By Triana O'Keefe, editor Australian Hotelier
Brisbane Brewing Co. is a boutique craft beer brewery and bar where modern industrial aesthetics are fused with artisan-formed timber features and a stylish interior design, to create a fresh space, epitomising the West End vibe.
The Brisbane Brewing Co. has been close to a decade in the making: before husband and wife owners, Michelle and Grant Clark ventured into the hotel world, they spent years in Europe working, exploring and eventually falling in love with the rich and intriguing world of craft beer.
The venue is testament to Michelle and Grant's seasoned experience in the craft beer industry, as well as their desire to create something innovative, with the venue existing as both an efficient working brewery, and a stylish drinking and dining destination.
“The overall aim was to create a place with a variety of comfortable indoor and outdoor social spaces, a great general atmosphere and a lively front alley that draws people in from the street,” Grant told Australian Hotelier.
“We wanted to stay away from the now all-too-common ‘themed’ bar and create a down to earth, fun and welcoming place to spend your time imbibing the amber fluid. A nice balance between pub and craft beer bar,” he added.
The site for the new Brisbane Brewing Co. venue was a rundown warehouse accessed via a narrow alleyway. The site hadn’t been utilised for many years with cracked, uneven floor slabs, paint flaking off the block work walls plus the existing truck loading dock and rusted roof needed significant repair.
The budget for the build was originally $750,000 however, the final spend was closer to $1 million with finishes being of a much higher standard.
Major challenges during the building works included coordinating fit-out works with the landlord’s base building work. Installation of some services were completed before the floor plan had been finalised which resulted in some additional work during the construction.
Access to the site was restricted to the alleyway, which caused difficulties for supplier deliveries as only one truck could be on site at a time. It was also necessary to maintain access for the neighbouring tenants to continue to trade.
Grant explained the existing building had an obvious absence of any historical references or architectural design.
“It was in bad shape but it was a simple, blank canvas on a great site in the heart of a vibrant neighbourhood,” he said.
For the complete article on the Brisbane Brewing Co. see the April edition of Australian Hotelier