Tapworks Brewing Company: craft brewery in Gibsons
Tapworks Brewing Company is a craft brewery located in Gibsons, a small town on the sunshine coast. We came here for lunch as a large part of 14 people during our trip to Gibsons this summer.
This review is based on an in-dining experience.
Interior
The building is actually really cool. They have a large ground floor patio with very comfortable-looking patio furniture. This area allows dogs, which is always a plus in my books.
They also have a second floor patio where you order food and sit down and eat. This area is under cover and a lot of sunshine comes in so it’s a really bright and happy atmosphere.
Food
Their menu selection features different craft beers, burgers/sandwiches, some flatbreads and other snacks.
Their craft beer selection is nice with around 10 beers rotating on tap. I choose a sour/fruity beer but they have pale ales, IPA, etc. Beer prices hover around $5-6, great price.
Pork belly bao ($15)
We were interested in trying their baos. The pork belly bao has crisped pork belly and chicharron, topped with pickled chili, hoisin, cilantro and sesame seeds. Served on 2 steamed bao buns. The serving is 2 baos but they are fully loaded so it’s more filling than you’d expect.
I actually quite liked the baos as there was a lot of flavour. Some of the pork belly fell out during eating but I didn’t mind. I liked the addition of cilantro as well.
Crispy chicken burger ($19)
Out of all the burgers, the crispy chicken burger sounded the most enticing to us. It features a crispy chicken breast, signature spice blend, smoked cheddar, iceberg, pickle and their secret sauce served on a brioche bun. It comes with a side order of french fries.
Generally, the burger and fries were ok. It wasn’t the most amazing burger I’ve ever had so for the price point, I did think it was a little pricey.
Final thoughts
Loewe’s rating: ⭐⭐
The atmosphere and look of the restaurant is really cool and the beers were refreshing.
Food seemed to be just average, perhaps because this place is more of a brewery? Some of our friends ordered the crispy cauliflower and found it too oily. The poutine was also a bit too soggy (too much gravy).
Service was disappointing. At first, I saw some lady complain about how she ordered before our table and her food still wasn’t here. I thought she was just being a Karen.
But then I didn’t get my food until everyone at my table finished theirs. When we asked the servers if our order is coming up, they only talked about their kitchen process and how we didn’t do 1 large order for the table so it’ll come at different times. I know we had a big table of 14 people, but we weren’t the last of the 14 to order at the ordering window. We had a 30-40 min wait for our burger and baos. Also, since I was already hangry, I didn’t particularly care to learn about the kitchen process. I only wanted to know how much longer I needed to wait for my food. The wait was too long for the quality of food and generally, it just sucks/not very professional to have everyone else finish eating and then you give the last person their order. Or maybe I’m just a Karen now too.
Anyways, still a cool place to drink some beer. I wouldn’t come too hungry or with a large group.
Sincerely, Loewe