MONMOUTH — It’s time to get Sauced. It’s kind of a new theme hitting the Maple City area. There is now a Sauced Pub to pair with the Sauced Grub restaurant at 431 N. 11 St.
Sauced Grub officially opened Nov. 15, 2018, in the former Eagles Club building. There was no grand opening in a bitter winter that saw over 60 inches of snow in the Monmouth area (29 1/2 inches above normal) and the temperatures hitting minus 30.
Caldwell bought The Pizza Place, formerly Breadaux Pizza, in Monmouth a couple years ago.
But Caldwell felt he did not have enough space at The Pizza Place and that’s when he was able to buy 3 acres of land and the old Eagles Club — right across the street from Tombstone Bowl.
Caldwell has continued the wide-variety of pizza and calzones on the menu of Sauced Grub.
Cisco and his wife, Amanda (McManus), moved to Monmouth recently after living in the Denver area. Cisco is originally from Denver and has brought the popular “Den-Mex” flavor to Monmouth from his hometown, with a signature dish of green chili. Cisco lived in Colorado for 35 of his 38 years and it quickly shows with his popular street tacos, chimichangas and quesadillas.
Uniquely, right when customers walk in the door of the restaurant, they order their food at the front counter and pay for it. Then, they sit down at a table or booth. The order gets in quickly to the cooks in the back and the food makes its way to the table faster. Amanda helps take care of all this at the front of the restaurant and does whatever else needs to be done — cooks, cleans, preps.
Monmouth’s Craig and Wendy Twomey are two of the most loyal customers; already they have eaten there close to 15 times.
“Street tacos are our favorite, but we love it all,” Craig said.
Monmouth’s Mike Fry and Meghan Smith also ate at Sauced Grub earlier this week. They often order the nachos and the cheese sticks.
“I am a picky eater and they are very accommodating,” Meghan Smith said.
But of all the customers, Tammy Duff might be the most loyal of them all. Tammy takes her family to Sauced Grub to eat at least once a week, and sometimes even two to three times a week.
Caldwell is the sole owner of Sauced Pub, which is located in the same building. It’s in the original bar area of the old Eagles Club, but with a fresh coat of paint and updates to the stage and bar.
Caldwell has a ton of space outside that he owns behind the bar and it is loaded with potential. His main idea is an outside-bar area, which could be huge in the summertime when the nicer weather kicks in. Outside volleyball, horseshoes, a car show, bike nights, a flea market, wedding receptions and some big-name bands are some of his other ideas on his radar. And next football season, Caldwell could see some tailgating for Monmouth College football families before the 1 p.m. kickoff on Saturdays this fall.
Caldwell said he sees the outdoor volleyball starting up at the end of May or early part of June. He said the roof for the outdoor patio is scheduled to go on sometime this week and then the horseshoe pits will follow.
The 37-year-old Caldwell said the third and final part of his reconstruction phase — which would be after the outside area is up and running — would include a banquet/private party room for graduations and the option of bringing bigger bands inside the building if the weather is not decent.
Sometime in June, they are planning for a grand reopening for Sauced Grub and Sauced Pub.
• Saturday, May 4: Music by Bang’n Redhedz, 8 p.m. to midnight. No cover charge.
• Friday, May 24: Monmouth native Chuck Murphy will perform, 8-11 p.m. No cover.