From Knox Brew Hub to Fred’s Around the Corner: A Fresh Start with Heart

When Zack and Dylan Roskop opened Knox Brew Hub in 2020 at 421 Union Ave., it quickly became a favorite gathering place for craft beer lovers and a home base for Knox Brew Tours and Knox Brew Stories. The concept was designed around celebrating the local beer community, and it filled a need for a casual, friendly space where anyone could drop in for a pint and conversation. They eventually added food to the mix with the opening of Fred Beans and Rice, and it was a smashing success.

This success led to a more narrowed focus for the Brew Hub crew, and Knox Brew Tours did its 2000th and final tour at this time last year. More recently, Knox Brew Stories, which had been recording at the Hub weekly, found a new home at Suttree’s High Gravity Tavern, and Zack noticed people spending their time and dollars differently downtown.

The team at Knox Brew Hub decided it was time to start a new chapter. The space at 141 Union Ave. now has a new name, new logo and a new menu. Something that hasn’t changed is its heart for community, sharing that “love you, mean it” energy and its welcoming atmosphere.

Let’s all say it together now. “Welcome to the neighborhood Fred’s Around the Corner!”

I chatted with Zack this week and checked out the soft opening to talk about the renewed vision for the ‘bar around the corner’ so many have loved for the last five years. He shared that the idea for a rebrand began about six months ago, before the passing of his father, Fred, in July. Fred had been an important part of shaping the vision and mission, leaving a lasting influence on what the space has become.

A water leak in the building on Aug. 15 forced the business to close for six weeks, but the timing was unrelated to the rebrand. A leak on the fifth floor went unnoticed, eventually flooding their ground floor space and everything in between with nearly two inches of water. “It was just a coincidence,” Zack said. “The rebrand was already in motion.”

The rebranding reflects both practical shifts and personal touches. Fred’s Around the Corner nods to Zack and Dylan’s father while describing both its physical location just ‘around the corner from Market Square’ and the welcoming spirit of the bar. “Fred always said how we make people feel is more important than what we serve them,” Zack said. “To cook is to serve someone, but to feed them is to love them.”

“The Hub was wonderful, but over time we noticed we were selling more food than alcohol,” he said. “Our liquor program wasn’t strong, craft breweries are shutting down, and drinking in general seems to be on the decline. We needed to adapt, grow and communicate that we do more than just sell craft beer.”

Since the pandemic, Knoxville has seen a wave of high-end restaurants open downtown. Zack sees Fred’s filling a different niche. “We have been missing the good old-fashioned neighborhood bar,” he said. “An approachable place with good drinks, good food and good people.”

Zack also felt that the “Cajun” designation that Fred’s Beans and Rice had was limiting the creative options they could serve on the menu. The new name continues to honor Fred but also leaves flexibility for fun and unique offerings whenever inspiration hits. The menu will keep customer (my) favorite Soppin’ Shrimp, now with expanded sauces including tangy barbecue and garlic parmesan and maybe even the chance to buy your favorite soppin’ sauce to take home, which I am particularly rooting for. Fred’s original red beans and rice are staying put, as Zack knows he might get run out of Market Square if he took that off the menu.

New items to look for are hot pretzels, deviled eggs (one of Fred’s favorites) and Philly cheesesteaks. More community-centered dishes like spaghetti night specials are also in the works. “We don’t want to be limited. We want to meet the community where they are,” he said of menu items and price points.

The drinks menu has also expanded. Eight custom cocktails, all named after famous Freds, like the Astaire, a play on the Old Fashioned have been dreamed up and added to the menu. The draft beer list will continue to feature Knoxville breweries, with a rotating mix of regional and national options.

Customers will notice a change in service style in addition to the physical and menu changes. Instead of ordering at the bar, guests will now sit down where they want and be taken care of at the table. And you might even meet Mama Roskop bustling around, helping out!
Trivia, chess nights and the casual, come-as-you-are atmosphere will stay. The space has been refreshed by designer Natalie Sakaan, and the new branding was created by Travis Stevens of Riot Printing. You’ll also notice lots of photos around the space with famous Freds, including in the restrooms themed in Freddy Mercury and Freddie Prince Jr.

If you know even a little bit about what Knox Brew Hub did for the sports fans in the community, you know it has been a foundational supporter of One Knox SC, soccer in general and all UT sports. Zack tells me they are now going ALL IN on four teams. You’ll see four flags hang inside the bar, representing the teams the staff rallies behind: both men’s and women’s UT teams, One Knox SC, Manchester United and the Detroit Lions, the favorite team of Zack’s wife, Amy.

Fred’s Around the Corner officially opens its doors today, Oct. 3, at 11 a.m. The team hopes the community will continue to embrace what they have always done, with a new identity and a renewed focus on being the kind of spot people can return to again and again.

Zack’s message to Knoxville? “Love you, mean it!” Now return that love. We’ll see you there!