of Sonos Hospitality, told Patch. That portion of the restaurant is currently used to hold private events.

“Nothing's going to be like Tommy Nevin’s, it’s really hard to replicate that," Carrella said. "I don’t want to dilute what Tommy Nevin’s was. That’s why the idea of the new concept.”

In a self-service bar, customers turn over an ID and a form of payment before sampling (usually) a wider variety of beverages. Interested patrons and use tablets to review details of the selection and swipe electronic cards to activate the taps.

Among the seasonal selection of 30 beers set to be on tap at any given time in the as-yet-unnamed lounge will be at least four produced by the brewery formerly known as Nevin's — "Midnight Pig" is the newly re-branded name of its beers.

The new name is inspired prohibition-era slang.

"A 'midnight pig' was the vessel they'd use to carry the hooch from back and forth," Carrella said.

He said the brewery's Plainfield facility will be unchanged by rebranding, but the Nevin's name is no more.

“I don’t want to say it’s going to be like a speakeasy, but it’s going to be a cool lounge-like, casual atmosphere with a gastropub sort of feel to it,” offering a less formal environment than the rest of Pete Miller's General Manager T. J. Bachmeyer said.

Nevin's closed for good Nov. 30, two weeks after apparent Northwestern Undergraduate students looted the bar, stripping its walls and swiping various memorabilia.

Renovations to create the new self-serve taproom inside Pete Miller's are set to take place in the first quarter of 2018.

"Just a little minor facelift, and we'll be off to the races," Bachmeyer said.

_{Top photo: North dining room of Pete Miller's Steak House, Evanston before its conversion to a self-serve taproom | Courtesy Sonos Hospitality}