A New American Town - Bentonville, Arkansas

Townie Burgers, Bevvies, & Bentonville Roots

• Visit Bentonville • Season 7 • Episode 29

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We sit down with Luke Wetzel and Mollie Mullis to share how bonding over pizza led to the newest Bentonville hotspot, Townie Burgers & Bevvies. Hear about their roots and Luke's training under Alice Waters; and the influence on local, farm-to-table and seasonal sourcing. Get the scoop on your new favorite burger joint, and so much more--there's a huge patio, TVs, beer, cocktails, private room, inclusive menu for all diets and a welcoming spirt. "Come a stranger, leave a townie"! 

Follow at townieburgers.com and on Instagram at TownieBurgersandBevvies.

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A New American Town is here to help you plan your trip to Bentonville, Arkansas. From guides, events, and restaurant highlights. Find all this and more at visitbentonville.com and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn.

You can listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, CastBox, Podcast Casts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Podcast Addict.

Beth Bobbitt:

This is a new American Town. I'm your host, Beth Bobbitt, and today we get a sneak peek of the newest dining spot in Bentonville. Luke Wetzel and Mollie Mollis, the owners of Townie Burgers and Bevvies. Welcome back to the podcast.

Mollie Mullis:

Thank you. Yes, thanks for having us.

Beth Bobbitt:

So our listeners probably know you, or at least they know your food. Can you talk to us a little bit about your footprint i n Bentonville and sort of your culinary journeys?

Mollie Mullis:

You want to start?

Luke Wetzel:

Sure, I'll start. Um I moved back to Northwest Arkansas in 2012. I was working out in California and um took the opportunity to move back and help open the hive at 21C. Worked there for a few years. That's where I met Mollie over a dis uh discussion about one of our favorite pizzas we find in Boulder, Colorado at Pizzeria Locale.

Beth Bobbitt:

Yep. Bonded over pizza. Yeah, totally.

Luke Wetzel:

Um fast forward a couple years, um, Mollie came along and helped me open Oven and Tap in 2015. We just celebrated 10 years of Oven and Tap.

Speaker:

Yeah. It's awesome.

Luke Wetzel:

And then we've gone on to open Superfine Sweet Shop and now Townie Burgers and Bevvies together.

Beth Bobbitt:

Well, congratulations.

Luke Wetzel:

Thank you.

Beth Bobbitt:

Mollie, what about you?

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah, I mean, Luke kind of summed it up. Um prior to opening Oven and Tap, I worked at the Hive. Um Luke and I met there. He was my he was actually my boss. And I kind of learned everything I know about food from him and really loved his food philosophy and the way he presented things on a plate and just knew that I needed to connect with that and stay the course. So I basically forced myself into oven and tap. He had no option other than to let me come along. I think it worked out for both of you. Yeah. And like Luke said, so we started oven and tap, and then during the pandemic, we were like, who doesn't need a bright and sunny ice cream shop? So we opened Superfine. It's yellow and pink and the happiest place on earth. And then three weeks ago we opened Townie.

Beth Bobbitt:

Luke, I've heard you studied under Alice Waters. What a dream, first of all. She's amazing. Can you talk about how that's shaped your story and your path and a little bit for listeners that may not be familiar with her, her concepts and philosophies?

Luke Wetzel:

Sure. So she really pioneered the idea behind local and seasonal cooking. And she did this 50 years ago, which I think is incredible. And when I got to Chez Panisse around 2006 and 2007, um, I think it was close to about 40 year, it's 40-year mark there. And the economy around farmers markets and supporting local and having that dictate your menu was in full force, and I was just blown away by that. I couldn't get enough of it. So I stuck there cooking for several years before moving back to Arkansas. And I really thought that was the most interesting piece of cooking now to me. And that's where I you know first experienced cooking on a wood fired oven. And it was there that I made up my mind that I would have one in a restaurant one day, hence oven and tap. Um, but yeah, it is just gone, you know, the lessons from Shape and East go on and on and on. And to this day, in our in our restaurants, we constant you know, constantly bring up uh Alice's philosophy and the way is uh that I learned to cook there. And I think it's gone on to make an impact in our staff and our customers, but also helped foster growing the local economy here with local producers and farmers because there's a ton. Right. And I still think we have a long way to go to really integrate those into to restaurants the way that Alice did. And so that's our goal.

