East Providence Is Finally Getting Its First Brewery

The taproom at Crook Point Brewing Company overlooks the Seekonk River. (Photos by Lauren Clem)

The first thing you see when you look out the window at Crook Point Brewing Company in East Providence is the namesake bridge, locked into its permanently stuck-up position on the other side of the Seekonk River.

To the right sits the Henderson Bridge, currently in the midst of a five-year, $85 million replacement project.

Between is Crook Point Brewing, a brand-new brewery that, like its views, combines the old and new to deliver a comfortable atmosphere that pays tribute to the building’s former manufacturing roots. The brewery — East Providence’s first — is expected to open later this month.

Like most business owners during a pandemic, things did not go according to plan for Ernie Watson. The Seekonk native, who has a background in construction and real estate, purchased the building as an investment property in 2019. He’d previously dabbled in home brewing and quickly realized its potential as a brewery, making plans to open the following year.

“I did a lot of research. The second most expensive thing for a brewery aside from buildout is having to move if you lose your lease,” he says.

With the opening on hold due to the pandemic, Watson spent the last three years building out a taproom that reflects the building’s industrial past. A former hammer factory that also served as a warehouse and print shop, the property was full of old wood ready to be repurposed into siding, floors and light fixtures. He spent two weeks assembling a herringbone accent wall behind an area that will serve as a food counter. In the seating area that doubles as an event space, many of the beams are still scorched from a long-ago fire. An original sliding metal fire door separates the seating areas from the bar, where the wooden bar top was recycled from a Smithfield mill.

“You’re looking at a time capsule right here with this wood,” he says.

The bar at Crook Point Brewing is recycled from a Smithfield mill.

The result is a taproom that’s simultaneously old-school and trendy. Mismatched antique furniture offers a cozy alternative to the bar, and an outdoor deck provides the signature river views. Between the main taproom and event space, the building has a capacity of at least 200. In the corner sits a piano, a Facebook Marketplace find that adds to the vintage feel.

“It’s popular. People come in and the first thing they do is they go over and start banging on the keys,” Watson says.

As for the beer, he has no plans to brew anything “exotic,” instead relying on a dependable rotation of lagers, IPAs, porters and seasonal brews at the bar’s eleven taps. John Windle of Foolproof Brewing Company is heading up the taproom. The pair has been busy preparing for the long-awaited opening, which Watson hopes will happen in the last weekend of October. Light food options from Scialo’s Bakery and flavored seltzers and beer cocktails will round out the taproom offerings.

The business has created buzz in East Providence, where Watson has family ties and where the brewing industry has been absent, despite the thriving scene across the river. He hopes the brewery will become a space where families can gather and locals feel comfortable catching up over a drink.

“Everybody is excited and helpful. I’ve got zero pushback on anything here,” he says.

The ten-barrel brewing system at Crook Point Brewing.

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