Two Lanes Blog • February 22nd, 2019

Documenting the Historic Mom-and-Pop Shops of New York City

James and Karla Murray photograph and interview shopkeepers who’ve served their communities for more than a century.

If you’ve ever traveled to New York City, chances are you’ve purchased something from a street vendor like a pretzel, hotdog, perhaps a pair of knock-off Ray Bans at a negotiated price. That experience is comparable to the way folks shopped in the early 1800s.

Two Lanes Blog • September 11th, 2019

Come Stay At Mike's Two Lanes Guesthouse

Travelers who’d like to be immersed in Mike Wolfe’s Two Lanes backroad lifestyle can now make themselves at home in his Columbia, Tennessee

Mike’s Two Lanes Guesthouse is officially open to the public as a unique, Main Street loft vacation rental in Columbia, Tennessee. This is the first time that fans of American Pickers get to see picks from the show that Mike has pulled out of barns and sheds across America presented as decor.

Two Lanes Blog • September 7th, 2018

The Oldest Roadside Attraction in Florida

Since 1947 the Weeki Wachee mermaids have lured U.S.19 drivers to a performance 20 feet below the surface inside the deepest freshwater spring in America.

Imagine you’re out cruising down the Two Lanes of central Florida and you see a mermaid waving to you from a rock on the side of the road. You pull over, follow the tropical mirage out of the car and down into a limestone theater submerged 20 feet below the surface of one of the deepest naturally formed underwater caverns in the country.

Two Lanes Blog • August 28th, 2020

Motor Motels: Spend The Night In Another Time

There was much to celebrate with the conclusion of The Great Depression and WWII. The economy was beginning to bounce back, soldiers returned home, and in neighborhoods around the country, more automobiles could be found parked in the driveway.

With daily life beginning to return to normal, there was a hunger to explore beyond the front porch and create happy new memories by taking road trips. All there was to do was pack a bag, pick a direction on the map stashed in the glove compartment, and

Two Lanes Blog • April 26th, 2018

Documenting Biker Culture In America

Paul d’Orléans and Susan McLaughlin travel on Two Lanes, using a Sprinter van as a mobile darkroom, as they capture wet plate-style photos of motorcycles and their owners.

Wet plate photography is an art that’s as old as the state of California. That’s where Susan McLaughlin, a tintype photographer, met Paul d’Orléans, a motorcycle culture expert, author, and rider, in the 1990s, not knowing that one day their two specialties would unite, and discover new ways of picturing biker culture.

Two Lanes Blog • November 15th, 2018

Abandoned Kansas: Preserving The Stories Of Small Town Life

In 1871, taking advantage of the Homestead Act, Mary Rickman Anderson and her husband David paid the $10 fee and headed out across Kansas to claim their 160 acres.

The family’s first home was a sod house, so poor that their children slept in beds suspended from the cellar rafters – the only way to protect them from snakes and insects.

Two Lanes Blog • June 7th, 2018

What It Looks Like Restoring One of The Oldest Hotels in America

“A nod to the past and an eye to the future…”

Welcome to The National Exchange Hotel in Nevada City, California. You’ve just checked into one of the oldest hotels in America.

If the ornate velvet walls of this place could talk, there’d be enough material to produce the next big Netflix docuseries. Stories about famous guests like Mark Twain and Black Bart swimming in the mountain spring-fed pool in the courtyard, the legendary lore of gold-hungry hopefuls exchanging their finds in the tunnels.

Two Lanes Blog • August 5th, 2021

Check In To The Last Remaining Hotel Designed By Frank Lloyd Wright

Mason City, Iowa is home to the only remaining hotel in the world designed by world-famous architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. Completed in 1910 and restored in 2011, The Historic Park Inn continues to welcome guests from around the world to experience this truly, one-of-a-kind stay.

Three hours northwest of Antique Archaeology's LeClaire location rests this historic hotel and next door bank. 100 years ago, this midwest town of fewer than 27K, brought one of the greatest architects of all time to break ground

Hop Culture • July 1st, 2022

Favorite Beer and BBQ Pairings, According to a James Beard Award-Winning Pitmaster

This weekend, we’ll be gathered in the backyard with family. Most likely, fixing up a plate of Uncle Joe’s famous dry rubbed ribs, smoked wings, and other BBQ accouterments. The big question: What the heck do we drink to wash it all down? Do you know what beer will perfectly complement the char and flavor of barbecue?

Full disclosure: We didn’t. So we turned to an expert.

Lucky for you, we happen to be friends with James Beard Award-Winning Pitmaster and classic Carolina-style BBQ chef Rodney

Untappd for Business • September 15th, 2022

A Brewer’s Guide to Water Chemistry

Since water is the largest component of brewing beer, it’s important to understand the chemistry behind it. And what you can do, as a brewer, to make sure it’s the best grade possible. According to Precision Fermentation's report called “Water Chemistry for Brewers,” “by understanding the way water chemistry impacts the sensory quality of finished beer, and by analyzing fermentation and other data, brewers can control sensory aspects of their brews like never before.”

