Turlock’s Dust Bowl Brewing is bringing a new taproom to this Sacramento-area city
Turlock’s Dust Bowl Brewing Co. is coming to Elk Grove’s Old Town, opening a taproom this fall in the city’s historic district.
The Railroad Avenue site, an imposing century-old brick structure that hugs the Union Pacific tracks that cut through Old Town, will be the brewery’s third taproom and a centerpiece of the city’s plans to turn the sometimes-sleepy stretch of Elk Grove Boulevard into a community gathering spot.
“Having a brewery of Dust Bowl’s stature will be a wonderful addition to the atmosphere and vibrancy we are trying to create here in Elk Grove,” Elk Grove Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen said in a statement as part of Dust Bowl’s announcement Monday. “It will be fun for locals to have another great craft brewery experience, and certainly an attraction for visitors as well.”
The 6,000-square-foot space in the former wine grape warehouse will feature 30 taps featuring Dust Bowl brews and seltzers, lounge seating and a traditional bar; private events spaces and a nearly 7,000-square-foot patio and open-air space. Dust Bowl representatives say the Elk Grove room will have a similar look and feel as its Monterey location and its home taproom in Turlock.
The Elk Grove taproom will also offer “upscale pub food,” including artisan flatbreads, gourmet burgers and tacos.
The Turlock brewery planned to move into Elk Grove in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic shelved those plans, said Dust Bowl owner Brett Honore in a prepared statement as part of the announcement.
“While we had hoped to open a new taproom in 2020, those plans were put on pause while we all weathered the impact of the pandemic,” Honore said. “We used the time wisely to conduct further research and are excited with our decision to expand in Elk Grove.”
An hour’s drive north on Highway 99, the Elk Grove site’s close proximity to the Dust Bowl brewery “makes delivering fresh beer on a regular basis easy to execute,” Honore said.
Dust Bowl is well-known to Sacramento-area craft beer consumers, with its Taco Truck lager and Milk Barn stout among selections in the region’s beer coolers and on tap.
But it’s also elbowing its way into a small but competitive Elk Grove brewing scene and its enthusiastic fan base including Sacramento Bee readers’ favorite Flatland Brewing Co., Dreaming Dog Brewery, Tilted Mash Brewing, Waterman Brewing Co., and relative newcomer Hungry Pecker Brewing.
Singh-Allen and other Elk Grove leaders have made an Old Town face lift a priority project along with the center-city The Preserve at District 56 park and recreational area now under construction. The Preserve project is expected to be completed in October, city officials said.
Construction of the district’s Old Town Plaza and pavilion structure on Railroad near Elk Grove Boulevard and a short walk north of the taproom is nearly complete.
The pavilion — think a structure similar to West Sacramento’s The Barn — will host farmers’ markets, food trucks and outdoor concerts, say city planners. An entrance plaza, walkways, street improvements and public parking are also planned as part of the plaza.
.JPG)