Brewery taproom opening this weekend with BBQ, live music on Tacoma waterfront
The downtown Tacoma brewery scene continues to grow.
Evergreen State Brewing will open a second waterfront taproom this weekend, joining its sister taproom in Gig Harbor, which also has water views. A grand opening with live music and raffles runs this Friday and Saturday, Aug. 29-30 starting at 2 p.m. both days.
Formerly known as Gig Harbor Brewing Co., Evergreen State announced in late July that it would close the taproom on South Tacoma Way in exchange for new digs on Thea Foss Waterway, next to Museum of Glass and nearby Indita Mia. The South Tacoma space is primarily a production facility, but a small taproom has gained a loyal following since its debut a decade ago.
“The brewery stays put (for now), but our Tacoma taproom is getting the waterfront upgrade it deserves,” wrote owner Matthew Burnett on Instagram July 21. He was not immediately available to offer more details, but a marketing manager confirmed the opening hours.
Instagram videos showed live-wood tables and bar-tops being built, as well as high-top tables in the windows overlooking the nearby marinas.
Burnett purchased the brewery, including both taprooms, in February from founder John Fosberg, The News Tribune reported at the time. He rebranded it to Evergreen State, adopted an outdoors-y, park-inspired theme, and updated the beer recipes and names.
Regular kegs include the High Point blonde, Loowit pale ale, Dead Mans Island IPA and 29 Tribes red ale. Recent tap lists also include a dark IPA, a porter and a kölsch.
The new Thea Foss taproom replaces West of the Waterway and Dock Street Deli on the ground floor of The Henry Apartments, a $32 million project (in 2010-era dollars) completed in 2015.
West of the Waterway opened in 2018 as an event venue owned by Adrielle Flinders, a longtime name in the Tacoma hospitality world — The Spar has been in her family for almost 40 years. She also helps run Gallucci’s Catering, headquartered in Federal Way with a Lakewood venue currently under renovation, and in 2020 launched the deli from the Thea Foss kitchen.
Both Dock Street Deli and the venue closed in June, Flinders confirmed in a phone call this week. They had previously shared the closure on Dock Street Deli’s website and Facebook page.
Although they loved the space, said Flinders, foot traffic just hadn’t rebounded from pre-pandemic levels. The lease was up, so they turned to “focusing all of our efforts on Gallucci’s,” she said. “We’re so excited a new place is going in so we can still go there and celebrate there.”
Having the kitchen on site is big news for Evergreen State, which has partnered with Gild Bolden of We Be Smok’n, a barbecue caterer originally based in Olympia. He’ll be serving meats (pulled pork, smoked chicken, ribs, hot links and Saturday-only brisket) Thursday-Sunday.
The taproom’s planned hours are 11 a.m.-9 p.m. In addition to frequent live music, the brewery shared on Instagram that it will host comedy nights, launch a new mug club and offer “Dock Street resident perks.”
Evergreen State Brewing - Tacoma
- New taproom: 1901 Dock St. (Thea Foss Waterway), Tacoma, es-brewing.com
- Taproom hours: Monday-Thursday 11 a.m.-8 p.m., Friday-Saturday 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
- Kitchen hours: Thursday-Friday 4-7 p.m., Saturday 12-8 p.m., Sunday 4-7 p.m.
- Parking: paid garage below Henry Apartments, spots #11-40 only; public paid lots also available under Museum of Glass; limited street parking on Dock St.; or park around Pacific Avenue and walk across Bridge of Glass
This story was originally published August 29, 2025 at 5:00 AM.