Every game, every goal...

It’s taken awhile to sort out the Village response to World Cup Soccer 2010. Since our Pub has been an English Premier League venue, we did anticipate a robust English contingent, cheering their lads on. We also reckoned we would get some new soccer customers wanting to see how USA would contend on the international scene. Beyond that…who knew?

Well, every day we opened our doors to a new wave of color. There was The Orange, growing ever more hopeful that Netherlands really could go all the way. The White jerseys of Germany and La Roja of Spain sporting international flags, tied around necks. Uruguay and Argentina fans wearing beautiful baby blue jerseys while their favorite players proved they were no babes in the woods when it came to football. All seemed to believe if they yelled louder than the vuvuzelas, their team might advance. Customers arrived, cheering Brazil, Paraguay, Ghana, and Greece. Those four weeks of magic proved to us that America’s amazing melting pot is bubbling away brilliantly.

World Cup Cometh; here's all you need to know!

Q. WILL UNION JACK PUB SHOW ALL THE GAMES?
A. Absolutely! Every game, every goal.

Q. WHAT TIMES ARE THE GAMES?
A. Games are at 7:30 AM, 10:00 AM and 2:30 PM.

Q. WHEN DO DOORS OPEN FOR EARLY GAMES?
A. 7:00 AM, sharp! 9:30 AM for the 10 o'clock games.

Q. HOW DO WE KNOW HOW MUCH FOOD TO PREPARE FOR 7:00 AM GAMES?
A. We don't know...talk to us. FB your groups numbers and we will have plenty.

Q. WILL UNION JACK PUB BE SHOWING THE REPLAYS?
A. Yes, if you can't make the daytime live games, any replays available will be shown in the evenings.

Q. WILL YOU BE SERVING FOOD AND DRINK FOR THE EARLY GAMES?
A. Yes, there will be food and drink options.

Q. WILL THERE BE A COVER CHARGE?
A. No!

Q. ARE UNDER 21s ALLOWED IN?
A. Yes-but obviously no alcohol can be consumed by minors.

Q. WILL UNION JACK PUB TAKE RESERVATIONS?
A. No, its first come, first served.

Q. WILL THERE BE DRINKS SPECIALS?
A. Yes! Heineken and Carlsberg Elephant bottle/can; Budweiser and Bud Light on draught.

Q. WHO WILL UNION JACK PUB BE CHEERING FOR TO WIN THE WORLD CUP?
A. You're kidding, right?

Success Report

Participating in our Third Annual Tap Project fundraiser was a quiet, yet lucrative success. During World Water Week, many of you voluntarily exceeded the suggested $1 for that glass of icy, delicious, filtered water that we serve free to our customers. We tallied the numbers and matched your contributions. Thank you.

Should you want more information about Tap Project, you can find it here: http://www.tapproject.org/about/ ; or here

3rd Annual April Fool’s Day Celebration…NOT!

We lost our focus, have all gone a little daft, insane actually… just don’t know how it happened, but it did. One minute we were celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, the next minute our Dawgs took over our lives. Blame it on the Butler Bulldogs, that’s the ticket!

Point is, we will be foregoing our wild and crazy April Fool’s Day party this year. If you want to come in and congratulate us on another year under our belt, we will be glad to raise a pint with you. And after all, we DID have that ridiculous 30th Anniversary Party. I know, it's no excuse. Rest assured, next year…unless those amazing young men bring it again. We’ll see.

No pressure here…

none whatsoever. Just want you to know that during World Water Week we are supporting, for our third year in a row, the UNICEF Tap Project – to celebrate our collective good fortune for having clean potable water; and to also recognize the importance of clean water to children around the world. For one week only, March 21-27, we will offer our customers an opportunity to “buy” that large, icy glass of water your server brings you with your meal. The unspoken suggested price is $1; should you want to give more, we can handle that too.

Actually, there are three ways to consider giving: Give here at our restaurant – which is our main focus. If you prefer a tax deduction receipt, you can go online at www.tapproject.org or you can text “TAP” to UNICEF (864233) to make a $5 donation.

Either way, you drive this campaign. No one will ask...but if you offer, we will happily accommodate your participation. With $1, UNICEF can provide one child access to safe, clean water for 40 days. Nice.

It takes a Village...

Turns out, there is an amazing campaign crossing this country that emphasises the synergistic relationship between neighbors and merchants. In a nutshell, The 3/50 Project asks you to pick three independently owned businesses you would miss...should they close their doors. Then it suggests you stop in to each of them and "pick a little something up that will make someone smile."

If you read our post "best and worst of times, " you probably understand the importance of supporting your community businesses. As stated, we have chosen to make a living by meeting your needs while you kept us chugging along with your patronage. And, for that, we so gratefully and humbly thanked you.

If half the employed U.S. population spent $50 each month in their favorite independently owned businesses, their purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue.

Here's the kicker: For every $100 spent in independently owned stores, $68 returns to your community through taxes, payroll, and other expenditures. If you spend that in a national chain, only $43 stays here. Spend it online and nothing comes home. So, pick 3, spend a total of 50 and save your local economy. Sounds easy enough. Gotta go...I'm off to spread my fifty bucks around at Big Hat Books, The Bungelow and Marigold.

Consider this fair warning…

Where will you be on June 12, 2010? No really, we're serious. It’s time to get proactive. Tell your friends and family to plan no weddings, births, vacations, nor deaths from June 11th to July 12th.

We will be telecasting the most important soccer event in the universe for thirty days. The World Cup cometh. If we have to be open at dark o’clock to catch the action, you can depend on us.

Here is a link to the schedule: www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/index.html

Print it out and keep it next to your heart. USA squares off against England on 6/12/10. So we ask again...where will you be?

Kermit was wrong; it’s easy being “GREEN.”

Sometimes, you do something just because it feels right. Together with the Union Jack Pub in Broad Ripple, our business friends and neighbors decided to give glass recycling another try. Let's face it, when you are promoting craft beer, and you are carrying close to one hundred choices, a pile of glass starts stacking up. Turns out Ambrosia, Corner Wine Bar, Usual Suspects, BR Steak House, Monkey’s Tail and Brother’s Bar and Grill were contributing their fair share to the landfill too.

Our glass recycling initiative has received attention around the city and surrounding towns. Try to imagine how proud we were when HARMONI (the Historic Midtown Initiative) and Green Broad Ripple, Inc. nominated the Green Broad Ripple Restaurant Group for a SustainIndy recycling award this year.

So, Kermit Baby, enough with the sad lament. Although none of us can do everything, each of us can do something. Ten tons of glass diverted monthly from the landfill is a fairly heady success. Once we finish the nomination partying, we are going to focus on the next best step for sustainability in our Village. We love our pond and lily pads; we intend to take care of it.