USA, NY: Smugtown Brewing Co. plans cleared by Henrietta Planning Board

Plans for Henrietta’s first craft brewery have cleared their last major hurdle with the town, the Democrat and Chronicle reported on August 6.

On July 18, the Henrietta Planning Board voted unanimously to give final site plan approval to Smugtown Brewing Co., a five-barrel brewhouse and full-service restaurant that will operate in Town Center Plaza (formerly Suburban Plaza), 2199 East Henrietta Road.

The business will occupy a 7,847-square-foot space at the shopping center’s south end, next to an AutoZone store.

Co-owner and master brewer Jason Fox said he’s hoping to secure building permits within the next three weeks, after which construction can start.

As for an opening date, originally, he and business partner Joel Chiarenza, also the plaza owner, were hoping for fall.

But, “It will depend on the availability of subcontractors and materials,” said Fox, who has been a fixture on the local craft brewing scene for years and currently consults for Dansville’s Battle Street Brewery.

Architectural renderings presented at the July 18 Planning Board meeting offered the first glimpse of the envisioned exterior for Smugtown Brewing, which includes a covered patio that will wrap around the end-cap location and add square footage.

Glass garage doors — two in front and one on the side — also are in the plans.

“When it’s nice out, they’ll provide that indoor/outdoor feel,” Fox said. “And they’ll open up the space quite a bit and let in a lot of light.”

Between the indoor and outdoor areas, there will be seating for around 300 people, he said.

The brewhouse will have 16 taps. Twelve will dispense beer, flagship and seasonal varieties and ones made in collaboration with other breweries.

Four will dispense cider, a good option for people who want to avoid gluten, said Fox, a Rochester native and Henrietta resident.

“And we’re planning on doing a soda, a red cream ale,” he said.

Smugtown (a nickname for Rochester coined in 1957 by writer G. Curtis Gerling) also will serve distilled liquor, wine and other beers made in New York state and sell its own brew in cans and kegs.

Initially, Fox and Chiarenza were eyeing a smaller plaza storefront for their establishment, so the thought was to keep the food menu modest — pizza, wings, pretzels, charcuterie, that sort of thing.

The space they settled on is more than twice the size, so it will accommodate a large kitchen, making a full menu of Tex-Mex style fare possible, Fox said.

“And I really love it that way,” he said. “The only thing better than really, really good beer is really, really good beer and really, really good food."

He and Chiarenza are even having a smoker custom built that can smoke 300 pounds of meat at a time.

To start, Smugtown will be open from 3 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday; closed Monday. However, those hours may be adjusted.

Fox said once the business is up and running, he will end his time consulting for Battle Street Brewery.

“This is going to be my sole focus,” he said.

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