Homewood Brewing Company owners, from left, Carmela Wallace, Robert Lauderdale and Brian Wallace at the groundbreaking for the building that will be constructed at the site of the former Bogart's Charhouse. (Nick Ulanowski/H-F Chronicle)
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Construction of Homewood Brewing Company has begun

Homewood Brewing Company owners broke the ground on Dixie Highway on Friday, Dec. 2.  Homewood Brewing will be a craft brewery and restaurant owned by the family of Juice Wrld, the H-F grad and rap star who died of a drug overdose in 2019; it will be dedicated to his honor.

The site at 18255 Dixie Highway, where Bogarts Restaurant once stood, is currently a large hole full of dirt and gravel. Greg Berman, owner of Crosstown Design Build, the firm doing the construction, said they’re waiting for concrete to arrive for the foundation so they can start putting up steel. Construction of the building should take about 14 months, Berman said.

From left, Homewood Brewery Company owners Brian Wallace, Carmela Wallace, Robert Lauderdale and Homewood Mayor Rich Hofeld dig in at the groundbreaking ceremony for Homewood Brewing. (Nick Ulanowski/H-F Chronicle)
From left, Homewood Brewery Company owners Brian Wallace, Carmela Wallace, Robert Lauderdale and Homewood Mayor Rich Hofeld dig in at the groundbreaking ceremony for Homewood Brewing. (Nick Ulanowski/H-F Chronicle)

Co-owner and executive chef Robert Launderdale said the food at Homewood Brewing will be “midwestern cuisine with a creole and Cajun flavor.” 

“The actual recipes are my thoughts, my ideas, my creations but we’re working with Charlie Baggs Culinary Innovations who are making my thoughts reality,” Launderdale said.

Launderdale said he hopes Homewood Brewing is “opening, inviting and warm” and “a place you can comfortably be yourself, enjoy yourself.” The inside of the building is expected to be around 18,000 square feet, Launderdale said. This includes the basement, the main floor and an event space on the second floor, he said.

Brian Wallace, Juice Wrld’s brother and Homewood Brewing co-owner, said the idea for the business was his mother’s and “she’s bringing me along for the ride.”

“I think the fact that it’s a brewery has a lot to do with me. Because I’ve always been into craft beer. I’ve always been a huge craft beer guy,” he said.

The groundbreaking took place on what would’ve been Juice Wrld’s 24th birthday. Carmela Wallace, his mother and brewery co-owner, said that was intentional. 

“The business is a way to honor my son Jarad and Homewood – for the community and the warmth we felt when we lived here,” Wallace said. “He always came back to Homewood well after being famous. He always came home.” 

Wallace said Homewood Brewing might have fundraising events for the Live Free 999 foundation, an organization she runs that provides preventive measures for mental health challenges.

“Perhaps we’ll have a line of beer (whose) proceeds will go back to the foundation,” Wallace said. 

“It’s going to be a wonderful place. It’s going to be a nice gathering place, a place where everyone’s welcome,” Homewood Mayor Rich Hoefeld said. “We never have enough restaurants.”

The owners expect the brewery and restaurant to open in the first quarter of 2024.

A rendering of the future Homewood Brewing on Dixie Highway by Mike Matthys of Flossmoor, representing the Linden Group. (Provided image)
A rendering of the future Homewood Brewing on Dixie Highway by Mike Matthys of Flossmoor, representing the Linden Group. (Provided image)

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