New business brewing up something special in Lodi
School Grounds Coffee in Downtown Lodi closed down last month and is being replaced by a new coffee shop that plans on stirring things up.
The owners of the new establishment are Paul Fulton and Kevin Clark, two business partners that met in Lodi and decided to open up their own coffee house/brewery called Mokelumne Brew House.
Clark and his wife have owned cafes in Seattle and Fulton has experience in home brewing.
“A couple of months ago, Emily (wife) and I went on vacation and we came across a place that billed itself as a brewhouse,” said Fulton. “But they did coffee, tea and beer, because all three of those things can be brewed and I thought that was unique.”
Fulton pitched Clark the idea of opening up a similar brewhouse when they heard School Grounds was closing. Now they are about a month away from opening and running the brew house with their wives.
Coming up with the name took some time because Clark and Fulton wanted to differentiate themselves from businesses that already have the Lodi and School street name, like Lodi Beer Company and School Grounds.
However, they still wanted the name of their business to honor and be connected to Lodi.
“I did some reading and, it’s my understanding that before Lodi got its name, it was referred to as Mokelumne Station, so there’s a little historical significance to the name, and of course there’s the river,” Clark said.
The logo has some historical significance to Lodi as well.
Mokelumne, in native tounge, means fishing village or fishing people, said Clark.
The logo consists of a fish above a single drop of liquid that is a lighter color on top and darker brown on the bottom, symbolizing coffee, tea and beer, all three beverages of which will be brewed at the Mokelumne Brew House.
Mokelumne Brew House is emphasizing that if it can be brewed, they’ll have it on the menu.
“Everything is small batched, so we’re not buying Starbucks coffee or beer like Budweiser and Budlight, it’s all going to be small, handcrafted local, and that’s really the key to success in Lodi.”
The food that will be sold at Mokelumne Brew House consists of custom cupcakes, paninis, breakfast sandwhiches, a variety of pastries and more.
Gelato will also continue to be served at the location.
Only beer that is brewed by Mokelumne Brew House will be served, like IPAs, pale ales and a rye beer Clark is working on.
Kumbucha and bobba teas will likely be served in the future as well, but Clark and Fulton said they need to experiment with those beverages some more.
They envision Mokelumne Brew House as a fixture in the community, a familyfriendly place where people can relax, have a brewed beverage and enjoy themselves.
“We want to foster relationships with other businesses here in downtown and see how we can have some kind of synergy with them, and we want to have a presence at the farmers market and the street fairs,” Clarks said.
Mokelumne Brew House, located at 115 S. School St., will have live acoustic music on Friday nights, as well as paint nights and more.
Clark and Fulton aim to open Mokelumne Brew House in mid-August and the hours will be from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.
“School Grounds is not here anymore. What is here is going to, in some ways, carry on the torch, carry on the spirit. But in most ways, its going to be different,” Clark said.