Barstool: Natty Greene’s Kitchen + Market opens in Revolution Mill

It may have taken a while, but Revolution Mill — one of the old textile mills in Greensboro — finally has new life, due in no small part to beer.

Joining Urban Grinders and pizzeria Cugino Forno in the massive complex — which also houses apartments, offices, studio spaces and art and history exhibits — Natty Greene’s Kitchen + Market opened July 25 to a crowd clamoring for tasty bites and beers that Natty’s doesn’t serve in its downtown brewpub.

The old brick mill building still has tall, paned windows, allowing lots of sun and a view of the Yanceyville Street traffic from the nearly 20-seat bar. Big oak beams maintain their antique glamour, and ceilings soar at least two stories above, exposing ductwork and metallic venting.

It’s like a big, fancy farmhouse, a perfect marriage with the butcher/baker/brewer theme.

The market — which is set off by its own door accessible from outside — sells cheese, meat, bottles of Natty’s beer, and “pretty much anything we sell in our kitchen, only uncooked,” according to one staff member.

Next door, the kitchen’s in full swing, and the menu is completely different from the downtown pub’s. I’m talking sloppy Joes, brisket, porkbelly sandwiches, shrimp poboys, smoked salmon, cuts of lamb, duck, porchetta — and to top it off, three different kinds of prime-cut steaks.

Some of the suds are the same: standards like Buckshot amber, Wildflower witbier and Southern Session IPA. But there are excellent choices the brewpub doesn’t have, like Mighty Citra oatmeal pale ale, perfect for someone who likes Shocktop, and the Old Town Brown ale with added cacao and raspberries, which is a little sweet and adventurous. And you don’t need a $30 steak to enjoy the Center Cut porter, my personal favorite.

If beer isn’t your thing, there’s plenty of wine from Childress and other recognizable brands, plus classic cocktails with familiar or local liquors like Dewar’s, Bulleit, Fainting Goat and Sutler’s.

The bustle downstairs comes from the kitchen, dine-in seating, charcuterie station and flatscreens above the bar. But a much more chill loft area lies up a metal staircase — the “mezzanine,” as it’s called. Patrons can wander up to the seven-seat bar, which offers all of the same booze and food options as downstairs. The lack of TVs makes it more authentically pub-like, but the biggest appeal — even more than natural light filtering from high-up windows — is the leather and faux-leather chairs and couches that make you never want to leave.

This cozy, quieter atmosphere could very well be the next cool spot to drink in town, unless the deck, opening in September, overshadows it.

Either way, Natty’s really should’ve added “bar” to the name “Kitchen + Market.”

Visit Natty Greene’s Kitchen + Market at 2003 Yanceyville Street (GSO) or find it on Facebook.