The Kentwood grocery store has become a go-to music venue on weekends, with shoppers able to enjoy a beer or cider while listening to regional favorites. Horrocks opens a beer garden in late May.
Unique Concert Setting: Yacht Rocket surrounded by plants on stage at Horrocks. (Photo/Holly Holtzclaw)
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If you’ve ever wished you could kick back and enjoy some live music and a drink after finishing your grocery shopping, Horrocks Market might be the perfect place for you.
The market, located at 445 Breton Road SE in Kentwood, has long been appreciated for its popcorn selection, expansive greenhouse, and wide selection of deli foods including an impressive range of rotating soups. But in recent years Horrocks has also taken on a role in the Michigan music community.
Hosting shows Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 5-8pm, Horrocks has become a go-to space for catching some of West Michigan’s most in-demand live acts. Horrocks has been hosting live shows in their picturesque outdoor beer garden since the summer of 2022 and, beginning in the fall/winter of 2023, they decided to keep the tradition going all year.
Packed House: The crowd last weekend. (Photo/Holly Holtzclaw)
Horrocks graphic designer Noelle Johnson has been booking artists at the Kentwood location since the beginning and is committed to keeping things fresh and interesting for patrons of all ages and backgrounds by selecting a variety of cover bands, original artists, and unique genres.
“I look for so many different things. I love having a huge variety of genres. Our customer base is super diverse, our community is super diverse, and so I try to find a bunch of different genres. If it’s something that’s different, like a different genre that we haven’t had here before I get really excited,” Johnson said.
The venue has hosted everything from jazz, to blues, to old-school country, to themed cover bands. Saturday’s yacht rock cover show from Grand Rapids’ Yacht Rocket drew a crowd that overflowed into aisles and onto the outdoor patio.
Yacht Rocket guitarist and vocalist Pat Piechocki said, “I like that this venue has an outdoor feel to it and I like that we’re playing for the community. There’s a lot of space and it’s definitely a very comfortable atmosphere.”
TROPICAL PLANTS TO ABSORB SOUND & AN OUTDOOR BEER GARDEN IN SUMMER
Since the store’s greenhouse had been feeling underutilized in the winter months due to most plants being out of season, Horrocks turned the space filled with tropical plants into a cozy, curated environment complete with string lights and comfy patio-style seating for attendees to escape to during the cold winter months.
“It being a greenhouse with so much glass was not super great for acoustics, so we try to actually fill it with more plants to absorb the sound and make the sound a little better. So the plants actually help with aesthetics and with the sound there too,” Johnson explained.
While all of the shows at Horrocks are free and open to the public, the market relies heavily on food and drink purchases from their in-store deli and tavern, which features a wide array of local beers and ciders on tap, to keep the performances accessible to as many people as possible.
“We understand the economy is not super great right now, but we are just all about having people have a good time at our store. So whoever you are, you can come and watch the show,” said Johnson.
Backyard Beer Garden: Opens May 21. (Photo/Noelle Johnson)
Horrocks will continue to host indoor shows through April 11, followed by a short break. Shows will resume in the outdoor beer garden on May 21, following the same schedule as the winter shows. Starting in April, shows will also feature a rotating lineup of food trucks for each event.
“One thing we are trying to do is make a bigger space in our outdoor beer garden,” Johnson mentioned. She cited liquor license rules and requirements as a roadblock to that development, but the Horrocks team continues to look ahead to new and exciting changes thanks to consistently healthy turnouts over the years.
Johnson also told Local Spins that audiences can look forward to lots of new acts on the schedule throughout the summer, many of which will be making their Horrocks debut.
In the meantime, music lovers still have time to check out an indoor show in the next few weeks as Horrocks wraps up another successful winter concert season.
The 6 Pak performs at 6 p.m. Friday (March 27), Funky Brewster at 5 p.m. Saturday (March 27), John Shea Trio at 5 p.m. April 3 and GR Just Us Band at 5 p.m. April 4. More upcoming show listings and food truck information can be found here: https://www.horrocksmarket.com/events.
Horrocks in Lansing also offers live music. More information about that store online here.
PHOTO GALLERY: Horrocks Market
Yacht Rocket, Charlie Millard, Jordan Hamilton
Photos by Holly Holtzclaw, Noelle Johnson
