Polly Campbell

pcampbell@enquirer.com

The restaurant coming to the Vine Street space that was once Lavomatic now has a name and a personality.

Thunderdome Restaurant Group, owners of next-door Bakersfield, will open Kreuger's Tavern in early December. It will serve a menu of sandwiches and tavern food, along with a large selection of canned beer. The name comes from Kreuger's Brewing, a New Jersey brewery that was the first to sell beer in cans (in 1935). It also suggests the European inspiration for the menu.

"It's more than just a sandwich shop with canned beer, I can tell you that," said Joe Lanni of Thunderdome. "It's a deeper selection than our other places, a neighborhood tavern-type menu."

They will be making four kinds of sausages in-house, served with sides, not on buns. For instance, the jaegerwurst will come with Riesling-braised red cabbage and grainy mustard. There will be sandwiches like a sloppy joe and a chicken club, and lots of bar snacks. Sandwiches will be built on bread from Sixteen Bricks, a local artisan bakery. More than 75 kinds of canned beers will be available, along with a full bar. "We're working on some cool stuff behind the bar," said Lanni.

Lanni promises a great new design for the space, which comprises two floors and a rooftop. They also will fully utilize the rooftop patio on the building starting next spring.

"You won't recognize the place," he said. "It's my favorite design of our restaurants so far."

The building, at 1211 Vine St., was a neighborhood laundromat at one time. It opened as Lavomatic in 2008, the first restaurant to open in the Gateway District. It closed in July of this year.

Joe Lanni's partners in the Thunderdome Restaurant Group are his brother John Lanni and Alex Blust. They own the burrito chain Currito; four Bakersfield restaurants in Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Columbus and Charlotte (with two more to come); SoHi Grilled Sandwiches in Oxford; and The Eagle Food and Beer Hall.