North Vancouver's North Point Brewing Co. has opened up a second concept, expanding its brew-based portfolio to offer a spacious, modern, all-day cafe space complete with beer, pastries, and pizza in the heart of downtown Vancouver.
Located in the Bentall Centre, North Point's new cafe is pouring not only selections from its lineup of fresh brews but also drip coffee, wine, and cider, paired with straightforward eats like croissants for the a.m. crowd and pizzas or chips and salsa for lunch or snack time.
North Point, which is owned by a trio of longtime friends keen to move away from other careers, launched its Lower Lonsdale taproom in late 2020. Co-owner Liam Jeffries tells Vancouver Is Awesome during a cafe visit that the team jumped at the chance to set up shop in the Bentall space and to grow their brand with a slight variation on their tasting room concept.
What's on the food and beer menu at North Point's Bentall Cafe
The Bentall Centre space was previously a bank (they left the security feature of a height measuring strip that takes a photo of bank robbery suspects as they make their getaway intact at the front door just for a lark) so they aren't working with a massive on-site kitchen operation. Rather, North Point brings in pastries from West Van's popular Temper and works with a local restaurant for their pizzas.
As August wraps up, so does North Point's work with Nicli, the one-time Vancouver pizza spot that popularized Neapolitan pizza in the city years ago that has since shifted its operations to the North Shore. In September, North Point will return to working with Nook, the Vancouver Italian restaurant that they've long used to supply their North Van taproom with tasty pizzas. Pizza lovers can expect to see a menu of classics, like pepperoni and Margherita, as well as a new vegan option.
Along with showcasing pizza and pastries from local businesses, North Point's Bentall cafe also features foods from Las Margaritas (chips and salsa), Two Rivers (meat sticks) and Señor Nut (beer nuts) for snacking.
When it comes to what's pouring, North Point has six taps for rotating in their lineup of brews, including staples like their NP Lite Lager, Tropic Like It's Hot Sour, and their popular Life of Riley Hazy IPA. Seasonal features on tap right now include the Banana Pancakes Hefe; no, they don't put bananas (or banana pancakes) in the brew - a banana-esque flavour arises naturally from the yeast, making for a pretty cool Hefe.
The vibe is chill inside the cafe, with a variety of seating configurations and a clean, modern design with hints of NP's core "cabin feels" motto. Two large meeting rooms are available for booking and the whole cafe can be booked out as well. Catering options are in development, but offerings already go a bit beyond the beer-and-pizza route.
North Point also does off-sales, so if you see one of the brewery's other beers in the cooler, you can absolutely bring them home.
Third space for North Point, another in the works
This is actually North Point's third concept; they're teamed up with a Port Moody developer for Outpost, a cafe, beer, and condo-selling space.
Growth is also on the menu for the busy brewery; they've inked an exciting deal for a second downtown Vancouver space in a heritage building for another cafe location, with hopes of getting the doors open there after renovations in about a year's time.
North Point Brewing Co.'s downtown Vancouver cafe is located at 1025 Dunsmuir St (Bentall Centre) and is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 8 p.m. Follow @northpointbrewing on Instagram.
@vancouverisawesome You had me at pizza. And beer. #forkingawesome #vancouverbc #vancouverfoodie ♬ Stay With Me - Calvin Harris, Justin Timberlake, Halsey & Pharrell Williams
