On December 1, 2017 Half Pint Taproom & Restoration Hall opened it’s doors to the public. The vision was strong but the future uncertain for the team. Several other downtown businesses that would compete for the same audience opened their doors at the same time, and Half Pint needed to set themselves apart from the rest.
Set themselves apart, they did. Aesthetics alone offers a unique atmosphere for patrons. The perfect balance of industrial and cozy, the space was conceptualized and built by the owners themselves, without the aid of an architect. This was all done in about 5 months around their normal 9 to 5s. Add the 36 regularly rotating craft beer taps and a 4 wine kegarator and it is safe to say that they succeeded in being unique.
Owner, Denton Keltner, said that “overall, the first year way exceeded expectations.” The Restoration Hall, as the entertainment half of the venue is known, was a much bigger hit than anticipated. The team’s goal was to host about 3 or 4 events per month, but looking bad they did close to 100 events, an average of one ever 3 to 4 days. They hosted a variety of entertainment, such as dueling pianos and comedy shows, and many of the events were private parties, which says a lot for the venue as 3 other event venues opened in 2018 as well. The Hub hosted our Haunted Halloween Party there this past October and could not have been happier with the event as a whole. The space was great and the staff performed with excellence.
As impressive as the entertainment venue is, it’s the Taproom that sets Half Pint apart. “We work hard to not keep a steady rotation of the taps,” says Keltner. He goes on to explain that they try to keep about half of the taps regular while rotating out the other half ensuring that they are options that you can’t find anywhere else in town. In the past year they have displayed about 200 different beers and brought two new distributors in to Wichita Falls. Among the options that you can only find at Half Pint is Prairie Artisan Ales and their Prairie “Bomb!”. Full Clip is another brewer that they introduced to the Falls and that launch their beers at Half Pint first.
Not since the opening of 9th Street Studios has a business made such a solid impact on the downtown art and music scene, as well as the local economy. The variety of entertainment, coupled with a delicious menu and unmatched beer selection makes Half Pint an invaluable contribution to not only downtown, but to Wichita Falls.
They crew is looking at way to make some of their staple events even bigger, and for more things to offer our city that nobody else has done. They just want to keep shaking things up and keeping it fresh. They are considering the expansion of their food and wine menu. They are advocates for the local art and music scene and keep that in consideration in their growth planning.
In typical Half Pint fashion, the venue hosted 3 different events on the date of their anniversary, the anniversary party itself, the downtown Ugly Sweater Bar Crawl, and a Private event in the Restoration Hall. They are busy busy, and they wouldn’t have it any other way. They attribute their success and ability to keep up with the fast pace to having a great business partnership where everyone communicates well and hustles. With one amazing year behind them, Half Pint Taproom and Restoration Hall are excited about what the future holds.
