Dining
BY KATLYNN FOX
Thirsty Penguin owner Brent Cloyd comes from a background in commercial real estate and software development, but he has always had a love for Louisiana air. Frequently traveling to the bayou state, Cloyd drew inspiration to open up a beer barn with frozen daiquiris and brews to go. The context Thirsty Penguin o cially opened four years ago, selling frozen drinks, draft beer, seltzers, jello shots and nonalcoholic beverages. The stars aligned for the concept while Cloyd was renovating Thirsty Penguin’s current location— Gov. Greg Abbott declared that to-go alcohol was permanently permitted. The Liberty Hill curbside cocktail stop sold roughly 300 gallons of rum in the rst weekend. “We had to shut down for two more weeks after that because we didn’t expect it to be as crazy as it was,” Cloyd said. It’s 5 o’clock somewhere The beverage depot crafts several of its o erings from scratch, including the Texas Cola—a Coke-and- bourbon avor—and sugar-free prickly pear. Named after The University of Texas at Austin’s beloved mascot, Cloyd’s favorite avor, the Bevo, features a combination of pina colada and orange crush, creating a "dreamsicle" avor pro le. Thirsty Penguin rotates avors monthly, so there is always a new product for customers to taste. The menu also features beer—available canned or sold on draft in growlers—seltzers and jello shots. A family a air In addition to frozen drinks and jello shots, Thirsty Penguin also sells Slush Puppies as a nonal- coholic option for kids. The beer barn and daiquiri place sells between 300 and 400 Slush Puppies on Saturdays, Cloyd said. Other nonalcoholic options include the brewed-in-house sweet tea. Thirsty Penguin also o ers free pup cups for dogs. “It’s cool because the wife can get her daiquiri, the husband can get a 32-oz beer, the kids can get their Slush Puppies and the dog gets his pup cup,” Cloyd said. “So it gets everyone taken care of.” Another detail On the patio, Thirsty Penguin patrons can get their drinks to go and enjoy them outdoors, along with an on-site food truck, Taqueria Mi Ranchito Thirsty Penguin brings ice-cold drinks to Liberty Hill and beyond
Thirsty Penguin owner Brent Cloyd drew inspiration for his to-go daiquiri concept from his frequent travels to Louisiana.
PHOTOS BY KATLYNN FOX COMMUNITY IMPACT
The beverage depot features alcoholic frozen drinks and jello shots, as well as nonalcoholic Slush Puppies.
"We’re ... really pushing [people to] support local even if it’s not us. This last year it was
hard on everybody." BRENT CLOYD, OWNER OF THIRSTY PENGUIN
Thirsty Penguin features patio space for patrons to enjoy to-go beverages. Bites are also available from the on-site food truck Taqueria Mi Ranchito Jaimes.
Jaimes. The taqueria serves fajita tacos, tortas, quesadillas and more. Thirsty Penguin also hosts live music outdoors every few weeks and bingo three times a year. Cloyd is a Liberty Hill resident and owns three Thirsty Penguin locations, with one in his home- town, Burnet, and Lampasas. A common miscon- ception that people have is that Thirsty Penguin is a franchise, Cloyd said.
200
BRONCO BLVD.
29
N
14751 Hwy. 29, Liberty Hill www.thirstypenguin.com
15
LEANDER LIBERTY HILL EDITION
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