Untappd for Business • September 1st, 2022

The Complete Guide to Noble Hops

We recently put together a guide for all of the hops grown in America and another for those found in the Southern Hemisphere.

But while hops in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa are fairly new, we can’t forget about noble hops, classic European varieties that have been cultivated for hundreds of years.

Untappd for Business • September 12th, 2022

6 Ways to Maintain a Clean and Sanitized Brewery

A brewery cannot exist without occasionally spilling beer on the floor. While these spills themselves are not dangerous, they can have long-term issues without the proper floor sealants.

For example, if you have a spill on an unsealed floor, like concrete, you’ll never be able to remove the spilled liquid. This moisture produces the ideal conditions for the growth of bacteria and mold.

So, since breweries, by nature, are wet environments, solid sealants like epoxy can help lock out moisture.

Untappd for Business • November 18th, 2022

The 5 Most Profitable Bar Foods

Fried food is usually the first thing that comes to mind when you think about amazing bar food. With good reason.

Customers enjoy fried foods. Fried food is a great way to upsell in your bar or brewery because crunchy, salty, fried foods make people thirsty for something cold and bubbly to wash it down.

In that same vein, fried foods often become bestsellers on bar menus because they complement beer so well, especially hoppy styles such as hazies, West Coast IPAs, and double IPAS.

Ollie • January 5th, 2023

Craft Beer Trademarks: How to Apply for One and How to Protect Yours

Four years ago, Stone Brewing filed a trademark dispute with Molson Coors. The now ninth largest brewery in the country argued that the macrobrewery’s Keystone brand violated Stone Brewing’s registered STONE® trademark when they marketed cans with only “STONE,” dropping the “KEY.” In March 2022, the San Diego federal court ruled in Stone’s favor, awarding the brewery $56 million. Interestingly enough, not one month later Stone Brewing found itself embroiled in a trademark dispute once again.

Ollie • December 23rd, 2022

Non-Alcoholic Beer Marketing Tips from Southern Grist

Understanding not just the range of consumer audiences but also the variety of reasons why a consumer would pick a non-alcoholic choice over a conventional beer is crucial when planning your brewery’s entry into the non-alcoholic market.

According to Antoon, one of the first ways Southern Grist introduced its non-alcoholic brand to the market was through smaller NA groups.

Untappd for Business • April 29th, 2022

16 Fresh Ideas for Promoting Your Bar and Taproom

For centuries, bars and taverns have been a gathering place where folks from all walks of life can gather and bond over a pint any time of the day. And today, you can add taprooms to that list of gathering spaces. There are many times you can count on your bar or taproom being a little busier, like on payday or during happy hour. But what about the days when business tends to be a little slow? How can you continue to drive traffic to your establishment during those off-peak hours of the week?

Untappd for Business • June 15th, 2022

WiFi Marketing: What It Is and Why Your Business Should Utilize It

WiFi marketing enables shoppers to access your store’s WiFi, aiming to increase the number of new visitors and their conversion rate. With this strategy you can get data on new customers and learn more about existing ones through their online behavior, among other things.

Here are four more ways WiFi marketing can improve your business:

WiFi marketing allows you to target your consumers as they enter your business. Why is this helpful?

Untappd for Business • October 19th, 2022

The Top 5 Restaurant Wait-in-Line Apps to Try Right Now

When people have a good time in your restaurant, they’re more likely to leave a better review, which in turn can actually help you boost your bottom line.

For instance, Qless reports that a restaurant's income is anticipated to increase by five to nine percent with a one-star boost on Yelp.

According to that report, five percent of customers say they are unlikely to return after a bad experience that can be attributed to poor customer service, subpar cuisine, or excessively long queues at rest

Untappd for Business • October 27th, 2022

Should You Start a Food Delivery Service?

While researching food industry trends for 2022, they forecasted that the pandemic would drive a revolution in digital and delivery services by changing how people purchased and received food like curbside pickup, online ordering, and delivery. Now, it’s a sentiment shared across the industry. Boston Consulting Group reported in the article “The $100 Billion Digital Lifeline for Restaurants” that “Delivery’s market share jumped from 7% in 2019 to about 20% in 2020.

Untappd for Business • October 14th, 2022

How to Plate Food Like a Chef: Food Presentation Techniques

As reported by The Guardian, experimental psychologist Charles Spence asserts that, "when the plating is artistic, people tend to enjoy the food more than if the same ingredients were just dumped on the plate." In reality, plating science is far more intricate than that. Start by considering the ingredients, preparation technique, and flavors you can create when preparing the ideal dish.

