Hello, Cape Cod.
Tree House in Sandwich
Intro + overview.
Hello
Hello - my name is Nathan Lanier and I am a co-founder, head brewer, and conceptual leader at Tree House Brewing Company. I, our cofounders, and our staff of 151 people work tirelessly each day to make Tree House what it is.
The words on this page were written by me; not our PR department, because we don’t have one. We wear our hearts on our sleeves and when you hear information from us you hear it from the people who roll up their sleeves each day and build. When you get to know us you will learn that we make good on our word and that we do things the hard way and the right way every single time.
We put this page together to share details on our brewery in Sandwich and our philosophy of doing business. It will clarify any questions you may have about the operation, and articulate why visiting will be a well-controlled and intimate experience with the utmost consideration and care for the location.
We understand that we are staking our reputation on our ability to deliver on this plan - and we are happy to do so because we believe in the possibility of this location and we will do whatever we need to to make it a valued addition to the Sandwich community.
We have seen a lot of comparisons made to our operation in Charlton. Our brewery in Sandwich will be completely different from our brewery in Charlton for the reasons outlined below.
The vision for this location - a lively bastion of community and spirit, with locals enjoying the view over a pint and a lobster roll while forgetting about life for a while - is one that drives us obsessively to get this right. This facility is designed to create an impeccable experience that has been arduously designed in consideration of its capabilities and surroundings. That is our promise, and that is what you can expect from Tree House.
Community Outreach
Tree House has a lengthy record of contributing to causes that affect the human condition from both a global perspective and a community perspective. This level of outreach will not diminish in Sandwich. In fact, all of the revenue (not proceeds nor profit - but revenue) from the beer Hello Cape Cod - a beer that features over 100 unique images showcasing the grandeur and beauty of the Cape - will be donated to the following causes, a list that has grown and evolved following months of conversations with the public in Sandwich and beyond:
Sandwich Food Pantry, Animal Rescue League, Woodwell Climate Research Center, the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy, Cape Kid Meals, Cape Abilities, Cape Cod Military Support Foundation, and the Sandwich Shellfish Program.
. . .
The food program at the brewery will draw from many of the Cape’s favorite restaurants on a rotating basis, offering exposure to food establishments and welcoming a diverse range of styles to enjoy.
Hiring + Jobs
Thus far, Tree House Cape Cod employs fourteen individuals, including our taproom manager, to contribute to this effort with more than a dozen more necessary to fulfill our vision - we carry a great deal of pride to bring well-paying jobs to the Sandwich community.
There are still several job openings, but if you are interested in applying act quickly as the positions have filled up fast.
Brewery Opening
We will open slowly and cautiously to ensure that things go according to plan. Here is how we will do it.
Sometime in the next couple of weeks, we will commence brewing on-site and begin to offer beer and coffee to go. We want to be clear that we are not open yet and that when we do you will need to purchase beer in advance of visiting the brewery on our web store.
The application will enable you to select a pickup time, and these pickup times will be limited and spaced out to ensure that there is not a rapid influx of guests to the brewery.
Following the successful implementation of our beer to-go program, we will open for draft with heavily reduced occupancy. Right now, given our current plan, we expect to gain occupancy for less than one hundred guests at any given time. Guests will need to pre-purchase tickets in advance to gain entrance in waves, and we will actively control and limit the volume of people who may do so.
When ticket sales for the day sell out - that is it. There will be no chaos and no lines of traffic.
Following the initial opening, and after finalizing further parking plans currently in the works, we will slowly and controllably scale the volume of people enabled to enter each day. The total number of draft tickets sold each day will not be driven by our legal occupancy but by ensuring we have a safe, laid back, reliable, and controllable environment for neighbors and the public to enjoy.
In closing
You may not be familiar with us, so you have questions - that is completely understandable. It has been our pleasure to prepare this information for you and hope that these clarifications will assuage you with a better understanding of how we will approach our opening and continued operations. We have gone to great lengths to ensure that our brewery will be a valued addition to the Sandwich community for many years to come.
The support and enthusiasm for our brewery from Sandwich residents, in the many conversations we have had since November, has been heartening. We are glad to have met you, and we look forward to offering a memorable sliver for you to enjoy this summer and beyond.
Breathing life into an old building that has served as a communal gathering place for over 60 years fills us with pride, and we cannot wait to open our doors and welcome you into a tiny sliver of beer nirvana overlooking the majestic Cape Cod Bay.
Thank you for reading, and have an excellent day.
Answers to common questions
Who is Tree House?
Tree House is a founder-owned and operated brewery whose primary goal is to create value for its guests by providing a best-in-class product paired with an unmatched experience. We are built by friends who grew up together in a small town and who work earnestly each day to do the very best that we can. We work to bring you joy.
Where will people park?
For servicing beer-to-go, Tree House has adequate onsite parking for guests.
For draft, In addition to on-site parking and nearby public parking and as part of a comprehensive parking plan, Tree House has identified 754 public parking spaces in the vicinity of the brewery to be utilized and available to Tree House guests in conjunction with a free shuttle service.
This plan will enable us to comfortably open for the first wave of draft offerings in a reduced capacity.
Thereafter, we are hopeful to secure more walking-distance parking to further facilitate the ease of visiting.
