HopCat is a restaurant and bar chain based in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

, United States, with seventeen locations in eight states. HopCat is best known for having a wide array of beers on tap, with several of their locations offering over 100 different options. Founded in 2008 in Grand Rapids by Mark Sellers, the original HopCat in Grand Rapids is a

brewpub Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis ...

with its own small brewery, which typically supplies 4-6 house-made beers alongside craft beers from around the country. HopCat opened its second location in

East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...

in 2013. In 2015, BarFly Ventures secured $25 million in capital financing to support its effort to expand HopCat, which will open as many as 30 locations over the next several years. On June 6, 2020, BarFly Ventures filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Grand Rapids, MI.

Accolades

The Grand Rapids location was recognized as one of the best brewpubs in the United States by RateBeer.com from 2013 to 2015. In 2010, HopCat was rated No. 3 on BeerAdvocate's list of "Best Beer Bars on Planet Earth."

Controversy

On December 15, 2018, Barfly Ventures CEO Mark Gray announced that Hopcat would be renaming its famous “Crack Fries” in order to avoid making light of the drug the name refers to as well as addiction to said drug. The fries were renamed "Cosmik Fries" in reference to

Frank Zappa's Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang ...

song "

Cosmik Debris "Cosmik Debris" is a song by American composer Frank Zappa, from his 1974 album ''Apostrophe (')''. It concerns the Mystery Man, a typical guru or psychic, offering to help the narrator reach Nervanna icfor a "nominal service charge," and the ...

Locations

* Ann Arbor, Michigan - Downtown *

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

- Midtown *

(original location, opened in 2008) - Heartside *

- Knapp's Corner *

Holland, Michigan Holland is a city in the western region of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated near the eastern shore of Lake Michigan on Lake Macatawa, which is fed by the Macatawa River (formerly known locally as the Black R ...

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of U.S. state and territorial capitals, state capital and List of U.S. states' largest cities by population, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat, seat of ...

- Broad Ripple *

Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropol ...

- Downtown * Kansas City, Missouri - Westport - CLOSED *

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County. By population, it is the second-largest city in Kentucky and 57th-largest city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 28th-largest ...

- CLOSED *

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana borde ...

- Bardstown Road - CLOSED *

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United St ...

- West Haymarket *

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County, Wisconsin, Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin b ...

- Capitol - CLOSED * Minneapolis, Minnesota - Downtown - CLOSED *

Port St. Lucie, Florida Port St. Lucie is a city in St. Lucie County, Florida, United States. It is the most populous municipality in the county with a population of 204,851 at the 2020 census. It is located southeast of Orlando and north of Miami. The Port St. Lu ...

- Tradition - CLOSED *

Royal Oak, Michigan Royal Oak is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. An inner-ring suburb of Detroit, Royal Oak is about north of Detroit's city limits. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 57,236. Royal Oak is located along ...

- Downtown. CLOSED in 2020. *

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, whic ...

- Delmar Loop - CLOSED

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://hopcat.com/
BarFly Ventures
Gastropubs in the United States Restaurant chains in the United States Companies based in Grand Rapids, Michigan Restaurants established in 2008 2008 establishments in Michigan Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020