Untappd for Business • November 7th, 2022

A Guide to a Standard Liquor Pour

There is nothing better than a full bar. As a bar owner, witnessing patrons sipping cocktails and engaging in conversation is a sign of repeat business and a profitable day. According to a National Restaurant Association study, the typical bartender can make thirty-six drinks in an hour (Ward III). To get the most out of your liquor bottles and maximize your margins on a busy night, it's critical that your bartenders are well-versed in standard liquor pours.

Untappd for Business • November 10th, 2022

How to Create a Prix Fixe Menu

Here are a few of the top reasons why a prix fixe menu benefits your business.

A prix fixe option might be available every day at some restaurants or just for a set amount of time. Either way, because you use a set menu price, running with a prix fixe means that you know the exact food cost per diner.

Which in turn helps you keep your food cost under control. With just a set menu, you can order only the ingredients you need for each dish instead of a wide range that may not be used everyday.

Untappd for Business • June 17th, 2022

The Ultimate Guide to Cocktail Glasses

Certain cocktails benefit from a wide range of glasses that enhance both their appearance and taste. Picking the right drinkware boosts a beverage's aroma and temperature. All this means that using the right cocktail glass is incredibly important. But what type of glass does your bartender need for some of the most common cocktails on your bar’s menu? Read on to learn about the most common types of cocktail glasses and how their design brings out different aspects of each beverage.

Untappd for Business • September 22nd, 2022

A Restaurateur’s Guide To Menu Design

On average, diners only look at a menu for 109 seconds, according to a Gallup poll cited in a Canva article on menu design hacks. Let that sink in. That’s about as long as it takes to pump a full tank of gas. Since time is of the essence, it’s important that you thoughtfully consider the layout, standard menu size, dish titles, etc. After all, your menu is your biggest and most important sales pitch.

Ollie • December 2nd, 2022

Two Breweries Share How to Find the Right Brewery Location

Behind the scenes, brewing is a manufacturing business that requires certain specifications. Similarly, in the front of house with a taproom space, you need to find a place that can accommodate things like a kitchen, if need be, consumer restrooms, and more.

Ollie • December 19th, 2022

Sustainable Brewing Tips From Allagash and New Belgium

Three Ways New Belgium Makes Its Brewery More Sustainable at the National Level

New Belgium has supported sustainable incentives and regulations for the brewing industry for more than three decades, advocating for other breweries to produce beer in a more environmentally friendly manner.

In a significant effort to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, New Belgium has brewed the country’s first carbon-neutral beer, implemented solar panels, produced power from process effluent.

Ollie • October 27th, 2022

6 Reasons to Stop Using Google Sheets to Manage Your Brewery

As a brewer, when it comes to your day-to-day operations, reliability is key. Knowing that you’re fully prepared to brew your brand’s best-selling pilsner or making sure that your hops supplier received a timely invoice is crucial to healthy brewery operations.

Just as you pride yourself on using the best ingredients for your beer, why shouldn’t the same care go into a reliable brewery management system that works with your brewery as it grows?

Untappd for Business • October 5th, 2022

4 Halloween Events for Your Bar or Brewery

Once you have fully decorated your bar/brewery with fake spider webs, skeletons, and headstones, you’re ready to welcome guests to your graveyard smash!

Let guests settle in with a couple of cocktails and treats before kicking off the ghoulish games for the evening. This is a great way to kick off the party and get guests out of their chairs and interacting with the other partygoers.

Untappd for Business • October 3rd, 2022

How Much Do Bartenders Make?

Here is a staggering fact: Over 726,936 bartenders currently work in the United States, according to demographic information from Zippia. And that number is only going to get higher. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the employment of bartenders is projected to grow eighteen percent from 2021 to 2031, with about 105,300 openings for bartenders projected each year, on average, over the next decade.

Untappd for Business • August 10th, 2022

Understanding the Difference Between Service Charges and Tips

Service industry employees like bartenders, wait staff, food runners, and bussers are the backbone of the service industry and your business. Your servers work hard every day to bring customers’ food and drinks to the right table (not to mention ensuring special birthday dinners go off without a hitch). And your bartenders work tirelessly to keep the drinks flowing for your patrons.

Ollie • November 10th, 2022

The 3 Benefits of Implementing a Successful CRM System at Your Brewery

1. Help All of Your Sales Representatives Build Amazing Relationships

A robust CRM system makes your sales reps’ lives easier. Every day your sales team has a goal to develop relationships and sell beer. Often on the road making account visits, they could have anywhere from ten to fifteen conversations a day.

Your sales reps simply won’t be able to recall every discussion from memory. A CRM provides a place where they can record all of their interactions.

Untappd for Business • June 28th, 2022

A Guide to Corkage Fees

There are a number of reasons why your patrons might enjoy bringing their own bottle of wine to your restaurant. Not only is it affordable, but it also enhances their experience. As a business owner without a liquor license (or even one that has a license but still offers “bring your own bottle”), letting your customers bring their own wine or bottles encourages more traffic through the door. Plus, offering BYOB helps your restaurant’s profit margin.