FARGO — After years of anticipation, Drekker Brewing Company’s Brewhalla complex held a soft opening Friday, March 17, before launching in full the next day.
Like virtually all major projects in the Fargo area, Brewhalla fell victim to the usual slate of scheduling disruptions with which we’ve become familiar in the post-COVID world. If Friday’s soft opening was any indication, the $20 million, 100,000-square-foot building was clearly worth the wait.
No doubt the most hotly-anticipated project coming to the Fargo area in 2023, Brewhalla meets the mark in every department. Food? Check. Drinks? Check. Shopping? Check. You can even tie the knot or hold your next business event at the “you-name-it-they’ve-got it” venue.
That isn’t all, either. Hotel rooms on the building’s third and fourth floors are on tap, with Drekker co-founder Mark Bjornstad telling The Forum that the “Crash Pad” boutique hotel is roughly two months away from completion.
If it wasn’t already obvious, Brewhalla packs a boatload of attractions all under one roof. Unicorn Park Fine Foodery offers a fun and casual lunch and dinner menu. Blackbird Woodfire Pizza has a second home there, bringing fresh pizza to the building. Mangata Wine and Raw Bar gives diners a more upscale option.
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That’s just lunch and dinner. Nichole’s Fine Pastry and Cafe and Duchessa Gelato serve up desserts. Luna Market and Cows and Co. Creamery both offer fresh cheeses, while Luna adds meat, fresh seafood and pantry items. Thunder Coffee is also present to offer a different kind of brew from Drekker’s specialty.
If you’re looking for shopping, Livin’ The Dream Pottery, The Plant Supply, Red River Refillery and Bark’n Biscuits Co. offer it. Those are in addition to Unglued, which was so confident in the Brewhalla concept that owner Ashley Morken moved her shop from a prime location on Broadway to nestle inside Brewhalla full-time.
By the looks of it, Morken’s belief appears to have paid dividends. The store is whimsical and bright, with large windows overlooking railroad tracks, which are inaudible over the building’s music playlist and bustling conversation.
Don’t think the beer is lost in the shuffle, either. The taps flow freely at the bars on the first and second floors and drinks can be taken throughout the complex. If you’re looking for Drekker’s taproom, it is connected to Brewhalla via an enclosed, sloped walkway.
Most importantly, and if the construction price tag is any indication, Drekker did not cut corners in building Brewhalla. Drekker itself is an incredibly unique company in our area, and it’s abundantly clear that Bjornstad and the crew wrung out every last drop of creativity to design Brewhalla.
Drekker was clearly going for an industrial vibe and nailed it, all while making the building simultaneously clean, sleek and cohesive. Everything is thoughtfully put together, down to the custom signage, video boards and throw pillows adorning the second level seating.
Lightning bolts figure prominently into Brewhalla’s design, but it’s obvious the “good times factory” won’t be a flash in the pan. Drekker has set the bar for entertainment in the Fargo-Moorhead area, in a package that’s suitable for adults and children alike. Brewhalla is a crowd-pleaser; it has instantly become the first place you’d recommend to impress visiting friends or family because there is something for everyone.
One of Fargo’s greatest needs, as local leaders like Charley Johnson of the Fargo-Moorhead Convention and Visitors Bureau will say, is a true convention center. While Bjornstad said Brewhalla doesn’t set out to be “‘the’ Fargo convention center,” I suspect he is going to have a hard time keeping people away.
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To take a page from the company’s theme, a hearty “Skal!” is in order for Brewhalla, a triumph for both Drekker and the rest of us who are lucky to have this one-of-a-kind brewery as a neighbor.
GALLERY: More photos from Brewhalla
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