Meantime Brewing Co to open brewery and restaurant in Greenwich next month
The Meantime Brewing Company is to open a new restaurant, café, bar and six-barrel brewery at The Old Naval College in Greenwich next month.
The Old Brewery, which is due to open before Easter 2010, will sit on the foundations of an early 19th Century brewhouse, which was originally built to supply the pensioners of the Royal Naval Hospital with a daily beer ration.
Alastair Hook, founder of the Meantime Brewing Company, said: “It is always a special moment to see a new brewery installed. Especially in London, home in the 14th century to some 1,300 breweries compared to only 7 or 8 today. The previous brewery on this very same site closed in the 1860’s, and in two weeks time we look forward to firing up the ‘coppers’ after 140 years.”
Hook has used the site’s history to name The Old Brewery’s signature beer, Hospital Porter, which has been brewed to a 1750’s recipe and oak aged for a year. The Old Brewery, which will also act as Meantime’s experimental brewing workshop, will also serve the company’s latest brew, a Belgian Abbey-style ale that has a candy sweetness and hoppy finish.
Food at The Old Brewery
The Main Hall at The Old Brewery will function as a café during the day, whilst neighbouring cultural centre Discover Greenwich is open, serving sandwiches, British bistro-style dishes, cakes and Meantime beers.
In the evening the space will transform into a restaurant, serving modern British dishes with a heavy beer and seafood influence, such as Shucked Oysters Marinated in Hospital Porter and Watercress, Beer Cured Salmon, and Chocolate Beer Sorbet.
The hall itself will feature a British brewing history timeline wrapped around the walls, with eight giant copper beer tuns and bottles suspended in ‘waves’ around the room.
As well as the Main Hall, The Old Brewery will feature an annexe bar and courtyard, where the beer bottle and glass collections of the late Michael Jackson, a fan of Meantime beers, will be displayed.
Last week, Katie and Giancarlo Caldesi, founders of Caffe Caldesi in Marylebone and Caldesi in Campagna in Bray, spoke to BigHospitality about why they have started using beer in some of their traditional Italian recipes. See the video here.
