Marc McFaul (pictured), the manager of Ropewalk Tavern, bought Taps at an auction earlier this week, he confirmed yesterday.
McFaul paid $450,000 for the building and liquor license -- the whole shebang. That means McFaul and family (I like to call them the McFaul clan) will now have three South Baltimore bars (Stalking Horse, Ropewalk and Taps).
But McFaul isn't sure what he wants to do with Taps, he told me. He might transfer the liquor license up closer to Cross Street Market, or he might keep it at the corner of Fort Avenue and Charles Street.
In fact, McFaul wasn't expecting to own the place at all ...
Before the auction, McFaul planned on bidding $450,000, tops, for Taps. He put in a bid, and then bidding just stopped, he recalled. So he wound up with another bar. (The reason there aren't any direct quotes here is because McFaul called me while I was walking down the street in Washington.)
McFaul isn't sure about his next step. He said he doesn't want to rile up the neighborhood by running a loud and rowdy bar, but he doesn't have a building near Cross Street where he could transfer the liquor license. When McFaul makes a decision, I'll let you know.
(Baltimore Sun photo of McFaul in 2005 by Kenneth K. Lam)