Established in 1927, The Cottage Bar and Restaurant is the oldest running bar in Grand Rapids. It began as a sandwich shop catering primarily to factory workers in the area. When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, The Cottage obtained its liquor license.
“[The Cottage] is an iconic, classic institution. Every city has a classic, iconic bar,” says Dan Verhil, owner of the Cottage. “In Grand Rapids, that would be The Cottage Bar.”
The Cottage has been in Verhil’s family since 1967. Verhil has been everything from a bus boy to a bartender before taking over the bar from his father.
Giving back to the community is a priority for The Cottage. They have hosted an annual chili cook-off every fall for 33 years. The proceeds from the event are donated to a non-profit organization.
“I think in Grand Rapids [giving back is] kind of part of our culture. There are so many great philanthropists that give to the city,” says Verhil. “I feel that as a business owner I have that obligation, even my small part, that I have to give back something to the city.”
The Cottage supports Grand Rapids in other ways throughout the year, and on August 21, they have agreed to host The Rapidian Night Out. From 5 to 10 p.m. that evening, 15% of food purchases will go to support citizen journalism.
Come grab some grub at 18 LaGrave Ave SE on August 21 and support your favorite local news source! Rapidian staff will also be available to take donations. Donors will receive Rapidian swag like civic investor vinyl stickers and t-shirts as a way of saying thank you for your donation-and a way for you to show off your Rapidian love. Whether you're at the event or unable to attend, be sure to take advantage of the chance to show us some Rapidian love and supporting us by donating online.
The Rapidian, a proud service of the Community Media Center, was started thanks to generous grants from the Knight Foundation and our local Grand Rapids Community Foundation.
Now that those grants are completed, we need your help to keep The Rapidian going. The Rapidian provides a platform for all voices in Grand Rapids, sharing local news, information and perspectives by empowering anyone in the community to become a citizen journalist.
Citizen journalists are provided with tools, training and individual mentors to help them along the way-and in return they provide us with all sorts of stories about what is going on in our community.
We're looking forward to seeing you all out and helping us keep community news available in the greater Grand Rapids area. Come on down and say "hi" -and don't forget to thank The Cottage for their generous support of our efforts!
The Rapidian, a program of the 501(c)3 nonprofit Community Media Center, relies on the community’s support to help cover the cost of training reporters and publishing content.
We need your help.
If each of our readers and content creators who values this community platform help support its creation and maintenance, The Rapidian can continue to educate and facilitate a conversation around issues for years to come.
Please support The Rapidian and make a contribution today.