Freight Yard Pub Serving the Community for Decades
One of the eatery's menu mainstays is the popular French onion soup.
Siblings Sean and Colleen Taylor are the owners Freight Yard Pub. They took it over with their brother Kevin and Colleen's first husband in 1992. The two came from Connecticut and Boston to establish a restaurant and said they immediately felt welcomed in their new home.
"The reception that the community gave us in the beginning was so warm and so welcoming that we knew we found home," Colleen Taylors said. "We've made this area our homes since then, as a matter of fact, all of our friends and relationships came out of Freight Yard Pub."
The pub is located in Western Gateway Heritage State Park, and its decor is appropriately train-themed, as the building it's in used to be part of the freight yard, but it also has an Irish pub feel. It is the only original tenant still operating in the largely vacant park. The Taylors purchased the business after it had several years of instability and closures; they have run it successfully for more than three decades.
Colleen and Sean have been working together since they were teenagers. They have operated a few restaurants, including the former Taylor's on Holden Street, and currently operate takeout restaurant Craft Food Barn, Trail House Kitchen & Bar and Berkshire Catering Co., operating as Bay State Hospitality Group. Over the weekend, it was announced they would take over management of the historic Store at Five Corners in Williamstown.
"Sean and I've been working together. Gosh, I think since we were 16, and we have a wonderful business relationship, where I know what I cover, he knows what he covers," she said. "We chat every single day, literally every day we have a morning phone call to say, OK, checking in."
The two enjoy being a part of the community and making sure to lend a hand to those who made them feel so welcome in the first place.
"Becoming part of the community, is also giving back to the community. We do help the AYJ Fund. We help PopCares. We're always helping the veterans ... we're always donating to teams and such, because we are a part of the community," Taylor said. "And I think we bring stability to the food and beverage industry in North Adams."
Running a business for so long may come with challenges or hard times. One of the things that keeps Taylor motivated is to figure out how to solve problems.
"My job is to make sure that we are on track. And so when things get tough, I work harder. I really start to look at what we can do to change whatever the hardship is," she said. "So whatever the difficulty is, I go in and I say, 'OK, how do I make this better and go through it?'"
She said one of the most important aspects to owning a business is the staff.
"You don't realize how important your staff becomes. They become like your second family," Taylor said. "You really try to help them, inspire them, and invest in them. I think the biggest thing that we've invested in is the staff, the human beings, they become more important to you than most other things."
She wants everyone to feel welcome at Freight Yard when they come in to enjoy a meal. While the restaurant takes reservations, patrons can usually choose their own seats to enjoy some of Freight Yard's popular entrees.
All of their meals are made in-house and fresh, she said. Some of the most popular are the fish and chips, black diamond steak tips, ribeye steaks, and her personal favorite, fajitas.
"My personal favorite is the fajita. I love our fajitas. You can get steak, chicken or vegetarian. I love to take the soft tacos and put all the mixings in and make that," Taylor said. "I know people love our ribeyes. Our ribeyes are deliciously juicey, they're on a flame-broiled grill, seared and those juices all stay in and are served very hot. That's one of our popular items.
"The steak tips are our staple. People know about our steak tips. You can't get our steak tips anyplace else because of the black diamond sauce."
The Taylors are also looking toward future work on the patio and to make some minor changes inside. They recently renovated the kitchen and the second floor that's often used for parties.
Colleen Taylor also hopes Freight Yard Pub stays a place to visit and share memories for a long time.
"Freight Yard is an institution, and one of the things I love about Freight Yard is the capacity to be that institution, be that, 'Oh, when I went to MCLA or North Adams State College, Freight Yard was there, I went there.' The memories are what's really important. So if you had your high school graduation, now you're coming back for your reunion. Those types of things are fun, and so I really want to see us still here, still strong," she said.
Freight Yard Pub is located at 1 Furnace St. and is open Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
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