The sausage-and-beer restaurant in the works at 1670 West Division Street (where there was a minor disagreement about the level of involvement of Doug Sohn of Hot Doug’s) has acquired a name: Bangers & Lace—“bangers” as in the Briticism for sausage, and “lace” as in “Brussels lace,” a.k.a. “Belgian lace,” the foam that clings to a beer glass after it’s been drained.
On the beer side, Matt Eisler, one of the Bangers & Lace partners, promises 30 draft beers plus an extensive bottle and can selection, as well as an in-house cicerone. (A cicerone is to beer as a sommelier is to wine.) An antique wooden cooler adjacent to the bar will house six of the draft selections, usually seasonal beers from local breweries or brewed in-house. “We’re by no means a brewery or a brewpub, but we will be able to produce one small keg at a time,” Eisler says. Also, with 48 hours’ notice, Bangers & Lace will procure a keg off an extensive craft-beer list for parties at the back-room tables.
On the sausage side, the specifics have yet to be determined, but Eisler says the menu will tend toward cooked sausages, not necessarily served on hot dog buns. Vegetarian sausages will be available. “We are hoping to be a notch above what you would find in a typical bar menu,” Eisler says. The partners are shooting for a Labor Day opening.