One of Tucson’s most popular watering holes reopened to drink-in and dine-in customers Monday, but not everyone is as happy about the move as the owners and their seven employees.
Arizona Beer House is a family-owned and operated taproom located on the southwest corner of Kolb Road and Broadway Blvd. It features Arizona and regional craft beer, wine, and soda while offering a dining area and large patio serviced by local food trucks.
During the recent COVID-19 shutdown, the company undertook a proactive marketing campaign to advertise takeout options for its wide variety of beverages. At the same time, it continued to work with and promote numerous food trucks.
But since announcing its May 11 full reopening, co-owner Brian McBride has had to deal with comments from social media trolls targeting the eastside establishment.
According to McBride, one message posted about the company’s May 11 reopening said “you have blood on your hands of all who die because you couldn’t wait to open.” He’s also been accused of “forcing” his employees “to put their lives at risk.”
Another of the messages could be construed as threatening the owners or their property.
In an effort to counter the harassment, Kyle Blessinger spoke out about the online trolls during a Thursday morning segment of KVOI’s WakeUp Tucson. Blessinger, who works in the same industry as McBride, told host Chris DeSimone that the social media attacks on McBride and Arizona Beer House need to stop.
He pointed out the hard work put in by McBride and others during the shutdown to keep some revenue flowing for the taproom, its employees, and the owners of the food trucks.
“What they’ve been able to accomplish while being ‘closed’ has been awesome,” Blessinger said. “And then to see someone threaten his livelihood -both literally and figuratively- that’s just not right.”
Blessinger also said he has been surprised by the attitudes some people have toward business owners who are simply trying to survive.
“This is something that none of us have seen in our lifetime, so no one knows how to handle it,” Blessinger said. “We’re all flying by the seat of our pants. We’re all trying to do the best that we can.”
Arizona Beer House’s upcoming food truck lineup is West Coast Trolley’s Fish Fry on Friday, Food Groupie Café on Saturday, and Malta Joe’s Baked Goods on Sunday. The company is preparing to celebrate its fifth anniversary this summer.