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Blues, barbeque, and beer
under the half moon
BY VICKI WARREN
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Half Moon Bar-B-Que
sits quietly nestled beside a wig shop on Georgia Avenue.
The storefront walls surrounding the restaurant are
barely wide enough for a window and a door, but for
owner Marc Gretschel, the space is a perfect reminder
of the places he has loved in his past. He reminisces
fondly about neighborhood bars he has known, where legroom
was limited, the menu small, and the feel of the place
like home for the regulars.
For years, Gretschel worked the local music scene,
first booking bands at his club, the Twist and Shout,
and later at Paddy Mac’s. Now, he has found a resting
place at the Half Moon Bar-B-Que in downtown Silver
Spring. He is still booking music–in fact, there
is live music most nights at the Half Moon. But according
to Gretschel, the Half Moon is a restaurant and a bar
first.
Gretschel isn’t just the owner and music guru
at the Half Moon. He is also the cook. When it comes
to the food, his repertoire is short and to the point.
It is Bar-B-Que–chicken, pork, or beef. Gretschel
calls it authentic North Carolina, Memphis, and Texas
barbecue.
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Photo: Vicki Warren
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For those more partial to sea than land, the catch on the
Half Moon menu is Southern fried catfish. Anyone wanting to
forego meat entirely would have to move over to "the
sides." There are a handful and they are all vegetarian.
Not on the menu, but evident throughout the restaurant, is
an extensive collection of beers. Besides the Pilsner Urquell,
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, and Newcastle Brown Ale on tap, there
are plenty of bottled beers to take some of the fire out of
the Half Moon’s wings.
Also evident everywhere is the music. On Tuesday nights,
regulars gather for Bill Kirchen’s Open Mike. Kirchen
sits in the front room of the restaurant by the window and
plays acoustic blues and keeps the mike open for others who
might want to join in. The place is full of them–people
who want to play music, and people who know the people who
want to play music.
Wednesday nights the action moves to the back room, and the
place is in full swing with the sound of bands such as the
Rhodes Tavern Troubadours.
By Saturday night, the sound has switched to western bop,
as J.P. McDermott & Western Boys gear up and get the back
room jumping.
Bill Piccolo, a founder of Room Full of Blues, showed up
one night recently at the Half Moon. With his trimmed-down
band, the combination of blues, barbecue and beer seemed to
make even the cinderblock walls of the back room start to
sway.
Gretschel grew up locally in Kensington, Md. He has fond
memories of his travels to Baltimore and can rattle off a
number of his favorite neighborhood haunts. Duda’s is
one; Polock Johnny’s is another. In fact, he liked them
so well he hung pictures of the places on the wall at the
Half Moon. From art to music to food, Gretschel says everything
about his restaurant derives geographically from the mid-Atlantic
region of America southwards.
"I’m not trying to insult my New England cousins,"
he laughs. But the soul of the Half Moon is clearly southern.
From the start, the long, narrow storefront space Gretschel
chose to house the Half Moon dictated function. A long narrow
hall connected a front room to one behind it. Diners fill
up the booths built in the front room or sit at the bar to
eat. Bands played in the back and set up their equipment to
fit in the space. Small high top tables were added in the
back room so people could sit. Dancers learned not to get
too lost in the beat, or they could easily knock into a band
member or someone sitting at a table.
But now, things are changing at the Half Moon. The back room
has had a makeover–yellow, blue, peach and purple swatches
of color give the place a funkier feel, and overhead ceiling
fans cool the new lunchtime crowd.
Gretschel had tried offering lunch when he first opened in
September 2000, but the crowds to make it go just weren’t
there. Now, with the Discovery Communications office building
operational, the afternoon population in downtown Silver Spring
has grown. Half Moon is now open Monday through Friday from
11:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. for lunch. He has also altered the
menu slightly for afternoon diners.
"As I expand, more things are possible," he says.
He now has tables he can use in the back room to seat larger
parties, but then quickly move when the music begins. His
goal is to be "casual, but good." He is also looking
to be more of an "off-premises place" and to offer
catering for parties.
So as Silver Spring changes, Gretschel hopes to keep in step.
But those who know him know one thing will always remain a
constant at the Half Moon: good music.
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