Now Open: A Star Gold Coast Craft Brewer Arrives in Sherwood

A star Gold Coast craft brewer travels up the Pacific Motorway to open in … Sherwood? True story.

Lost Palms has quickly become a Miami icon since opening around the corner from Miami Marketta just on three years ago. You’d think, then, that its first Brisbane taproom would move into Fortitude Valley or Newstead, or perhaps South Brisbane or West End.

Instead, owner Jarrod Blanning chose Sherwood – the bucolic southwestern suburb that's thus far evaded Brisbane’s ceaseless gentrification. There’s the very good Gas Espresso, and Noodle World – an undiscovered but terrific noodle joint. Other than that, it’s a couple of churches, a few low-key eateries, a Woolies and a clutch of for-lease signs.

But that sleepiness was attractive to Blanning. Lost Palms is the latest in a neat series of brewpubs and taprooms – Ballistic, All Inn, Slipstream, the list goes on – that are setting up in Brisbane’s outer suburbs, filling a niche for community drinking holes.

“We were looking at places at both ends of the spectrum,” Lost Palms operations manager Zak Nalder says. “We could go real big, or we could go small and suburban. This site in particular, it was an existing venue. And the facilities just ticked the boxes.

“We wanted something a bit smaller, a bit more community driven. It isn’t a huge space and there’s not much on offer [in Sherwood]. So there’s less competition. But we can also be a local’s venue, not just a craft-beer venue.”

Opening on the weekend in the old Sweet n Spice Asian Kitchen on Sherwood Road, Blanning, Nalder and the Lost Palms crew have given the space a liberal dash of its signature pink paint and installed a large concrete bar at the end of the venue. There are also concrete tables inside and a series of high tables under the old roadside awning. There’s a cute neon “Be(er) Happy” sign out front, and the team has conducted an extensive upgrade of the cool rooms.

“We've converted one of the cool rooms into a keg room and installed some pretty pretty high-tech equipment to get the beer from there to the front,” Nalder says. “Other than that, it’s really prettying up the space. It’s an older venue and we've definitely splashed some pink love on it.”

The bar is running 11 taps, with between seven and nine of them typically dedicated to Lost Palms’ popular brews, including its XPA, Gold Coast Bitter and 300 Days mid-strength ale. There will also usually be a seltzer and a cider available alongside some beer-based cocktails.

“[The cocktails] play into that RTD cocktail market, but utilise a whole spectrum of flavours from the beer world,” Nalder says. “And we're going to play with that even more on a couple of taps and throw down some cocktails that we blend with a variety of our beers, or just mix classic cocktails and pull them through the tap.”

The other advantage of the old Sweet n Spice space is its relatively large kitchen. Chef Anita Murphy is using it to prepare a straightforward burger and snack menu, with future plans to branch out into more experimental pub grub.

“She’s very keen to experiment with the brewery and her cooking,” Nalder says. “We'll see some specials – some braised burgers and things made with a variety of the different beers that we produce.”

Lost Palms Sherwood
671 Sherwood Road, Sherwood
0428 044 637

Hours:
Thu 4pm–9pm
Fri & Sat 12pm–10pm
Sun 12pm–8pm

lostpalms.com.au