Mayan Cafe's new food truck and Gravely Brewing got hitched.
This past Friday, Gravely Brewing Co. drew what seemed to be the entire Phoenix Hill neighborhood to their grand opening. At one point, the new brewery on the corner of Baxter and Barret Avenues had upwards of 200 people packing its gymnasium-sized beer hall and large patio. The interior sports a lounge (complete with photo booth), bar area (with a wall made of old-fashioned stereos) and music venue (indoor cornhole — need I say more?). The patio has perhaps the most exciting feature: an exclusive food truck called Mayan Street Food, the highly-acclaimed Mayan Café’s entry into the food truck business.
Photo: Opening day at Gravely. // Gravely Brewing Co. Instagram
Nathaniel Gravely, who opened Gravely Brewing Co., had the idea of a food truck functioning alongside his brewery. He’d heard that Mayan Café wanted to break into the food truck game, and approached them to work out a partnership.
Photo: Nathaniel Gravely opened Gravely Brewing Co. last weekend. // Maria Jackson
With a surplus of places to grab a cold one in Louisville, and the Bardstown Road area in particular, Gravely has made sure his brewery stands out. Head brewer Cory Buenning, Gravely’s brother-in-law, has years of experience brewing beer. Before coming to Louisville, he served as head brewer of Wyoming’s oldest brewery, Snake River Brewery. Mayan Café co-owner Anne Shadle compares him to the restaurant’s head chef and co-owner Bruce Ucán. Gravely and his crew are working on making available their full 14-tap selection. Seven taps were operational at the opening, including drafts like Power Chord West Coast IPA and That Cherry Bomb (a cherry “remix” stout). A Hefeweizen called Doc’s Hefe was the best-seller on opening night.
Photo: Pork tacos and Gravely's IPA. // Mayan Street Food Facebook
This food truck-brewery partnership will be unique in that Mayan Street Food will be more or less a permanent structure alongside Gravely Brewing Co., and the staff will work together to serve gourmet appetizers, tacos and salbutes (the Mayan take on the taco: toppings on a thick, flash-fried handmade tortilla). A server at Gravely mentions that people will be able to order food from inside the brewery.
Photo: Chorizo salbutes were the best-selling dish over the weekend. // Mayan Street Food Instagram
Shadle says the brewery sold over 2,000 beers and that Mayan Street Food quadrupled their target sales on opening night. “Bananas,” she says. “I mean, I’ve never seen volume like that. You couldn’t get a parking spot for a couple miles around here.”
Cover photo by Maria Jackson
