Hopscotch Brick Oven & Taproom

This Traverse City backyard beer garden is smokin'

By Janice Binkert | Aug. 29, 2020

The menu is innovative, carefully curated and diverse. Yet there is no stove, grill, flat top, or fryer in the compact kitchen at Hopscotch. Head chef Justin Shafer and his crew cook everything in the restaurant’s double smoker or its 800-degree brick oven, with tantalizing results. 

Brothers Matt and Mark Davies, longtime northwest Michigan restaurateurs with four other establishments in the region, opened Hopscotch in 2017 on the east side of Traverse City. And general manager Cassie Saunders was in on it all from the start.  

FROM BUMPER BOATS TO BEER GARDEN
“Hopscotch is a concept that’s very different from the rest of our restaurants,” said Saunders. “This building used to be the second Traverse City location of Mr. Bill’s Shirt Co. When Matt and Mark bought it, it was all linoleum floors and pegboard walls — just an open retail space. But those two are amazing, and their vision is something I’ve never experienced before. I probably had more doubts than I’d like to admit when I first saw this place, but what they’ve turned it into is just incredible.”

Matt Davies recounted that he and his brother had primarily been looking for a building with enough room out behind it that would allow them to put in a beer garden, and the Mr. Bill’s site met that criteria perfectly. “Some locals may remember that the backyard here used to be the old bumper boat pond when this and the land next door were all part of the now-defunct Pebble Brook miniature golf park,” he said. “Eventually, the park was bulldozed, and the pond was filled in, too.” When the brothers approached Mr. Bill’s owners about buying the property, they were told that a fireworks company had also expressed interest in it. “But when I explained to them what we wanted to do, they said they would much rather have it be used for our restaurant than a fireworks store, and they sold it to us,” said Davies.

East Bay Township residents welcomed their new neighbors enthusiastically, not least of all because that side of Traverse City had typically been underserved when it came to restaurants – especially locally owned ones with interesting menus – compared with downtown and the west side. “Part of the success of any business is location, location, location, and this has turned out to be a very good location for us,” said Saunders. Davies added that Hopscotch has been just as busy in the past few months as in any previous summer, despite the challenging circumstances this year.   

TAKE IT OUTSIDE
The large beer garden that the Davies brothers had imagined and were able to realize is a major draw for Hopscotch guests. Pea gravel and flagstone walkways define the well laid out seating area, which is surrounded by a tall wooden fence that provides privacy and wind protection and sheltered from the sun (and the occasional brief shower) by the expansive shade sails that are spanned overhead. Attractive landscaping adds to the appealing setting. Matt Davies noted that the addition of even more flowers and greenery is planned for the future, but this year, he said, the emphasis had to be on making the space comfortable and safe for customers. “We used to have games like cornhole out here, but we removed all of them to be able to put in more tables and still maintain the proper distance between them.”

Two fire pits provide warmth and coziness on cooler summer and early fall evenings, not to mention in winter. “People love to linger around them,” said Davies. He has some new ideas for the beer garden coming up this winter, too. “We’re actually going to put in three greenhouse-like polycarbonate structures instead of the igloos or tents we’ve had before. They’re a little more structural, easier to heat, and transparent, too, so guests will be able to see the snow falling and feel like they’re outside.”

DOING MORE WITH LESS
The menu at Hopscotch was designed solely around a brick oven and a double smoker that the restaurant group already owned and had in storage. “We knew we didn’t have room to have a full kitchen here like we do at our other restaurants, so we just starting playing around with a concept that would work with those two pieces of equipment being our only cooking sources,” said Davies. “And we’re not only doing pizzas in the brick oven but also finishing off a lot of the smoked items in there, which adds another level of flavor.”

Davies has high praise for his young kitchen brigade. “Chef Justin is really particular about what comes out of the kitchen, making sure that it’s up to his standards — and his team follows his lead. That’s something we really value. Even when we’re very busy, they never take shortcuts. They are committed to quality and consistency in all of the dishes they prepare.”

