Leaning hard into a dramatic pivot early in the pandemic, helped North Park Beer Co.’s (NPBC) husband-wife owners Kelsey and Amanda McNair reshape their business to not only survive COVID-19, but excel in and beyond the uncertain atmosphere it created for American breweries. While they are not alone—other companies such as Vista-based Pure Project Brewing and Kearny Mesa’s Societe Brewing have also grown since 2020—NPBC is among the few local beer companies to be able to increase production and work towards expanding its footprint in terms of distribution and construction of its first-ever satellite venue.
In June, the McNairs elated NPBC’s fan-base, announcing they had broken ground on a kitchen-equipped tasting room on the ground floor of the new-construction Secoya building in Bankers Hill. Located at Fifth Avenue and Redwood Street, that highly anticipated space is nearly ready to open and the McNairs couldn’t be more excited.
“Whether we’re catering to new audiences within the neighborhood or expanding access to existing NPBC fans, we’re just happy to be a part of the Secoya Building and Bankers Hill as a whole,” says Amanda. “We’re really happy with how the tasting room looks; new and distinct but it still feels very much like a North Park Beer Co. space.”
From the beginning, NPBC’s concept has centered around creating communal spaces for beer appreciation. The two-story taproom at the company’s home base is geared toward celebrating the architecture of its eponymous neighborhood as well as its denizens but is designed to be just as warm and appealing to visitors from other communities. That same objective rules over the Bankers Hill space, where a neon sign calls out half of the company’s motto, “ales and lagers, friends and neighbors”.
Coming in at 2,750 square feet, the new location features a double-doored main entrance leading to a taproom with a zigzagging bar and multiple table-seating options. Patios flank the corner spot on both sides and are accessible via roll-up garage doors. A total of 24 taps will dispense beers from NPBC and guest breweries, while the kitchen will be responsible for a menu of from-scratch casual fare highlighted by smash-burgers and Belgian-style frites. This will be the McNairs’ first foray into restaurant-management, but it may not be their last.
“We are certainly open to the idea of it as long as it makes sense from a financial and logistical perspective,” says McNair. “We’re looking into some spaces, though striking that balance is imperative, so we’re not rushing forward with anything else at the moment.”
For now, the McNairs are still coming down off an eventful year that saw the company release two-to-three new beers every week, including dozens of collaborations. Those efforts were particularly gratifying thanks to successes at high-profile brewing competitions, including the World Beer Cup, where flagship West Coast IPA, Hop-Fu!, earned a gold medal, and the Great American Beer Festival, where NPBC was named Brewery of the Year (among companies producing 2,001 to 5,000 barrels of beer annually) behind a gold, silver and pair of bronze medals at the annual event, the largest of its kind on the planet.
“It’s been a thrilling year full of growth, awards and collaboration,” says McNair. “We couldn’t do it without all the support from our friends and neighbors. It’s been wonderful seeing the public’s excitement as this project has progressed.”
The McNairs aren’t ready to announce an official opening date as they are still going through final inspections but are eyeing sometime within the next two weeks. They say to keep an eye on NPBC’s Instagram account for an announcement on the soft-open date.
Once open, the Bankers Hill tasting room’s hours of operation will be 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Last call for ordering food will be one hour prior to closing each night.
Once everything is in place and the staff has found its rhythm, the McNairs plan to plan a grand-opening event that will most likely take place in the first quarter of 2023.
North Park Beer Co.’s new tasting room is located at 3095 Fifth Avenue in Bankers Hill