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah. I think Luke brought a unique perspective along with Matt McClure at the Hive um to Northwest Arkansas. Not a lot of people were doing, you know, what we call now farm to table cuisine in the area. And they kind of pioneered that. And then we took that philosophy that Luke learned under Alice and tried to embed that as much as we possibly could into Oven and Tap.

Speaker:

Yeah.

Mollie Mullis:

So it's she definitely has a legacy and it continues to live on here.

Beth Bobbitt:

Yeah. That's amazing. And who knows how many restaurants or individuals you've influenced, you know, with your approach. So thank you. Let's talk a little bit about the inspiration behind Townie. How did it get its name?

Luke Wetzel:

It was one of those tough questions. Like great idea, you know, we love the way it sounds and we love saying it. And we've had great response from friends and family, like, oh my gosh, we love the name. And you know, it's really meant to be your neighborhood bar and grill. And uh, you know, it's all it's located in Bentonville, which is this small town in big city shoes. And so we just kind of wanted to reference the people that that um make the town great.

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah. Yeah. I think about the early days Oven & Tap, and we and we still do, but then we had this like band of regulars that I feel like we always kind of referred to like the townies. They actually one of them, a guy named Jack, is coming this week from New York City to come to Towny, which is really impressive. Full circle. Yeah, truly full circle. But um, our our tagline is come a stranger, leave a towny. So just trying to really um promote that like community feel that Bitonville has that people I think just really latch on to and love about this community and place.

Beth Bobbitt:

It's really grounding and shows your focus on roots. And so I I love that.

Luke Wetzel:

How does it feel that from roots? That's good.

Beth Bobbitt:

How does it fit into you touched on it a little bit, but the current culinary scene and what role do you think new restaurants have in shaping the city's identity?

Luke Wetzel:

Well, this is a bustling restaurant scene that we have in Bentonville and really northwest Arkansas. And we love every restaurant around us. We have lots of friends um at the in the restaurant business. And you know, our approach is just celebrating these you know familiar kind of American classic concepts, but we're adding that touch of seasonality and um procuring local ingredients and uh you know, again, applying you know, a little bit of a you know, I would say chef's touch, I was like chef, yeah, chef's kiss, but you know, just trying to increase the experience with those types of foods and then also our service. So casual concepts with you know a slightly elevated experience. And so we had pizza, then we rolled into ice cream because those two go together. And then next in line, we thought burgers would be a great idea, and here we are with Townie.

Mollie Mullis:

Well, and Bentonville is a very transient town. There are a lot of people coming in and out. So I think the culinary scene is an opportunity to show truly our identity. Yeah. And there's so many wonderful options here in Bentonville and Northwest Arkansas as a whole. And Luke and I were kind of looking around and saw an opportunity for like a, you know, a watering hole of, you know, burgers, beers, community, football, lots of TVs. Um, you know, a place for you to come and enjoy. I mean, you can come once a month, you can come every day, we'd love to see you every day. Um, but that's, you know, I think that's what restaurants do to spaces.

Speaker:

Hi, I'm Alison Nation from Visit Bentonville. Wondering where to eat, shop, or explore incredible public art? Our free online guides have you covered. Discover award-winning restaurants serving everything from farm to table to international cuisine, browse unique local boutiques and shops, and explore our renowned public art collection, including pieces from world-famous artists. All three guides are waiting for you at visitbentonville.com. Plan like a local, experience like a VIP. Now back to the episode. Yeah.

Beth Bobbitt:

And you touched on it a little bit, but I'd love for you to just dig in a little bit into the menu concept. What are some of the signatures, your favorites?

Luke Wetzel:

Sure. Well, that's another tough question. But right now, you know, we we're a burger joint, and so we are really proud of our of our burgers. I love pairing them with a chilled glass of Lambrusco, which is kind of an effervescent red wine. I think it's um it's a magical pairing. Um, but yeah, we cut and cut our own fries. We have our house made onion rings, which are great size, the burgers. But just like oven and tap, you know, oven and tap is a pizzeria and more. We like to consider it. And Townie is burgers and more. So we have, you know, we go on into a good many of salads, and then we also have entrees for those that are that are, you know, maybe wanting something a bit different than a burger.

