18 February 2025
By James Mullan
Cheers! The North Shore finally has a beer and a large-scale brewery to call its own: Depot.
Now credit where it is due, we haven’t forgotten the beloved Honeyrider Brewery in Neutral Bay, but Depot is a much bigger operation with six 3000L fermenters crafting lashious elixirs and might already be on tap at your local too.
Welcome to the brewery!
The Northern Beaches has Brookvale, the Inner West has Marrickville and the North Shore has Artarmon. Located around the corner from Bunnings and connected to Home HQ, the venue really is one of a kind for the area, nestled amongst storage warehouses and TV studios.
We sat down with general manager Paul Lambert and head brewer Ady Fitter to get the full yarn on the Depot.
As a 20 year industry veteran and North Shore local, Paul realised the unique opportunity Depot presented when it opened in December 2024.
“For the North Shore community, there hasn’t been an offering such as ours and that was really the driver. That void of any offering and the demand that we know from locals living in the area, like myself, that there is a good demand for craft beer and we wanted to fill that gap and be a place where locals can come and enjoy themselves.”
Ady has been involved in brewing for over a decade now, previously applying his craft at The Rocks Brewing, Young Henrys, Grifter and Wicked Elf in Port Macquarie.
He explained that the business model for breweries is evolving beyond simply production, evolving into “having a venue that attracts a lot of local people, servicing the local community and keeping our volumes to the point that we’re really just servicing our locals and a couple of clubs locally, that’s what really matters.”
What he really loves about the industry and especially the Depot is “In this industry I can listen to the people who are drinking my beer and that feedback I take on and I import that and put that into my recipes as well.”
Let’s have a beer
But what can the thirsty local patrons expect? 12 different beer styles on tap which includes six core range beers and six beers seasonal limited releases.
For the record Paul loves a good Red Ale in winter, an IPA as an everyday beer but “can’t go past a nice tasty Pacific Ale”.
Ady, like a proud father, said he loves all his beers equally, fair enough considering the rigour and passion he puts into his brews.
We sampled a tasting paddle and agreed the Czech Dark Larger was a stand out. Get in while stocks last on this smooth ambery delight.
The Ginger Beer was special too, with a fresh ginger start and a hoppy taste to finish.
Don’t worry! If you aren’t after anything particularly complicated the lager was perfect, with no lingering bitterness and a crisp taste. In fact all the beers had a particularly clean flavours, with none of the nasties used in the brewing process.
In busy weeks the brewery has produced 16,000 litres of beer and on quieter weeks sits around 6,000 liters.
If you can’t make it to the brewery, you can find Depots’ beers on tap at The Greens North Sydney, Norths Cammeray and The Allcott Lane Cove.
Feeling hungry?
Moving to the kitchen, Chef Will Baldwin, with 15 years of experience at top venues like The Butler and Bopp & Tone, has crafted a menu that pairs perfectly with a cold beer.
Can you name a better combination than pizza and beer? Email us your suggestions. While we wait, enjoy a pizza fresh out of the Depot’s custom made pizza oven.
We tried the tandoori chicken pizza and were impressed. No cheap, dry chicken bits to be found, instead well seasoned breast, smooth sauce, bocconcini and perfectly roasted capsicum.
As for what Paul recommends, he can’t go past the double cheeseburger and neither could we.
I’ve travelled to 30+ US cities, trying signature burgers in most of them. However, I never experienced a juicy, melt in your mouth patty quite like this one, complemented with memorable tomato relish and tangy pickles that stuck with me even days after. In short, you must try it.
Another American delight on offer is the Reuben Sandwich or for something lighter the Pumpkin Salad is a hit or share a grazing board, featuring quality cured meats, cheese and olives.
The brewery was keen to make food affordable with most of the menu ranging from $18 to $25 and generous portion sizes.
Coming soon….
Looking ahead Paul has music in his ears “live music will be starting up in the next few weeks, something that we’re, again, partnering with local artists and being part of that community.”
Keep an eye on the Sun’s new Instagram page and Facebook group for updates on which artists will be lighting up the brewery.
From the brewers there are plenty more to pour with Ady teasing there are still plenty of delightful beverages on the radar “We’ll be working on some IPAs, definitely Cali West coast styles and some hazys.” adding sours are also in the pipeline.
The Depot is a must try, whether you are looking for lunch that hits the spot, a cold one after shopping or looking to get people together on the weekend. We bet you will be back again soon.
The venue also has a playground to go along with an affordable kids food menu. Several big screen TVs have got you covered for the upcoming footy season too.
With a local focus, great beers and a wonderful atmosphere, Depot truly is the brewery the North Shore has been waiting for.