Benjamin Altschul, the creative force behind the rejuvenation of the venerable Tip Top Tavern at 601 North St., has purchased the former Grieg Club, across the street at 610 North St.
Altschul plans to turn the space into a community-centered entertainment venue that also serves food and drink.
The Grieg Club, a private social club, closed in July.
Altschul says that the new venue will carry on with the Tip Top’s mission of serving the very best to the neighborhood, but that it will have a “different dynamic and style.”
“We’re looking to create a neighborhood center, a platform for artistry,” says Altschul, who envisions everything from concerts to films, musical theater, comedy and gallery nights taking place there. “It’s gonna be funky as all hell,” Altschul says.
The Eken Park neighborhood is primarily residential, but is home to both the Tip Top and Dexter’s Pub. The closest entertainment venue was the Inferno, 1718 Commercial Ave., just a half-mile away, but it closed in May, due to redevelopment at the corner of North Sherman and Commercial Avenue.
“The Inferno hosted a vibrant artistic scene,” Altschul observes. “I admire what Apollo [Marquez] created there, how strong the community tie was to that space. People felt safe to express themselves there; they were encouraged to do so.”
Altschul imagines a similarly supportive atmosphere at the new venue. Entertainment would be as important as the food and drink, in a “cabaret” style, in his current plans.
The Grieg Club building has about 2,500 square feet of “front of the house” space, a kitchen, but no stage and is currently set up “for banquets and functions,” says Altschul.
The Grieg Club, which was once a Willy Street mainstay at 1249 Williamson St. (a building designed by the Madison firm Claude and Starck as the Sixth Ward Library and now a city historic site), moved to the North Street location in 2000. Named after the Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg, the social club once had a choral function and had more recently hosted karaoke nights.
Right now, Altschul is “looking for input from the community,” and hopes the space will “evolve to be flexible and appealing.” Neighborhood meetings are planned and an appearance before the city’s Alcohol License Review Committee should take place within the next couple of months, says Altschul. Anyone with feedback or ideas is encouraged to call the Tip Top at 608-241-5515.
