New North Shore eatery to reflect outdoors scene

Basecamp Bar and Restaurant to open at North Chatt Cat site

The Basecamp Bar and Restaurant is slated to open later this month at the corner of Frazier Avenue and Tremont Street in a building that formerly held the North Chatt Cat.
The Basecamp Bar and Restaurant is slated to open later this month at the corner of Frazier Avenue and Tremont Street in a building that formerly held the North Chatt Cat.

Chattanooga's growing reputation as an outdoors center is helping launch a new eatery on the North Shore.

Co-owner Jacob Mundy said that Basecamp Bar and Restaurant, slated to open later this month at Frazier Avenue and Tremont Street, is aiming to reflect the city's interest in outdoor activities such as hiking and climbing.

"That's sort of where the name came from," he said. "It will be a place where the community can gather when they come back."

Located on the site of the former North Chatt Cat, Mundy and business partner Brett Allen think the eatery has the best views of the Walnut Street Bridge and the Tennessee River from their patio.

"We're pretty excited about the location," Mundy said. "People are always buzzing around here."

Inside, he said, the restaurant will hold a lot of natural wood and feature a rustic, outdoorsy atmosphere.

The menu will be "Southern-inspired comfort food," the restaurateur said, including burgers, baked potatoes, pulled pork, mac and cheese along with "bar food" such as wings.

The Basecamp Bar will offer craft beer, Mundy said.

"We're both into the craft beer scene," he said, adding they don't believe there is much of that offered in that area. "Hopefully, we'll add a full bar down the road."

Kim White, who heads the downtown nonprofit redevelopment group River City Co., said the fact that the business partners are tapping into the outdoor environment will make it stand out.

"There's nothing like that on that side of the river," she said. "Success is finding your own niche. They'll have a great chance at success."

White said that North Chatt Cat had a sizable following at the site. Open for about 12 years, that eatery closed about two years ago. It was followed by another venture, which didn't last.

Mundy, 26, said he and Allen, 27, are both from Hendersonville, Tenn., and have known each other since their school days.

Each of them moved to Chattanooga separately, worked at restaurants and reconnected, Mundy said. He said the time had come for the two to start their own venture.

"It had been a dream," Mundy said. "We just went for it. It all happened pretty quickly."

He said they're leasing the building, which has about a half dozen parking spaces behind it.

Mundy declined to say how much they're investing in the venture, but said friends helped with a lot of the work to ready the eatery.

White said there have been a lot of people in their 20s start up businesses in Chattanooga in recent years, citing the city's growing entreprenuerial scene.

"That formula works well," she said.

Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.

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