Earlier this week Rogue printed out a FAQ regarding the purchase of the Green Dragon. This would’ve posted earlier but WordPress conspired against me to lose it all in the ether, so by the time I felt like writing it again, I found John Foyston’s excellent Beer Here blog already posted the same thing, so I’m copying and pasting from there. Thanks John!
Here’s the FAQ found at the bar:
Will there be changes? Yes! Someone defined stupidity as doing the same thing and expecting different results. We will make only those changes required to survive and serve the craft industry.
Can you be more specific? We will not change tap rotation as a theory and Rogue will have only one or two more taps than now. Brewers’ nights will continue under Jim Parker’s guidance; games and shuffleboard will stay for now.
What will you change?
Turn up the lights, turn down the music, as it was when the Dragon started.
Double the number of taps.
Finish the $50,000-$75,000 improvements required by the city.
Add video poker, and Lego tables for the kids.
Ban cell phones, as we have for 18 years.
Staff will wear identifiable gear and name tags to distinguish them from the customers. (My comments, not Foyston’s: Because in the past 15+ years of going to bars, I’ve always wondered if that guy standing behind the bar making drinks worked there. I wonder if there is also a requirement for 30 pieces of flair?)
We will deliver food and beer to your home or office.
Sell to go: bottles, cans, growlers and kegs.
Will beer prices go up? TBA — They need to be high enough for the Dragon to survive.
Will Hopoes and Rogue Nation Cards be honored? Yes.
Will Rogue Farms tours originate at the Dragon? Yes, and so will the OBF bus.
Will you continue live music? Yes, for a while. Not part of original concept. Not if the city requires handrails. Not if we need the space.
Will staff be retained? Yes, if they meet our standards of customer service and conduct.
Will you change the menu? Yes. How is TBA — Hope to add items made with beer and retain and expand use of the smoker.
So, there you have it. According to comments in an earlier post, only 3 of 30 staff elected to remain at the Dragon. The great staff will definitely be missed. Here’s to the future of the Green Dragon and hoping it will grow and be even better. Also, definitely want to extend best wishes to Lolo and look forward to being there when Civil Disobedience opens.
Thom Says:
November 21st, 2008 at 11:34 pmVisit Thom
Well, it looks like we didn’t keep the people at Green Dragon. When my wife and I were there the other night, we talked to one of the waitresses, and when we said, “we really hope it doesn’t affect you guys too much,” she responded “Me too!”
And it was the way she said it that really struck me. As in, “you have no idea how much this sucks.” This is her job, how she pays the bill. She might lose her job and I’m worrying about if I have to choke down $10 chicken fingers from Rogue? My priorities are outta whack. But I digress.
Unlike Dave, I like Rogue’s beer. Not their food, mind you, but they make a lot of crazy beers — “stunt beers.” I dig that.
And while I understand the current Green Dragon staff not wanting to roll with some of the Rogue employee rules, I won’t throw Rogue under the bus. Rogue is a great Oregon company, period. I typically enjoy my talks with the guys at the bar at Rogue, even if every conversation starts with saying that, yes, indeed, I am a member of Rogue nation.
And giving employees a 401(k) and health insurance (hopefully GOOD health insurance and not some P.O.S. $1,000 deductible plan) will be really great for attracting and keeping good people. Not that the folks who left aren’t great — they are — I’m just saying that it’s not like Rogue rolled in and pulled a Wal-Mart. It’s not like Rogue was asking people to dress up in panda suits. They asked them to wear a name tag, tuck in their shirts, and not drop the f-bomb.
Rogue has a business plan that seems to work, and it apparently includes compensating employees very fairly.
Rogue did good to keep the GD from going under. The fact that the employees and Rogue couldn’t see eye to eye on things is a damn shame. This isn’t a win, but it’s not a loss either.
In general, losing an independent bar sucks. But maybe when our Green Dragon friends have settled elsewhere and the new Eastside Rogue is dialed in, we’ll be able to put this behind us.
Thom Says:
November 21st, 2008 at 11:34 pmVisit Thom
p.s. my wife totally, totally disagrees with me.
despardm Says:
November 22nd, 2008 at 12:36 pmVisit despardm
Thom, your wife may not agree with you, but I do. When the Rose and Raindrop closed, we got… a bank. I’m not much of a fan of Rogue (does anybody else find all that ‘Rogue Nation’ shtick as tiresome as I do?) but I’d much rather the Green Dragon stick around in some form than close entirely. And if Rogue is true to their word, we can even hope that the tap list will remain varied and exciting. The sourest note in the whole deal is that Rogue wasn’t able to keep on more of the Green Dragon employees (seems like maybe they could have tried a bit harder in that regard), but some is better than none, which would have been the case if the old owner hadn’t found a buyer.
It’ll be interesting to see what happens there over the next few months. It would sure be nice to be able to say “The Dragon is dead. Long live the Dragon.”
Thom Says:
November 22nd, 2008 at 1:32 pmVisit Thom
You said it much more succinctly than I did: I’d rather it be open and a little different than gone completely.
And if Lolo opens a new bar, sweet! All the better! I’ll drink there, too!
My wife said, “I think the employees are right to be ticked.” And that’s OK, though I hope their vitriol is aimed at the right place.* Rogue shouldn’t catch flack for this: they did as good a thing as possible in this situation.
*I don’t claim to have a clue where the “right place” is in this case.
Dave Says:
November 22nd, 2008 at 4:36 pmVisit Dave
I’m listening to Brett Joyce of Rogue be interviewed on the sale on KXL’s Libation Station now … he just mentioned they’d be introducing Rogue’s “Aloha Tuesdays,” where you get a free pint if you’re wearing a Hawaiian shirt.
I wonder if they will have a birthday song? Maybe there will be jalapeno shooters, too.
Kill me now.
Andy Says:
November 24th, 2008 at 9:51 amVisit Andy
Isn’t the saying “Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results?”
And on that note, isn’t this now the 3rd (or maybe just 2nd) fallen beer facility in this location? Maybe Beermuda Triangle is the right name for the place because pubs keep disappearing.