MRN Taps Hangry Brands to Bring Fresh Energy to Downtown Cleveland’s Corner Alley
Hangry Brands, known for Steak in Tremont and Jolene’s Honkey Tonk, will take partial control of the nearly 20-year-old East 4th Street staple.
by Douglas Trattner | Jan. 8, 2026 | 1:45 PM
PHOTOGRAPHED BY DOUGLAS TRATTNER
MRN, the developer behind East 4th Street and the operator of The Corner Alley Downtown, has announced that they will be bringing Hangry Brands in as an operating partner.
Corner Alley opened its doors in 2006 and went through a pretty robust redesign in 2015. Now, a decade later, it’s time once again to bring in some fresh excitement. To do that, MRN will hand over partial control to Hangry Brands, the hospitality company behind lively concepts such as Steak in Tremont and Jolene’s Honkey Tonk and Society Lounge on East 4th Street.
“The Corner Alley has been a cornerstone of East 4th for almost 20 years,” states Jori Maron, CEO of the MRN. “We built Corner Alley on the theory that creating an active entertainment venue would be an important component to the East 4th experience. Two decades later, I can confidently say that this theory has been proven correct. Now it is time to inject new energy into the concept and there is no entertainment operator with more creative energy and enthusiasm than Hangry Brands.”
Fans of the entertainment complex should not expect wholesale changes following the transition, which will occur this spring. There will be no immediate staffing changes, no big shifts in food and beverage, no abrupt concept tweaks or enhancements.
That said, Hangry Brands founder Jason Beudert does have plans to shake up the current mix of entertainment options. Changes might include the removal of some bowling lanes to make room for indoor golf and adding more bar games like shuffleboard and pinball.
“We just want to infuse more fun into the place — and to keep the energy flowing on East 4th street,” says Beudert. “This is a natural addition to our family of restaurants and bars. From the start, we focused on the downtown sports venues and East 4th Street as the place where we wanted to locate our businesses. Creatively reimagining these spaces and injecting much needed energy into them is what we do.”
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Douglas Trattner
For 25 years, Douglas Trattner has worked as a full-time freelance writer, editor and author. His work as co-author on Michael Symon's cookbooks have earned him four New York Times Best-Selling Author honors, while his longstanding role as Scene dining editor has garnered awards of its own.