Brick oven pizzas are hands-down the most popular items on the Hopscotch menu, and several specialty versions are offered, including the East Bay (red sauce, pepperoni, and sliced sausage, with cremini, shiitake and oyster mushrooms) and the Gyro (shaved beef and lamb, red onion, garlic oil, tomato, and tzatziki sauce), as well as build-your-own options from a long list of possible ingredients.

THEY’RE THE TOPS
Among meat lovers, the smoked brisket entrées rule. Purists love the slow-roasted version (smothered in bourbon BBQ sauce), and those who find it hard to choose just one type of meat opt for the Smoke House Plate (brisket, baby back ribs and pulled pork, with traditional or Carolina sauce). In the small plates category, the Summer Shrimp (chilled jumbo shrimp with lemon, garlic and red pepper flakes), Pulled Pork Nachos (with cilantro sour cream and poblano coulis), and Baked Raclette (Leelanau Cheese raclette with potatoes, gherkins and toast points) take top billing, while with the piadinas — Italian flatbreads served like quesadillas — it’s the Cubano (Chihuahua cheese, bacon, smoked pulled pork, dill pickle, and yellow mustard). 

Tops picks in sandwiches — all served on toasted ciabatta — include the Lobster Roll (lobster meat, chives, and light mayo, with melted cheese and drawn butter), and the Smoked Turkey Breast (with bacon relish, avocado, tomato and mayo). And dessert? “The undisputed customer favorite is our S’mores, which we do in the brick oven,” said Davies. “We sell a lot of those. If you look over and see one being delivered to another table, you’re probably going to order one, too.”

Being a Taproom, Hopscotch puts a lot of emphasis on the beer it serves. The bar features 12 rotating taps, the two mainstays of which are the iconic Motorboater, made exclusively for the Davies restaurant group by Right Brain Brewery in Traverse City, and Hopscotch Ale, from Short’s Brewing Company in Bellaire. “We started out just offering Michigan beers, and we still showcase a lot of them, but there are so many great craft beers nationwide that we decided to expand that menu,” said Saunders. The restaurant’s wine list is actually a chalkboard wall with mounted bottles representing a wide range of varietals – local, national and international – chosen both to appeal to a wide range of wine drinkers and to pair well with the restaurant’s menu items.

Hopscotch also stocks an impressive selection of fine scotch whiskeys, and its bartenders — whom Saunders praised, saying “they really know what they’re doing” — recently rolled out five new cocktails, one of which quickly gained a lot of fans: the Black Bourbon Lemonade (bourbon, fresh lemon juice simple syrup and activated charcoal, garnished with lemon, blackberries, and mint).

WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME
“We obviously had to rearrange our seating not only outdoors, but also in the dining room to adapt to COVID requirements,” said Davies. “Looking back at past years, when our regulars would return after the peak tourist season had passed, groups of them would always gather at the community table in the bar to talk and catch up — it was like that old TV show Cheers. The bartenders and servers know their names and what they like to eat and drink. I’m sure they will return this year, too, but for now, it won’t be quite the same, since they won’t be able sit together like before. We’re all looking forward to the time when we can get that familiar tradition back.”

Saunders also appreciates the feeling of camaraderie that characterizes the restaurant. “Hopscotch is unique,” she said, “from the quality of the food, to the quaint and relaxed ambiance inside and out, to our amazing staff that makes you feel at home. Having multiple restaurants in our group and having personally worked for many more over the years, I can honestly say there is no place like it. There is a real feeling of community here, and we are so fortunate to have the local support that we do.”  

Find Hopscotch Brick Oven and Taproom at 2032 U.S. 31 North in Traverse City; it also has direct access from the TART (Traverse City Recreational Trail). Serving lunch and dinner 11:30am to 9pm Sunday through Thursday, and 11:30am to 10pm Friday and Saturday. The bar is open late. For more information, call (231) 252-4718, visit www.hopscotchbrickovenmi.com or check them out on Facebook and Instagram.