Brewery News: WA: Bothell: Now Open - Beardslee Public House, Brewery, and Distillery

Press Release

BOTHELL, Wash. – Chef John Howie today announces the opening of Beardslee Public House, a new 10-barrel brewery featuring 12 of the finest local craft beers on tap with seasonal rotating guest handles. The restaurant menu features high-quality, scratch-casual fare, including house-made burgers, hand-tossed pizzas and charcuterie – all created with locally sourced ingredients. Every epicurean delight served at Beardslee is made in house: the restaurant grinds its own meat, bakes its own fresh bread and creates a variety of fresh, artisanal sausages.

The stunning 10,000 square foot Beardslee Public House, which includes the downstairs brewery and charcuterie kitchen, seats nearly 400 and is the fruition of a Pacific Northwest-inspired and family friendly eatery that Chef Howie has envisioned for several years. With the help of partner Erik Liedholm, local elements have been thoughtfully incorporated into every aspect – from each food and beverage offering to the décor that evokes a distinct Northwest charm and ambiance.

From a culinary standpoint, executive chef Jed Laprade has carefully integrated the fresh flavors of the region into each menu item. On the brewery side, head brewer Drew Cluley has designed a beer program that appeals to a variety of tastes – from the most discerning craft beer lover to a newbie ready for their first craft beer experience. Cluley, along with assistant brewer and cicerone Paige Zahnle, produces every Beardslee craft beer on site. Additionally, the full-service bar spotlights several Washington State wines, which are available on tap, and an intriguing list of specialty signature cocktails created with spirits made at the adjacent Wildwood Spirits Co, scheduled to open later this month.
“I have been waiting for this day for years,” commented Proprietor/Chef John Howie. “We are very excited to bring the unique scratch casual dining and brewery experience of the Beardslee Public House to the
great Pacific Northwest and specifically the Bothell community.”

The design of Beardslee Public House features rich, warm woods with steel accents, stained concrete floors and high ceilings. On warm days, garage doors in the front and rear of the restaurant may be opened to bring the outside in. There is also a spacious outdoor patio with a fire pit. On cooler days, guests may warm up in the bar around the indoor fireplace with casual seating.
As a complement to Beardslee’s distinct Northwest ambiance, the fireplace, fire pit and each beautiful table in the restaurant was custom crafted from a giant red Sequoia tree harvested on the original Beardslee property.
The restaurant, bar and outdoor patio seat nearly 400, including prime spots at the exhibition drug counter looking into the kitchen and two large community tables that enhance the neighborhood atmosphere of the restaurant.

Beardslee Public House – The Restaurant
The Beardslee menu features a variety of the expected – such as burgers, hand-tossed pizzas and a variety of sausages – delivered in unique and delicious ways, as well as unexpected and unusual culinary delights – such as grilled Kalbi pork jerky and the veggi rillette (otherwise known as ratatouille in a jar). Chef Jed Laprade, who is formally trained and has an accomplished fine-dining background, is passionate about flavorful, made-from-scratch comfort food and succeeds in creating something for everyone.

Close proximity to world-class craft beer and its ingredients influenced the creation of this menu and makes beverage pairing easy. Beardslee-inspired dishes include: the stout-infused deviled eggs, Greenleaf IPA & jalapeno hummus with fresh baked garlic flatbread, the spent grain pretzel – a soft pretzel made with grains from Beardslee beer and served with stout-infused mustard, ale battered Walla Walla onion rings, hand-tossed pizzas with malted grains used to make the crust and the Beardslee Pale Ale, cauliflower and cheddar cheese soup with frizzled onions.

Beardslee Public House – The Brewery
Beardslee signature brews are made on site in the 10-barrell brewery (located directly below the restaurant), and offer unique styles and flavors that are not produced by major breweries. Beardslee will regularly feature 12 of its own house beers, including seasonally rotating guest handles. On opening day, the
beers will include: Bastard Grain Pale Ale, Greenleaf India Pale Ale (formerly Beardslee Public House IPA, served at all John Howie Restaurants), Four Ginger India Pale Ale, Knotted Porter, Widow Maker Wit, Beaver Bait Blonde Ale and a daily selection of Cask Conditioned Ale.

Beardslee Public House’s master brewer, Drew Cluley, has 20 years of extensive craft brewing experience, was the former head brewer at Big Time Brewery and Pike Brewing Company, and has spent the last 16 months intensely focused on the design and development of the Beardslee beer program.

Beardslee Public House – The Bar
In addition to Cluley’s house made craft beers, Beardslee will have a full-service bar with several carefully selected Washington wines available on tap. These local featured wineries include: Alexandria Nicole, Mark Ryan, Schloss Howie, New Winery and Waters.

 The Beardslee cocktail menu spotlights the award-winning Kur Gin and Stark Vatten Vodka made by master distiller and Beardslee partner Erik Liedholm at Wildwood Spirits Co. The signature drinks, created with seasonal ingredients that pair well with house-made entrees, include: Beardslee Barrel-Aged Negroni and Mother’s Ruin, made with Kur Gin, and the Wildwood Vesper and Rosemary Gimlet, made with Stark Vatten Vodka. Other house-made specialty cocktails include the watermelon mojito and John Howie’s Manhattan. Beardslee beers are also featured in specialty cocktails: the Grapefruit Shandigaf, made with the Beardslee IPA and fresh grapefruit juice, and the Michelada, which uses spicy tomato juice and Beardslee’s Widow Maker Wit.

In addition to Laprade and Cluley, general manager Erik Agnew will lead the Beardslee team. Agnew was previously food and beverage director at the prestigious Overlake Golf and Country Club in Medina, Wash.

Beardslee Public House is located at The Village at Beardslee Crossing, 19116 Beardslee Boulevard. The Village is along Beardslee Boulevard, at the NE 195th Street and I-405 interchange at Exit 24. Beardslee will be open Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and on Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. until midnight. The menu will not change during the day and food service will cease one hour prior to closing.

About The John Howie Restaurant Group:
The John Howie Restaurant Group includes Seastar Restaurant and Raw Bar (Bellevue, 2002); SPORT Restaurant & Bar (Seattle, 2005); John Howie Steak (Bellevue, 2009); In.gredients (Microsoft Redmond campus, 2014), Beardslee Public House (Bothell, 2015); and Wildwood Spirits Co.(Bothell, August 2015). Along with being the chef/owner of the John Howie Restaurant Group, John Howie is also author of the cookbook Passion & Palate: Recipes for a Generous Table. Chef Howie has been honored with an invitation to cook at the prestigious James Beard House in New York City on five separate occasions, represents Washington state annually at the Super Bowl in The Taste of the NFL, and is a sought-after culinary expert featured in local and national media, including Martha Stewart Living, The Today Show, The CBS Early Morning Show, Cooking Channel, Food Network, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.


Chef Howie and his restaurants are as recognized for philanthropic generosity as they are for culinary achievements. Since 2002, the John Howie Restaurant Group has received numerous awards for philanthropy and community involvement, and has given more than $4.5 million to hundreds of charitable organizations.