As delivery options have expanded beyond pizza and Chinese food, alcohol has become the new product South Bend area residents can get brought right to their front door.
Earlier this month, area liquor store chain Blarney Stone Wine and Spirits began partnering with e-commerce company, Drizly, to allow customers to order beer, wine and liquor to be delivered by store employees to their door within an hour of purchase.
Customers are able to use the Drizly app, shop the Blarney Stoneâs inventory electronically and purchase their product directly through the e-commerce site. The app will prompt customers to verify their legal age by scanning the barcode on the back of their state driverâs license and a delivery driver will be on their way. The driver then delivers the product, but must prove the receiver is 21 or older and must, once again, scan the driverâs license for verification.
Four minutes before 4 p.m. on the second day since opening, a queue started to form at Smokinâ Fattys BBQ Joint in Elkhart. Customers were ready the minute the restaurant opened for the day.
âThereâs been a lot of buildup in the people in the community about when are we going to open,â said owner Cam Snyder. âIâm grateful. Iâve got some big shoes to fill with all the interest, and thereâs a lot of passion out there for barbecue.â
Smokinâ Fattys BBQ Joint at 3241 Interchange Drive, a barbecue restaurant with a Mexican flair, opened for business last Tuesday. Initially slated to open last September, the former Applebeeâs building has kept its familiar layout, but with added touches of classic rock and roll and its mantra of âPeace. Love. BBQâ resonating throughout the space.
Eighteen Niles restaurants and cafes have come together to host the area s first restaurant week event.Â
Through the week of March 1 through the 7, locally owned restaurants within the 49120 ZIP code will offer special menus and events at discounted prices. The structure is similar to the Downtown South Bend Restaurant Week event where each restaurant will offer its own special menu, with pricing and offerings varying depending on the restaurant.
Participating local restaurants include Apothica Teas, Niles Brewing Company, Iron Shoe Distillery, Create Bar and Grill, Front Street Pizza Pub, Veni s Sweet Shop, Wings Etc. and more.
The idea came from restaurant operators such Howard and Laura Tuthill, owners of Iron Shoe Distillery and Create Bar and Grill manager Nate Barnett, as well as community leaders with the Niles DDA Main Street and Greater Niles Chamber of Commerce in an effort to support local business that have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.Â