Overview
South Australian brewing company Pirate Life has teamed up with Perth hospitality guru Andy Freeman and his Sneakers & Jeans collective (responsible for Varnish On King, The Flour Factory, Caballitos, Goody Two's and Hadiqa) to bring a three-storey brewpub to Perth's west end just in time for summer.
Pirate Life Perth will be the first west coast venue from the brewing success story founded by three West Aussies (Michael Cameron, Jack Cameron and Jared Proudfoot), who moved to Adelaide in 2014 to open the original brewery.
Freeman's vision for Pirate Life's 'spiritual home' is "a hospitality project with a brewery in it".
"There's three bars, two kitchens, private dining rooms, mezzanines and boardrooms — there's so much happening in this location — it's more than just a brewery," Freeman told Concrete Playground. "It's more than just beer."
Andy Freeman by Shot by Thom
But don't worry, almost all of Pirate Life's main beers will be brewed onsite, plus new brews like the Apple & Guava Sour and Kakadu & Lemon Myrtle Pale Ale that champion local flavours. The brewery will also produce custom drinks for each of Sneaker & Jeans' existing venues — something Freeman is particularly excited about.
Freeman explains the new venue is about versatility, and having the layout, team and food and drink offerings to cater for any occasion — and any crowd.
"On a rainy Monday in August it can trade as almost a small bar, and on a sunny Friday afternoon, we can open the roof, and everything will be in full swing," he said.
"We've got a serious wine program, the restaurant will have linen tables, but with an urban flavour. If you want to drop a couple of hundred bucks on a bottle of wine and a beautiful piece of meat, we can deliver that. If you want to go out back and enjoy an Aperol spritz in the beer garden, then you can do that, too."
Head Chef Charlie Vargas will re-join the Sneakers & Jeans crew, after the New Yorker's latest gigs at WA restaurants including Gordon St Garage, Santini Bar & Grill and the now-closed New Normal Bar + Kitchen.
"He's a juggernaut. He's small in stature, but big on culture and vibrancy. His heritage of kitchens in WA alone is second to none," Freeman said of Vargas.
Pirate Life's Adelaide brewery
With two kitchens, one will be based around food that is 'accessible' and drinks-friendly, and the other will cater to a sit-down, linen-table crowd.
"There's something for if you want a big lunch, and also something for if you want to have a nibble. It's broad but having the two kitchens, we have the capacity for it," Freeman said.
Marcos Cain, instrumental in the design of local venues Tiger Lil's, Buddha Bar and The Library, has signed on to oversee Pirate Life's layout with his Dubai-based company Stickman Tribe.
"I said to Marcos 'push it out brother, break a few eggs, nothing is too crazy, let's go nuts'. And everyone will see that in what we'll deliver; there's nothing like it in the country," Freeman said.
With a location close to Perth Arena, and with eased COVID-19 restrictions coming into summer, Pirate Life is perfectly poised to shake up the CBD.
"We're already getting people trying to book Christmas functions. Perth's frothing for this. There's nothing like it in the city, something good for tourism and locals alike," Freeman said.
Pirate Life Perth is slated to open this summer at 440 Murray Street, Perth.
Top image: Stickman Tribe