Wait is over for Brother John’s arrival
Seven months after first announcing plans to take over the long shuttered Wildcat House, Brother John’s Beer, Bourbon & BBQ is set to officially open on Friday, Dec. 18.
If you can’t wait until then, sneak down sometime after 7 or 8 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 17, and once the crowd inside attending an invitation-only tasting event disperses, they will let in anyone who shows up, owner John Aldecoa said.
Brother John’s will officially open at 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18, and will stay open until 1 a.m. Regular hours beginning Saturday, Dec. 19, will be from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Aldecoa and his brother/business partner David Aldecoa have been working since May on a $1 million renovation of the cavernous space at 1801 N. Stone Ave. The building had been vacant since 2012, when the popular University of Arizona hangout Wildcat House ended a 35-year run.
According to Brother John’s Facebook page, the restaurant will serve more than 150 boutique bourbons in its bourbon bar, complemented by a Bavarian-inspired beer garden. In addition to slow-smoked meats, the menu will include Southwestern-kicked Southern-style sides.
Plans include offering bourbon classes as well as tastings and food pairings to introduce Tucson to craft bourbons. For details, check out Brother John’s on Facebook at facebook.com/BrotherJohnsBBQ
Two brothers bring
BTO back to Marana
Nearly four years after pulling out of the Continental Ranch area in Marana, BTO Yogurt is coming back.
This time, the self-serve froyo shop is settling smack in the middle of the sprawling residential area in a small shopping plaza at 8171 N. Silverbell Road. Its neighbors will be a popular Pizza Hut and a popular sports bar called The Station.
Marana brothers Mihir and Hamang Patel hope to open the shop in late January in the 1,800-square-foot space that was once home to a small dance studio.
“Me and my brother wanted to start something that was not too high of a franchise cost, and we got into frozen yogurt and we kind of like the idea so we’re going to go for it,” said Mihir Patel, who is studying electrical engineering at Pima Community College.
This is the first business venture for the brothers, who moved with their family from New Jersey five years ago. Mihir Patel said his family owns a couple of convenience stores in the Tucson area: R & D Market on the south side and Sandario Discount Market in Marana.
BTO operated in a small space at 8295 N. Cortaro Road off Interstate 10 for three years before owners Dawn and Doug Carr closed the store in spring 2012 and launched a mobile version. The Carrs own the 6-year-old Tucson-based chain, which has franchises in Flagstaff, Virginia and Colorado.
The only other Tucson BTO shop is at 9040 E. Valencia Road, in the Rita Ranch area.
