Staymaker

First time we stopped in last fall, it was so packed and wait was so long, we left. Second time, on a whim we stopped in at lunch time and sat at the bar, where the service was excellent and friendly and the mussels were outrageously good with grilled bread to mop up the sauce. Unusual combination with apple and basil. Delightful. Third time, service fine, but I need to try some more of the menu. BF and I split a burger and they don’t do shares from the kitchen, according to the menu, so he was hoping a knife would be brought. We used one of our butter knives, but he’s a stickler for service and that lack of a sharp knife after mentioning we’d be splitting the burger bugged him. Waitress brought an extra plate, and I’d have been willing to ferry my small half (it’s a dainty burger) to one of the plates already on the table, so that gave half a point back. Fries — meh. The trout spread was quite tasty and not too salty (one of my peeves — the overuse of industrial salt in restaurants), but there was not enough toasts to go with it and a crisp cracker of some variety would be a better match for it. I’d take a rye krisp, but that’s because if white bread was eradicated from the planet, I’d be one of the first to cheer, although, grilled, the white toasts do go awfully well with the mussels (I want my cake and eat it, too)…the drinks are great and they should be. Try a rusty nail, a classic. The space is beautiful, although the lighting is a bit harsh. A hip and strangely cozy (it’s a big place) addition to the local scene.

Great food and service! I had the bison burger with fries, both were delicious. Our server was adorable, provided great service and answered our questions about history of building and business. The owner Bill stopped by our table to see how things were, he was friendly and interesting to talk to. Can’t wait to go back and try the pizza which looked delicious!

Love the food and drinks! Don’t sit at the bar. Terrible service. Place wasn’t even busy on New Year’s Eve at 6pm with three girls behind the bar. When our delicious food came, all three bartenders were too busy talking to each other to notice or care that we didn’t have plates, napkins or silverware. Our drinks were all empty. We ate with our fingers and 20 min later no one had checked on us so we asked for the bill and left.

Had a few cocktails at the bar, each was better than the next. Alyssa makes a killer Staymaker and the Last Roast is not to be missed.
The new Journeyman restaurant, Staymaker, is a one of a kind dining experience. Set in the old Featherbone Factory, the ambiance is naturally industrious. From the reclaimed wooden floors to the exposed junction boxes, everything about this place is eye catching — the food and drinks are just as impressive — you get to choose your pizza crust from Journeyman’s bourbon and rye mash bills, truly a unique way to see whiskey take on an edible form.

Not impressed. Walked in and waited at an empty hostess stand that had a sign that said to wait for assistance. No one assisted so we helped ourselves to seats at the bar. 10 minutes later we finally had our drink order taken. 3 bartenders working and not even a full bar and it took that long. Drink was $ 10 and nothing special. We ordered food and the portions were extremely skimpy. $ 50 later and we made a second dinner at home because we were still hungry. Probably won’t come back. We are locals so we are not hip to falling into the Tourist traps when we know other local businesses with the same concept and much better value.

We love Journeyman so we were very excited to hear about Staymaker and their recent opening! We went for our anniversary and both left disappointed and hungry with almost a $ 100 tab. We will go back to try some other things on the menu, but hopefully their service will improve and the food will be warm next time. There are always kinks to opening a new restaurant and they do things so well at Journeyman that we hope things will smooth out.
The space alone is so gorgeous that even if we never ate here again we would go back for the ambiance and a cocktail.

We showed up for their first full night of service. People were friendly and it was refreshing to see the owner talking to everyone and helping out around the bar and restaurant. All around great experience !