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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pub will open in historic Broadview Dairy

Half-joking, Patrick McPherson says one reason he’s opening a pub downtown is to siphon business and cut the wait times at his popular South Hill hangout, the Manito Tap House.

He’s getting ready to open a new gastropub, The Blackbird, in January, using the main floor of the Broadview Dairy building at 922 N. Washington St. The building had been home to Caterina Winery before it was closed. Retailer Bella Cova also operated there until this year.

Manito Tap House, at South Grand Boulevard and 30th Avenue, opened in 2011 and often has wait times when customers line up to sample its roster of more than 150 microbrews.

McPherson said he wanted to try something different after seeing Manito Tap House exceed his expectations.

He expects to open The Blackbird in January or February.

“I just felt like I needed the challenge,” said McPherson, a Tri-Cities native whose business partner is his mother, Denise Hanson.

The Broadview Dairy was built in 1910 and is on Spokane’s list of historic buildings. It’s owned by Huckleberry Bay, comprised of members of the Barbieri family who own a variety of local properties.

His first rule for the new space: “No barn wood,” McPherson said, in order to keep the interior of the new place distinct from his South Hill pub.

Instead of 100 or more brews, The Blackbird will limit its beer selection to fewer than 40 choices, he said.

It also will have two banquet rooms, creating a need for a larger kitchen to handle bigger orders for lunch meetings and evening gatherings.

McPherson hired Bargreen Ellingson to lay out the kitchen fixtures and food prep area. Austin Dickey, with Copeland Architecture & Construction, will do the overall floor plan and interior design.

The interior space will have roughly 100 seats, with another 80 outside.

Tami Kennedy, with Bargreen Ellingson, said McPherson wants The Blackbird to offer the same menu items “but in larger quantities to service catering operations.”

McPherson said The Blackbird likely will add breakfast service on top of lunch and dinner. “That might be a few months after we open before we get to breakfasts,” he said.

He said he selected the site because the dairy is a historic building, because it’s near a number of downtown hotels, and because it would be next door to a proposed multisport complex on the north side of the Spokane River adjoining Riverfront Park. That uncertain project has been discussed by city and county officials, with a possible tax levy in 2015 to seek voter approval.

Once it’s opened, The Blackbird will have about 40 employees, McPherson said. He’s likely to start operating the pub six days a week, eventually expanding to seven days.