Eat, Drink, and Be Welcome
Many longtime patrons of Growler’s Pub—the shadowy, delightfully divey beer bar on the North Trail—felt shaken when owners Kevin and Sherry Kolyno sold the tavern to Sarasota restaurateurs Tyler Yurckonis and Mark Caragiulo in March 2018. The staff made a mass exodus by the time the business rebranded to become The Mable.
“Everybody was thinking we were going to change everything, but that’s not what we did,” Yurckonis says. “We just wanted to make it better: keep the core concept of what it was and add to it, accentuate it. And it’s still evolving.”
In its 15 years as a pub, the space has become known for comfort. Not in the sense of cushy seats and low-key vibes, but in how you can simply, safely be yourself when you’re there—whether grabbing a quiet pint after clocking out or thrashing around the barroom with your favorite local band. Of all the bar’s assets, Yurckonis knew this atmosphere was the most important thing to preserve.
“People deserve the same right to go out and do things,” Yurckonis says. “Why should you have the ability to go do something fun, and I can’t because of how I choose to live my life? It’s not fair,” Yurckonis says. “We want people to feel safe here. Everyone who works here is very sensitive to that, and I think that’s what makes The Mable a special place.”
The biggest change—adding a full kitchen—has only made The Mable more accessible. Its new licensing has been a boon to the student populations of the three nearby colleges, allowing people between the ages of 18 and 21 to come in, hang out, and wolf down a satisfying meal on the cheap. Yurckonis took an almost psychic approach to developing The Mable’s menu, which ranges impressively from sop-it-up pub grub to fresh and clean cuisine.
“People who run restaurants and bars well let the place speak to them,” Yurckonis says. “We sat at the bar and asked ourselves, ‘What would I want to eat when I’m here?’ A burger or wings, for sure. A footlong kosher hot dog with chili and cheese or ’kraut. Those are the easy ones. But what if I’m vegan?”
The Mable answers with plant-based chili, falafel, and tacos featuring roasted cauliflower, portobello mushrooms, and soy chorizo. (Yurckonis beams, “Soy chorizo has to be my greatest discovery with this place. It’s so good!”) If you choose not to booze, thirst-quenching options abound, including flavored kombucha. And Yurckonis’s mom makes the desserts from scratch, so you know the first ingredient has got to be love.
“The staff here is like a big family,” Yurckonis says. “Everyone’s been here for a long time. The customers are all regulars. I have trusted employees who are really good at their jobs, and they hang out with customers here on their days off. It’s a Cheers type of place. As a business owner, that’s what you strive for.”