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah. We plan to open for breakfast. Um soon, hopefully November, maybe middle of November, we will also be open for breakfast. And so you can expect to see some, you know, American breakfast classics, that nostalgic feel that you get. Yeah. Um, which we're really looking forward to.

Beth Bobbitt:

I was just gonna say it does feel nostalgic just looking at the menu, thinking about things like banana pudding. I mean, you won my heart with that. But there's certainly regional flares that you know, southerners would fried chicken.

Mollie Mullis:

You gotta have it. Exactly. You know, the tuna turner. Who doesn't want that?

Beth Bobbitt:

Not to be confused with Tina Turner. Right, right, right. Got it. So you just opened. How's it all been going?

Luke Wetzel:

Three weeks in.

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah, it's great. It is a lot. Um, but we knew that going into it. Um, we have been very well received by our community. I said this at the beginning when we sat down that Luke and I just left a very busy restaurant, which is such a good feeling. Because you do all this work and then you're like, Will people come? Right. Will there be bodies and seats? So it's been going really well.

Luke Wetzel:

Yeah, I agree. And I've been really impressed. We with our staff. We work hard on maintaining a certain restaurant culture for our staff, and we love working alongside them in these restaurants. And this was a new team, so that was a little intimidating because we've had such a um such a team together out on tap for so long now. Yeah. But uh new staff, excuse me, uh, we were able to um share some management, some core staff members with Towny, but the rest of the staff is completely new to us. So meeting everyone has been exciting, and I think you know, I could we couldn't ask for a better team over there. So that's another exciting piece of it. I think that's why you know Molly and I really love the restaurant industry.

Beth Bobbitt:

Yeah. How would you describe the culture, the vibe? Like how are you approaching training your staff? That's a great question.

Luke Wetzel:

Well, in our restaurant culture, we just you know, our utmost you know, priority is teaching respect of one another and respect of the food and respect of what the beverages, everything we serve and we do. We take pride in all our work and we take care of one another. And so that that comes first in all of our restaurants. And people really latch on to that. The restaurant industry can be a challenging place to work. So we're trying to improve that environment, do with whatever we can, and really just again taking care of one another and taking care of the food and taking care of our service.

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah. Yeah. And we, I mean, we're a team. Like everyone is in this together. We are trying to help one another in every at every opportunity that we can. So no one's an island. And I think that's another part of Oven and Tap that we've been able to implement at Superfine and Towny. That's something that's really important to respect and that we're all in this together. Yeah.

unknown:

Yeah.

Luke Wetzel:

I mean, I jumped in and cooked some burgers on the grill the other day. A little rusty.

unknown:

Right.

Luke Wetzel:

Not the quickest gun in the West anymore.

Beth Bobbitt:

All hands on deck. Yeah, and I've sort of noticed the inclusiveness translated in your menu items. I mean, um, we have a family of restricted diets, and you accommodate for everything gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian. So I love that.

Luke Wetzel:

Yeah, we do like to always have vegetarian and vegan, and certainly um gluten-free and dairy-free. And we're still learning how to accommodate that better and better each time. And so, yeah, we look forward to feedback and look forward to keep growing the menu.

Beth Bobbitt:

Yeah. Amazing. So noticed a lot of beers on tap and fun adult bevies. Uh talk a little bit about you know how you approach your drinks and will there be happy hours?

Luke Wetzel:

Yeah, it's a happy hour.

Mollie Mullis:

We gotta figure it out. But it hopefully soon, happy hour.

Luke Wetzel:

Yeah, of course. We'll we're on some happy hours. Um, and really beverage menu here, so oven and tap uh you know, is uh mainly tap beer. We used to have type wine, but we've moved on from that for you know just better selection and better um allotments in terms of wine. But county took on you know a little bit you know different feel. So we included a lot more kind of American classic, simple cocktails, and then some domestic beers, which people are loving by the can. And then we do feature a few taps, and they are um uh poured by Hawk Moth Brewing, so one of our local brewers that is near and dear to our heart, Bradley. Yeah, he helped us hook up the system, and so we pour his beer through the tap, and we'll rotate through those as well. But um, he's got some of his um you know favorite beers on there, and that's kind of a fun partnership to have him, you know, have a little creative freedom with it.

