Cheney Brewing opens in former Willow Springs

A landmark Cheney restaurant may finally get another chance.

Closed nearly a year now, the former Willow Springs Station is being renamed Cheney Brewing Company and plans to serve craft beers and specialty wines along with a variety of menu items new owner David Chavando said.

Chavando said Cheney Brewing has been open a few weeks and currently operates Wednesday – Sunday 3 – 9 p.m.

"We do plan on having beer and wine here within the week," Chavando said. The original owner wanted to do a micro-brewery onsite - and, or offsite - and bring it here," Chavando said.

That is still something that is planned in the future, he said. It just takes a while to get the permits. "We'll have our own microbrewery within a year," Chavando (pronounced Chavanda) added.

In the meantime Chavando said he will look for alternative beers and wines. "(We'll have) beers and wines that you don't typically see around these parts," he said.

Chavando has always been in the service industry business. "From McDonalds to my first actual restaurant," he said. He's originally from Los Angeles. "I came up here about six years ago, bought some property," Chavando said.

"I was moving back and forth, I loved the area, I loved the people and finally just came up here to stay," he said. "(It's) way better, it's a little bit slower pace and I like that."

Cheney Brewing is an LLC - limited liability corporation - Chavando said. "I do have ownership of the business and I am in a lease-to-own option for the building," he said.

How will he carve out his niche in Cheney for long-term success?

For one, he trusts his chef who will offer burgers, prime rib and sirloin steaks as some of the staples. "I'm really passionate that the food is (served) to the highest standard," Chavando said. So far the customers who have sampled Cheney Brewing have provided good reviews.

"A lot of the obstacle is letting people know the place in open, and that we're not going to close right back up as in the past," Chavando said.

According to a March 17, 2015 Cheney Free Press story, former owner Mike Hartman did not disclose specifics about the closure of the business. Hartman, who also operates Eagles Pub, said he had been trying to sell Willow Springs for about eight years.

The location has significant history in Cheney's food business, opening in 1953 as Sibley's Drive-In. It became the Fireside Restaurant and was owned by Bill Sibley until 1961.

It changed hands several times through the 1960s and 1970s, and its look, too, with the addition of the second story. In 1979 the restaurant was renamed Willow Springs Station, paying homage to the original name of Cheney. The motel was added in 1983.

Paul Delaney can be reached at [email protected].