History

Around 2015, Jed and Jennifer Heggen began discussing the creation of a dream project in the heart of Downtown Missoula. Jed, an avid home brewer for many years, was ready to take his recipes commercial. Jennifer, who taught culinary science at the University of Montana and studied under the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group at Bouchon Bakery in Yountville, was excited to create a space for elevated hospitality and eventually a kitchen that represented her tastes from years of experience in the industry.

They settled on a historic space on Main St with a beautiful patio close to the river and hired Brewmaster Timmy Evon to build and run the brewery. The goal was a classy but accessible pub experience offering high-quality local craft beer. This evolved quickly to include options for guest beers representing our friends’ breweries, as well as cider, seltzer, a sneaky impressive wine list, and a legit liquor and cocktail menu to create an experience that truly has something for everyone.

During our renovation of the space, including the old Reynold’s Radiator Shop, we stumbled upon a treasure trove of artifacts that shed light on Missoula’s Red Light District, specifically the early Chinese and prostitution communities. Students and professors from the archaeology department at the University of Montana excavated sections of the property as we dug for new water and sewer lines and found hundreds of artifacts representing these early communities. These included liquor and medicine bottles, cosmetics containers, opium pipes, coins, game pieces, and beautiful Chinese pottery. Students were assigned artifacts to research and report on. The results are beautiful informational placards that we feature in the pub, framed in the original garage door sections of the shop.

We have learned so much through this process about old Missoula and the people who were here during those early years. Clearly women’s healthcare has come a long way… but that’s for another blog post.