What's Eric Eating 372 and 373
Houston brewery founder dishes on 30 years of craft beer and what's next
Brock Wagner is this week's guest.
On this week’s episode of “What’s Eric Eating,” Saint Arnold Brewing Company founder Brock Wagner joins CultureMap editor Eric Sandler to discuss the brewery’s upcoming 30th anniversary. Saint Arnold will celebrate the occasion with an all-day festival on Saturday, June 8.
Wagner begins by recalling the early days of the brewery, when he carefully scheduled tastings at area grocery stores and had to overcome people’s skepticism about craft beer. Eventually, the company moved from its original facility to its current home north of downtown. Now, Saint Arnold is such a well-established part of life in Houston that the brewery recently served as grand marshall for the annual Art Car Parade.
Naturally, that prompts Sandler to ask about what’s next for the company. Will Saint Arnold open a new facility in another part of Houston or another city entirely? What about expanding its current campus?
“Honestly, we are doing everything I ever set out to do when we started the brewery 30 years ago,” Wagner says. ”It has exceeded all of my expectations. I don’t personally feel like I have to do something more, but we also have a very talented and deep team. Everybody here is look for more challenges. I suspect at some point we do take on a new challenge, whether it’s a beer garden or production facility in another market, distilling, [or something else].”
Listen to the full interview to hear an update on Saint Arnold’s spirits program. He also offers thoughts on the current state the local craft beer scene, which has seen a wave of closings and and businesses changing hands. Sandler asks Wagner who’s doing a good job.
“I think you could point to someone like No Label in Katy that has created a big beer garden experience. There’s nothing else like them in Katy. Their distribution business has gone to pretty much nothing, but the experience of going to the brewery and beer garden, it’s a big gathering spot in Katy. That’s keeping them going,” he says.
In this week’s other episode, Sandler and co-host Felice Sloan discuss the news of the week. Their topics include: Aaron Bludorn opening Perseid, a bistro at Hotel Saint Augustine; Gold Tooth Tony’s opening a second location in Bellaire; Prego’s decision to close rather than move; and Craft Burger in Katy hosting a three-month pop-up dedicated to Sonic the Hedgehog.
In the restaurant of the week segment, Sandler and Sloan discuss their visit to MF Lobster & Ceviche, the new restaurant in the Autry Park mixed-use development from the owner of MF Sushi. After sharing their favorite dishes, they discuss how it fits in with other seafood restaurants such as Little’s Oyster Bar and Clark’s.
-----
Subscribe to "What's Eric Eating" on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Hear it Sunday at 9 am on ESPN 97.5.
