They decided to include a wine bar to attract more people into the space.
“We love to give back to the community and so we were just trying to figure out what’s a really easy way of doing that,” Carder said. “(Brent) already is connected with so many artists because of the restaurant, so we just kind of felt like we already had our foot in the door in that aspect.”
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
Home Sweet Home - Wine Bar & Gallery is located next to the cafe at 320 W. National Road.
They’ve partnered with nine artists and have room for one more. Each artist gets five to six feet of wall space. All art is for sale with pieces ranging from $25 to $400.
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
Artists that sell things like jewelry or crochet items will still be promoted at the restaurant. The wine bar focuses on hanging art.
“What we wanted to create was a space that you could come in for date night or you could come in to blow off some steam after your day of work,” Carder said. “I think when people come in here, they can expect just a really relaxed, chill, fun environment.”
All of the furniture is secondhand from the community. The owners thrifted most of the items or found it on Facebook Marketplace.
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
As for the wine program, the owners are listening to what the community wants.
“Our first order of wine was very generic — based on what our distributor recommended,“ Carder said. ”Right now, we’re really tapping into what the community is wanting.“
The community has enjoyed a wide variety of wines. From very sweet wines like a Caramel Apple Moscato to very dry reds like a Cabernet Sauvignon, the wine bar offers a large variety.
Customers can buy wine by the glass or bottle. A glass of the house wine is $6.
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
Customers have also requested nonalcoholic options, in addition to soda and water. Home Sweet Home carries Mingle Mocktails and nonalcoholic wine.
The bar also has vodka, gin and tequila-based seltzers, as well as a cocktail menu.
“We have an incredible bartender,” Carder said. “Her name is Erica (Wesler) and she has come up with very creative drinks. We’re going to be coming out with some fun cocktails as we get more established.”
Home Sweet Home - Wine Bar & Gallery has snacks such as chips and candy. They also sell desserts from the restaurant including bread pudding, brownies, cheesecake and chocolate cake.
In the future, they plan to offer charcuterie.
Customers at Home Sweet Home - Wine Bar & Gallery can grab a glass of wine and take it next door to the cafe. They are not allowed to bring food from the cafe into the bar.
Carder is looking forward to seeing where the wine bar and gallery goes.
“I’m from a really small town and so I like the community feel to it,” Carder said. “Being in here on a Tuesday night, I feel like anybody can come in here and it’s very comfortable. We can sit and talk about literally anything . It feels safe.”
Carder is originally from Minster, Ohio. Herzog is from Minnesota. They have lived in the area for about a year.
Herzog opened Home Sweet Home Cafe five years ago after working in the restaurant industry.
“He’s an entrepreneur, so he loves to create new things,” Carder said. “He opened the restaurant by himself, and five years later, it’s doing great.”
Home Sweet Home Cafe is known for its hot shots, burgers, Philly cheesesteaks and Reubens.
Herzog is an owner operator. Carder is a full-time escalation coordinator for OhioRISE, a Medicaid program designed to help young people with behavioral health issues.
MORE DETAILS
The wine bar and gallery is open 4-9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
The owners are looking to partner with local artists and businesses for events.
Natalie Jones writes about food and dining in Southwest Ohio with an emphasis on the Dayton region. She may be reached at natalie.jones@coxinc.com.
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