CHARLESTOWN, N.H. – A brand new restaurant and music venue finally opened its doors to the public on Friday, Oct. 24. After 18 months of planning, construction, tons of preparation, and sweat equity, The Clubhouse Bar and Grill owners Alicia and Gary Knight welcomed more than 100 guests that first night. Saturday’s crowd was even larger.
The Knights, who will be married for 25 years in January, worked in the railroad industry for the past 20 years. Alicia commuted to Boston from Charlestown three days per week, leaving home at 2 a.m. to get to the office by 4 a.m. Gary worked in Boston most of the time, so was not home a lot. Alicia’s title was railroad project estimator, and Gary was a rail project manager. “When people ask me what’s the difference, I tell them my husband can build a railroad,” Alicia remarked. “All I can do is tell you how much it will cost.”
Alicia’s father worked in construction, which gave her some knowledge as she took on the task of building The Clubhouse. Her stepfather, a master electrician, lent a hand on site.
The whole idea started when, in November 2022, the Knights were in North Carolina for Thanksgiving, and, the day after the holiday, their house in Charlestown burned down. They made the decision to rebuild the structure themselves, and, according to Alicia, “literally took claw hammers and tore my house down to the ground. The house was 233 years old, so we had to be particular. We built a brand-new house in the same spot.”
Alicia couldn’t help laughing, noting, “It took us less than a year to tear an entire house down, build a brand new one, and move into it. But it took 18 months to get the bar up and running.”
After the fire, they realized they did not want to return to work in Boston, and considered other options before Gary asked Alicia, “Do you want to open a bar?”
“Sure,” was Alicia’s reply. “We haven’t tried that before.”
Alicia said they were initially considering holding a soft opening, but when there was a delay with a propane delivery, they hit the ground running on Friday night, announcing the spontaneous “hard open” on Facebook that afternoon. “I figured, we haven’t done anything soft in our lives, so…”
Gary takes care of booking the bands, and Alicia said some musicians have been reaching out to them as well. A lover of ‘90s music, Gary contacted a local DJ called DJ Eric G. (Gomez), who had retired from doing gigs but, after a 15-minute conversation about The Clubhouse, decided to come out of retirement and join the team.
The Clubhouse serves original recipes made with scratch ingredients, and Alicia said they were lucky to find three great chefs. “Everyone seems to love the food so far,” Alicia remarked. She said she cooked from scratch for their four children, and feels it is important to serve fresh dishes to her customers. “I’m fussy,” she admitted.
“We’re going to offer an affordable menu, with good food and very kid-friendly options,” Alicia commented. There are plans to start weekend breakfast service soon.
With Halloween upon us, The Clubhouse is planning some events. A live band will play on Friday night, Oct. 31, with a costume contest held on Saturday, Nov. 1. DJ Eric G. performs on Saturday nights.
Wing nights are going to be starting up on Thursdays, and Alicia was excited to announce that Bud Light is sponsoring Patriots ticket giveaways once per month. The bar plans to offer different tickets to other sporting events throughout the year.
Alicia and Gary, their family, friends, and teammates want to create an atmosphere where everyone feels welcome and like family, and just has a good time. “Charlestown has been my home for almost 40 years, but my roots run generations deep in this small town,” wrote Alicia on The Clubhouse Bar and Grill’s Facebook page. “I’ve raised my kids in Charlestown, and my grandchildren are also being raised here.”
“Our mission is to give back whenever and wherever we can. We have a lot of ideas to do just that, and we’ll lay out those ideas as we go forward…we hope that you will join us for a good meal, some good times, and make some great memories with us.”
The Clubhouse Bar and Grill is located at 32 Hastings Place, Charlestown, N.H.