If you ask any of the friends & associates of Brian Wood , they

will tell you that his good nature is exceeded only by his grandiose

visions; and for the man that has existed as one of the few familiar faces

on WNEM-TV5 over the past decade, his professional transition from the

airwaves into appreciating the intricacies of  fine Irish ale is a story of

vision and hard work framed by the 'Luck-o-the-Irish' and a carefully

crafted camaraderie that has yielded two of the finest architectural gems

of Old Town Saginaw.

It was a little over five years ago that Brian branched from the news to

the entertainment business when he acquired the popular J. B. Meinberg's.

And now, after six-and-half months of tireless work, Brian has opened a

'sister' companion directly adjacent to Meinberg's aptly entitled Woody

O'Briens  (taken by fusing 'Woody ' - the nickname Brian is called by his

friends with his Mother's maiden name, O'Brien).

As Saginaw's only authentic Irish Pub, Woody O'Briens is a stunning,

sparkling vision to the eye.  From the classic red & gold-leaf exterior to

the custom-crafted bar and restored black tin ceiling, the intricate

interior detailing stands as a testament to a man that has left no

blarney-stone unturned.

Brian says that he always has wanted to own an Irish theme bar.  "Because

of my family heritage the dream of any Irishman is to open a bar. That's

why they say the Irish can't take over the world because God invented

alcohol," jokes Woody.

"I wanted to rename Meinberg's Woody O'Briens five years ago, but figured

everyone would still call it JB's.  And I didn't want to change the history

of Old Town, either.  When we were renovating Woody's, we were using all

natural materials such as wood, brick, and tin, so I didn't know what to

expect. But as we stripped it to the shell, I thought 'My God, we're on to

something."

Brian is quick to point out that he could never have completed nor executed

this project without the help of countless friends assisting with various

stages of the remodeling.

"My friend Mark Knight owns Land Development Contractors and he came up

with the idea to use wainscoting in the bar.  I tried to make it look like

the Old Irish bars on Grand River in Detroit, because when growing up as a

kid my grandparents would always take us there, and as I grew up my friends

and I would hang-out there, so I wanted to recreate that theme."

Each step involved a fresh challenge. "With the paint we must have went

through a thousand color swatches," continues Brian. "They always look

different in the store than when you get them inside the building, and even

then there were so many light forms, from natural outdoor light to the

interior manufactured light that will change it.  When we came upon the

right color of green I knew we were onto something.  But even now when the

natural light hits it looks green and in the back it almost looks gray

because of the lighting."

While admittedly finding the right stained glass and the proper

appointments was a fun endeavor, it still carried a cost. "We exceeded our

budget by 35%," notes Brian, "and I feel sorry for anybody doing remodeling

today because everything is so expensive."

Since opening six weeks ago, Brian says that Woody's has taken on a life of

its own. "It definitely has its own personality and is once again

attracting an older adult type crowd.  JB's was drawing a younger crowd,

but now Woody's has enabled us to bring an older crowd back. We have a nice

professional crowd that has increased the age in Meinberg's, too. "

With varied styles of entertainment happening in both JB's and Woody's,

Brian says he now has two shots at retaining a crowd. "On Wednesday through

Saturday we have different things going on in terms of entertainment, so

people have more of a choice.  I think it's pompous for any bar or pub to

assume that just because they like the entertainment they offer, so will

their customers. This way we achieve wider appeal."

Future short-term plans for Woody O'Briens include the introduction of

classic bar food such as hamburgers, hot dogs, and bratwursts, but also

chicken wings, fried shrimp, fish, chicken, and veggies. Additionally,

Irish entertainment is soon to be featured on certain nights, while St.

Patrick's Day will be celebrated on the 17th of every month.

When asked what the hardest piece of the puzzle was to find, Brian quickly

replies, "My sanity."  "Everything was hard.  Just to get to the hardwood

floors we had to rip up carpeting and then glue, only to find tile which

once we chipped it away revealed burlap encased in black tar."

Of course, the crown achievement in any pub is the bar itself, and Woody's

is no exception. "My friend Ken from Visions In Wood in Essexville

custom-built the bar," explains Brian. "I looked all over for a bar and a

certain style, and couldn't find it. Eventually I told Ken what I

envisioned was a pillar connected to an archway connected to another pillar

connected to another archway. I drew it out with my hands in the air on a

Saturday and by the following Monday afternoon Ken had a blueprint.  I

really think this bar is a jewel, and years from now people will comment

about it, because he basically built an antique bar."

As for 'product', Woody's carries the most Irish beers on tap in Saginaw,

and perhaps north of the metro Detroit area.  "People ask why we don't have

Bass ale on tap," comments Brian, "and they forget that Bass is an English

beer and England hasn't been very good to Ireland over the centuries.  So

here we make a true black & tan with Guinness and Harp ale.  We do offer

every Irish beer available in this market."

Have Brian's thoughts or impressions about the tavern business changed

since his baptism five years ago?

"Most definitely," he answers. "When I opened JB's I said owning a bar is

like having a very demanding child, and now I have twins and they haven't

learned to walk yet. Once they do, I'm in trouble!"

"But one thing I learned in the last five years is that I thought I could

do everything, and I didn't want to delegate and wanted to retain control.

Now I delegate a lot of our responsibilities.  I'm fortunate to have two

employees, Katrina & Amanda, who have been with me from the start. Plus I

have Cal, a guy who's worked in JB's through three different owners and

collectively for 15 years. He knows how to fix everything.  So I am very

proud of my staff. They've done a great job and are helping teach the newer

girls.  I have 13 people working for me now, whereas when I started I'd

work a shift and maybe have three or four people.  Now we've grown into a

nice size corporation, and I couldn't have done any of it without the help

of my staff & friends."

Presently Woody O'Brien's features the ever-popular Count 'n the Change

performing live on Thursdays through Saturdays, and Brian hopes to start a

Celtic music night on Wednesdays shortly.

"I enjoy everyone in Count 'n the Change both personally & professionally,

and they are very easy to work with. We're up front with each other and

discuss philosophies, because they want to achieve the same thing I do,

which is draw great crowds and have a good time."

"I always tell my staff that we only offer five things here - beer/wine,

liquor, food, entertainment, and service. So if we fail in any one of those

departments, we fall 20% from our business mix."

"Entertainment defines the personality of a bar," concludes Woody. "And

apart from the live bands and our staff, we also have a jukebox with over

100 Irish songs plus all the Irish folklore, sayings, and details for

people to examine. Basically, everything makes sense."

"And we're still adding on. People of Irish descent have given us things to

put on the wall, and I'd like to add a brass plate beneath everything

explaining how we came about acquiring it."

If you haven't checked it out yet, make sure to visit soon. Located at 114

S. Hamilton St., there is no doubt that Woody O'Brien's has added even more

brilliant diversity and value to the incomparable historic structures that

line the commercial jewel of Saginaw known as Old Town.