Beth Bobbitt:

Yeah. I love that. It sounds very Cheersy. Like you just you want to collect these regulars, and I think that you're positioned to do so.

Mollie Mullis:

You've got, like you said, lots of monitors, televisions, patio, you have outdoor space, massive patio, okay, which we're really excited about. Um so there's the patio and then there's the courtyard, which is the area kind of beyond the covered um part. And we're looking forward to that, especially with the park that's coming. So there will be a park that backs right up to Aven and Tap and Townie. So I think it will be the perfect spot to, you know, grab a burger, watch your kids play, you know, hang out, be outside, do all sorts of things.

Beth Bobbitt:

What do you see for the future? Special events or rotating menu? I know you're just opening.

Mollie Mullis:

So well, no, we've got a we dream pretty big. Yeah. Um, that's for sure. So we've got a private dining room at Townie, which has been our number one request at Oven & Tap for parties to have a private space to dine and enjoy themselves. So we have a private dining room at Evident, or I'm sorry, at Townie, um, which we're really looking forward to activate. We already have this past weekend with the USA cycling team, which was great. Um, it was really fun to have them in the house. Um and then uh we uh events, um, you know, we're kind of hoping to activate the patio a little bit more, maybe doing some sort of pop-ups or markets or just the space is massive. And music, yeah, all the things. So we're looking forward to that as well.

Beth Bobbitt:

Amazing. Okay, wrapping up, switching gears here, let's share some of your favorite spots in Bentonville or restaurants. What do you like to do in your free time when you're not working?

Mollie Mullis:

We can have the same, yeah, same phase. Um I if I'm going out for a fun dinner, I love Bar Clee. Um, we love what they do. They're their food is excellent, their execution is great, their staff is top-notch. Um, the Lady Slipper is always a fun spot for a cocktail. Um, the Hive, you know, is like just feels like home. Yeah. Uh they also have an excellent cheeseburger on the menu. Um let's see. You really, I mean, truly can't go wrong in in Bentonville. That's true.

Luke Wetzel:

Yeah. Oh yeah, uh I echo all of those faves. Um you know, a little bit of a creature of habit when it comes to going downtown here. Um, but yeah, love all those spots. And again, it's hard to miss Mezzaluna. Yes. New to the area, great friends of ours.

Mollie Mullis:

Yeah, they're awesome.

Luke Wetzel:

Of course, uh Conifer and the new um Ren. Thank you. We went we uh visited there together and had a great meal. So yeah, it's hard to miss. And I really love that about Bentonville.

Mollie Mullis:

Well, and you can't forget Onyx.

Luke Wetzel:

Thank you.

Mollie Mullis:

Yes, yeah. So many, so yeah, so many greats. So, how do we follow along? Social website. Yeah, we've got a website, townieburgers.com, and then our Instagram. That's the only one we do because I'm kind of old and can't drink the Kool-Aid on TikTok. I just feel like it's too much. But um, Townie Burgers and Bevies as our Instagram handle. And that's where you can find most information regarding the business, and then a Google page. Perfect.

Beth Bobbitt:

Well, thank you both. Anything else you want to touch on before we wrap?

Luke Wetzel:

Come see us. We're on South Main at 219 slash T1. So joking, but yeah, I think 219 South Main Street.

Mollie Mullis:

We joke because we have we took one build or two buildings and made it once. So we technically have two addresses of an attack has the same problem. Right. Right. Yeah. It's a good problem to have. Yes, for sure.

Beth Bobbitt:

Thank you both. Appreciate your time. Yeah, thank you. Don't forget, Visit Bentonville is here to help you navigate things to do, where to eat and stay, and what's going on in our new American town. Check out the show notes, follow us on social, sign up for the newsletter, and check out our website at visitbentontville.com. Thanks for listening.