More beer, outdoor seating and a larger tap room are coming to this city’s brew pub
In 2018, the owners of Turning Point Beer opened their brew pub in a former Rent-A-Center in a rundown, 1950s era shopping center.
Now, the pub at 1307 Brown Trail is expanding with outdoor seating, a bigger tap room and a separate area for brewing “sour beer.”
James Peery, one of the Turning Point owners said, “We are tripling our space, and we are excited about this.”
Turning Point is expanding into a former gymnastics’ studio, and Peery said the additional space will be used for the taproom and a separate area for brewing “sour beer.”
“We opened in March of 2018, and we weren’t expecting to expand this soon,” he said.
“The opportunity was there, and it’s something we decided to move on even in the midst of COVID,” Peery said.
Recently, the Bedford City Council approved outdoor seating at Turning Point. The brew pub isn’t operating a restaurant, but food trucks selling barbecue and tacos park outside so that people can buy something to eat to go with their favorite brews.
“The patio area already has an awning, and it faces east and won’t get direct sun except in the mornings,” Peery said.
The brew pub is known for its family-friendly atmosphere and events such as trivia and bingo nights, and Peery said Turning Point has gotten support locally and throughout the country.
Although the area where the shopping center is located hasn’t seen much development, Peery said he hopes that Turning Point’s efforts to create a friendly place to gather will lead to more development in the Brown Trail area.
City Manager Jimmy Stathatos said although there hasn’t been an uptick in economic development along Brown Trail, there is “definitely more interest.”
“We just haven’t had any projects come to fruition yet. Honestly, there’s a lot of excitement about Bedford right now, so we’re getting interest about economic development opportunities all over the City,” Stathatos said.
Charles Vallhonrat, executive director of the Texas Craft Brewers Guild, said in a news release from the Texas Comptroller’s office that thanks to a 2019 law, many craft breweries could stay in business allowing customers to buy beer to go.
“The hospitality sector needs support during the coming months and years,” Vallhonrat said. “However, there will always be a draw for people to get together with friends and family and share a beer, a meal and a story. We know that we’ll get back to where we were.”
This story was originally published February 9, 2021 at 5:30 AM.