I recently had the opportunity to try out one of Lakewood’s newest restaurants, The Stache. Located on the western side of Lakewood at the corner of Detroit and Cordova, it took over the former location of the Geppetto's and Johnny Malloy’s. They are graced with their own stand alone building and parking lot, which is a rarity in Lakewood. Which means if you come to eat, drink, or play trivia you wont have to fight for a scarce spot on the street.
The owners of The Stache invested a fair amount of money into the property, which is evident upon entering. Although I never visited the premises when it was Geppetto’s and Johnny Malloy’s, I can imagine it looked nothing like it does now. There is an abundance of stone around the bar and covering structural supports giving the appearance of chimneys. In addition the bar is topped in granite. The colors and decor offer a relaxed atmosphere. The few items on the walls and around give it sort of a modern rustic feel, but not overdone.
The dining area is made up of a very large U-shaped bar with high-top and picnic tables surrounding it. There are lots of TV’s including some of the largest screens I have seen in any bar/restaurant in Lakewood. Off to the side there is a very large enclosed patio with garage doors that can be opened or closed depending on the weather. The patios has plenty of seating and includes a fireplace with cushioned patio furniture. The area is separated enough from the main dining room that it would serve as a good location to hold an event or party.
It seems as though great care, along with time and money, was put into every aspect of the restaurant's appearance. Because of this it was quite a surprise upon entering the restroom to see that not only did it not receive the same care and attention, but that it did not seem to receive any attention at all. I do not mean to say they the bathroom was unclean or even unsightly, however considering the rest of the restaurant it did seem quite out of place. It appeared to have not been touched since the previous ownership. The stall doors had dents, the sinks did not seem to line up properly on the counter, the sink drain catches were speckled with rust, and the wall were covered in a bubbly plastic material in an off white color.
Again, I will say, I by no means am trying to take away from the wonderful effort put into the rest of the space, or judge the restaurant solely by its bathroom. However it was quite surprising and did not seem to fit the character or the ambiance they were aiming for with the rest of the building. My guest and I arrived at around 1 P.M. on a weekday for lunch. The place was almost completely empty except for one other person. However in the little over an hour we spent there a few people came in for carry-out orders.
When we walked in we were informed we could sit where ever we wanted and we chose to sit at a uniquely round picnic table. The waiter/bartender came over and delivered us menus and told us the specials, of which I can only remember one, a chili mac-n-cheese which sounded pretty tempting. He then took our drink orders and left us to the menu. We took our time perusing everything on the menu and chatting a bit. The waiter was attentive, but by no means impatient with us and how long it took us to order.
The menu is a single sheet front and back but offers a substantial list of enticing items. There are some creative appetizers such as their Tater Tot Nachos and Cheeseburger Egg Rolls, which we sadly did not indulge in. The rest of the menu is made up of “Flatbreads for 2”, burgers and salads. The flatbreads ranged from a traditional pizza to “The Havana” which is their take on a Cuban made with thin sliced ham, pulled pork, Swiss cheese, and fried pickles. It is noted that all of the burgers and salads can also be made into flatbreads.
The burgers however are the highlight of the menu. There are 17 delicious and creative sounding burgers on the menu, including one named for the most epic stache of all, the Tom Sellack, which consists of what is claimed to be “the thickest cut bacon in town,” cheddar cheese, and a side of a bourbon maple glaze. There is also “The Taco” with tortilla strips, avocado, nacho cheese, sour cream, and salsa, or “The Hangover” with egg, thick bacon, hashbrowns, and a slice of avocado. For those of you with large appetites there is “The Stache Burger” which contains two 8 oz. patties, a fried egg, thick bacon, onion rings, lettuce, tomato, Sriracha aioli and cheese. Conversely, if you're thinking a little more heart healthy, they offer bison burgers. If for some reason you can't seem to find what you're looking for on the burger menu they offer you the option to build your own as well.
I decided to go for the “Rodeo Burger” which included pulled pork with their house made BBQ sauce, onion rings, and cheddar cheese. Not being a fan of onion I order it without the onion rings. My guest order the “Stache Mac’ N’ Cheese” burger which consisted of the burger, what they referred to as “top secret bootlegger Mac and Cheese,” and American cheese. All burgers come with your choice of french fries, sweet potato fries and tater tots. I order the tater tots and my guest the sweet potato fries.
I’m not really sure how long it took for the food to come out, but when it did I was impressed by the amount of food there was. The burgers were quite sizeable and presented a challenge in eating logistics, and they were accompanied by quite the healthy pile of fries/tots. The burgers were cooked as ordered and came on nice buns. The “Rodeo Burger” had a healthy topping of pulled pork and was pretty good. The BBQ sauce was sweet, but not too sweet, and was just a good middle of the road sauce, nothing you would win awards with, but it balanced well in the burger. The “Stache Mac’ N’ Cheese” burger was piled high and over flowing with an abundance of delicious creamy mac n cheese that would be great on its own, and is sold as such on their side menu.
The tater tots were just your standard old tots, but fried to a nice crisp. I did get their house made hot sauce to dip them in and it was ok. It had a good heat to it, more than store bought sauces, but there was something different about it I could put my finger on. The sweet potato fries were really good, and this is coming from someone who has never really been all that impressed by sweet potato anything. There was the perfect crisp to soft ratio and they had a nice sweetness with just the right amount of cinnamon. They came with some sort of butter dipping sauce that was ok, but unnecessary as the fries were good enough on their own.
Talking to the waiter we were told that everything they use except for the fries and tots is fresh and never frozen. But he said that they are even looking in to making the sweet potato fries from scratch. Sounds like a great idea, but I hope they are able to maintain the great flavor. They get all their burgers from T.J. Butcher Block in Lakewood and all of their sauces, including their 8 dipping sauces, BBQ sauce, and their marinara sauce are made in house. On the bar side of things they have 14 taps with a wide array of beers, none of which are your typical Bud or Miller. They do also offer many more selections in bottles and cans and a have a wine selection as well. They have a full bar and offer some signature cocktails. The thing I am most excited for, but did not have the chance to try, is I hear they have adult milkshakes. I am not yet entirely sure what that entails, but is sounds good.
No bar or restaurant seems complete anymore without offering more in the way of entertainment, and The Stache is no different. They offer music on select nights and have trivia every Tuesday night. They recently announced that they will have a newsletter that you can sign up for that will give keep you abreast of their schedule of events. In the announcement it also made mention of tastings, which I look forward to hearing more about. They seem to also have some pretty good game day specials.
When it came time to pay for the check, it was delivered in an old book. People had signed the inside covers and left little notes and drawing. It was fun looking at what people put in there and I thought is was a cool a unique way to deliver the check.
In the end, I would definitely say The Stache is definitely worth a visit. The space is nice, clean and inviting, though the bathrooms could use some work they are not a deal breaker by any means.The food is good and there is something that is sure to appeal to almost anybody. The portions are quite generous and they are bound to have just the thing to quench your thirst. I look forward to going back and and trying something else. Maybe I’ll see you there!
You can check out The Stache’s Facebook Page here. Images of their menu as it appeared the day of my visit are below, If you have been to The Stache feel free to share your thoughts and experience in the comments below.
