The Jack Rabbit team of Josh Mullin, Simon Wilson, Kevin Sampson, and Jake Monti are in the process of taking over the Tappo Pizza operation on Chandler Street. To say that these live-music-inclined operators have come a long way in a short period of time would be an understatement.
I spoke with the Jack Rabbit owners moments ago, who told me that they would be transitioning the building into a year round music hall (yet-to-be-named), while Thin Man (next door) continues to operate the brewery.
This Tappo takeover is great news for anyone who loves live music, wood fired pizzas, and local beers. While Tappo Pizza has been running some solid outdoor live music events, the new entity will be producing a full spectrum of music offerings.
“We’re putting a stage inside,” said Mullin. “It’s serendipitous. Simon and I opened Tappo Pizza – he was the bar manager and I was the GM. We’re finishing the vision that was originally mapped out.”
Not only will the new owners/operators be fulfilling the original vision for Tappo Pizza, they will also be able to spread their live music wings, without any interference from neighbors.
While the new team will be distancing themselves from the Tappo brand, they will still be serving up many of the Tappo’s recipe’s for success, including the wood-fired pizzas. The only difference is that they will be doing it in the Jack Rabbit way.
Once open, sometime this fall, guests to this new establishment will come across many of the same signature traits that have made Jack Rabbit so successful. To boot, weddings will still be held on the second floor, along with other booking events. And when the warm weather sets in in 2024, DJ sets will kick off on the patio.
It won’t be long before Buffalo has another high quality, reliable music hall on its hands. We owe a lot to the creators of Tappo Pizza for getting the ball rolling. Now, the jack Rabbit empresarios are set to step in, pick up that ball, and hit another home run in Black Rock.