16/12/2024
Bullpen Grill & Watering Hole
·
Meet Justin Chambers,
Owner and operator of the new Bullpen Grill & Watering Hole in Camp Verde. Opening very soon!
Justin and his wife Sarah have travelled the world to places like China, Japan, Brazil, British Columbia and Alaska but have gravitated towards the fresh food, simple ingredients and presentation of the Baja Peninsula of Mexico. The locals take pride in what they prepare with local ingredients and offer an experience that is rarely seen in American Restaurants.
Justin was inspired by something as simple as a glass of orange juice or a margarita that is prepared individually with fresh limes and handcrafted tequila take your dining experience to a whole new level.
Inspired by family owned restaurants where all the members of the family work take care and pride in preparing and serving food for their guests. There are few things where you get better at doing something over time as age and years creep on. However cooking is one thing you can get better at with time, practice and patience.
This attention to detail and personable experience is what we intend to bring to the Bullpen. Not Mexican, but an all American authentic dining experience from a burger and beer to a fine steak with a glass of local wine.
Being a history buff Justin and his family leased a unit in the Wingfield Plaza for his real estate company. Then in 2018, he had the opportunity to purchase the current location of the restaurant and the entire Wingfield Plaza. This created a unique opportunity to not only preserve history but create history with an unsurpassed dining experience for our customers and provide our staff a stable and consistent place of employment.
Local history...
564 South Main St, Camp Verde, AZ 86322 is the current location of the Bullpen Grill and Watering Hole, formerly known as the Sutler's Store (1871). In 1911 they added the Wingield Building, and finally the Camp Verde State Bank in 1916.
The adobe bricks you see behind the stage were laid in 1871. You can see where there were windows and the main door that were filled in sometime at a later date. You can also see the holes in the adobe from the original ceiling support beams and the charred remains from the building burning at least once. The original building was built and run by early day Yavapai County financier Huge Richards. The Sutler's Store is the Verde Valley's oldest standing commercial building and the oldest one in the State of Arizona to be continually run as a commercial building since being built. After its construction it remained the area's only viable mercantile business until the Mid 1870's. The Sutler provided items to the troops that were not available through the military and it supplied soldiers and settlers with groceries, dry goods, mining supplies, animal feed and even bottled water. In addition to its role as a local commercial center, the Sutler's Store served as the communities only post office, telegraph station, bank, trade, collection and bartering agency.
In 1898, William "Boss" Head sold the operation to Mac Rogers and Clinton Wingfield. A few months after the purchase, an outlaw murdered Rogers and Wingfield in the store on a Sunday evening in July, 1899, during an armed robbery. The business partners were buried together in the historic Clear Creek Cemetery a few miles to the southeast. Months after the double murder Tom "Black Jack" Ketchum was hung in New Mexico for the crime, but the identity of the killer is still unknown.
W.G. and R.W. Wingfield took over the business in 1909, and extensively remodeled the adobe structure. During the remodel, the Wingfields plastered the adobe brick walls and reoriented the building to face east like it is today and not north. In 1911, the owners added a new store building constructed of reinforced concrete. They added the concrete Camp Verde State Bank, complete with a bank vault in 1916 that is at the Northwest corner of the complex. These buildings have changed little since their construction, and this complex is Camp Verde's best example of the historic-era commercial architecture. Outside on the North end of the building is a bronze plaque that honor's the pony express carriers who traveled between Camp Verde and Payson, 1884-1914.
The "Bullpen" name is nostalgic and was named after the old bullpen that still stands off of Bullpen Rd near Clear Creek. As local growing up, we used to go to the "bullpen" swimming hole and camping area. Now, day use only but still worth the drive!
Local wine...
Our restaurant is proud to offer not only the highest quality of food and service, but also a local wine from one of the first vineyards of the Verde Valley. Vintor Ignacio Mesa took his first viticulture classes at the University of Arizona at age 20, where he learned to use methods of farming grapes: organic and non-organic. He wasn't able to pursue a career in viticulture at that time as the funds required to purchase land were not available. His career path took him in a different direction but he maintained his interest in vines by planting small vineyards to make wine at each location he was moved to during his career.
After 33 years, he was ready to pursue his dream and went on a search to find a place with the right soil composition, climate and availability of clean water to grow his vineyard. In 1999, he found his place in the fertile valley of West Clear Creek, and Clear Creek Vineyard & Winery was born. Ignacio has achieved his goal to have an Estate Boutique Winery using only his sustainable-grown grapes to make his wines. Clear Creek Vineyard and Winery was the first winery to receive the Silver Innovator Sustainability Certification in Arizona. His Rio Claro wines are individual with limited production and unique in style.
We look forward to meeting you and coming soon to experience the food at Bullpen and history of Camp Verde within the lush Verde Valley, clear running streams and stunning mountain vistas. This is the ideal for you and your friends to sit back and enjoy a glass of wine or a cold beer with incredible food.
See you soon at the Bullpen!