Will this location be anything like Charlton?
No - It will not be anything like Charlton. Let us explain why.
Charlton is a modern marvel, with room to store a hundred pallets of beer divided among our four coolers. This enables us to serve guests in a first-come-first-served fashion without limitations. We have spent years building the infrastructure to do this and learned several lifetime’s worth of information while doing it.
Tree House Sandwich is phenomenally different; we know this, and we know why. It has a tiny cooler capable of holding just a few pallets of beer and serving an order of magnitude fewer people. There is one road in and one road out. We understood this when we purchased the building and have been considering it ever since, spending north of six figures on a custom application to control it. This custom application will enable an order ahead model without first-come-first-served service. If you do not order ahead, we cannot and will not serve you. This will ensure that we can manage orders at a volume that makes any fear of lines, crowds, or traffic melt away once you see it in action.
Imagine Charlton is Bruce Springsteen playing the Meadowlands and Sandwich is Bruce Springsteen playing a High School auditorium. Even though the main act is a very large draw, ticket sales easily and appropriately limit the volume of people attending on a given day to a level appropriate for the venue.
There is no comparison to be made between the two breweries, other than the delicious beer you can find at either.
To further illustrate this point, here is a diagram that displays the cold storage volume in Charlton and the cold storage volume in Sandwich drawn to scale:
How are you going to open?
We will open slowly and cautiously to ensure that things go according to plan. Here is how we intend to do it.
Sometime in the next couple of weeks, we will commence brewing on-site and begin to offer beer and coffee to go. We want to be clear right now that we are not open yet and that when we do you will need to purchase beer in advance of visiting the brewery on our web store.
Following the successful implementation of our beer to-go program, we will open for draft with heavily reduced occupancy. Right now, given our current plan, we expect to gain occupancy for less than one hundred guests at any given time. Guests will need to pre-purchase tickets in advance to gain entrance in waves, and we will actively control and limit the volume of people who may do so.
When ticket sales for the day sell out - that is it.
Following the initial opening, and after finalizing further parking plans currently in the works, we will slowly and controllably scale the volume of people enabled to enter each day. The total number of draft tickets sold each day will not be driven by our legal occupancy but by ensuring we have a safe, laid back, reliable, and controllable environment for neighbors and the public to enjoy.
Will people be drunk and unruly?
No. All Tree House servers carry TIPS certification and are highly trained and experience with recognizing the attributes of intoxication. Any guest in or approaching this state will be denied service. Additionally, per guest drink tickets will be limited depending upon the day of the week or time of day.
This is not a bar bar. It is a communal gathering place to consider a few pints and a meal among friends, families, and neighbors and we will work to keep it that way.
Can I ride my bike to Tree House?
Yes! Of course! There are public bike racks in First Beach Parking Lot and we will have space for 8-10 bikes on our property. This is a great way to explore Sandwich and we encourage it!
Can I bring my children? My dog?
Children are welcome at all Tree House properties accompanied by an adult. Well behaved and leashed dogs may accompany their owners in the outdoor beer garden at Tree House Cape Cod.
Is there food?
Yes! One of the most delightful things about this project is that it will create a centralized space to welcome some of the Cape’s best food establishments on a rotating basis to serve you food. There will always be something new and interesting to enjoy!
When are you going to open?
We are not sure specifically at this time.
What are you doing about traffic?
For the reasons described above, there will not be a disruptive level of traffic attributable to the brewery on Town Neck. Regardless, Tree House employs a large staff of parking attendants with experience in directing customers, answering questions, and providing feedback to management on ways to perpetually improve and streamline operations.
Are people going to be drinking beer at 7 AM? 10 AM?
No - we requested hours of 7 AM to open a cafe for guests to enjoy a coffee or a pastry while enjoying the scenes of Cape Cod Bay. We do not anticipate many customers for coffee and pastry each day, but will still require pre-purchasing at the beginning to ensure everything is well-managed and enjoyable for all. The availability of alcohol served on-site will begin after 11 AM, and 12 PM on Sunday as required by the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission.
Are people going to get beer to go from 7 AM - 11 PM?
No - the beer to go option will only be available from 10 AM - 4 PM. For the remaining hours, guests enjoying pours may purchase beer to go but it will be from a limited inventory with greater limitations.
Are you knocking down the house at 5 Freeman to build a parking lot?
No.
What is going to happen to the right of way to the beach?
Nothing - it will remain available as it has been.
What else can you tell me?
When our building is ready, the public in the Town Neck neighborhood will be invited to a soft opening - we look forward to showing you the space!
Also, Hello Cape Cod is as delicious of a single IPA as we have ever made.
“Imagine Charlton is Bruce Springsteen playing the Meadowlands and Sandwich is Bruce Springsteen playing a High School auditorium. Even though the main act is a very large draw, ticket sales easily and appropriately limit the volume of people attending on a given day.”
We are a community-minded neighbor.
Mother Earth
The Tree House Sandwich team participated in an Earth Day Canal Clean-up this year and intends to do so each year moving forward. In addition, we will host a food drive each Thanksgiving to benefit the Sandwich Food Pantry as we have done each year previously in Charlton.
Peaceful Serenity
With close proximity to dozens of local cape attractions, Tree House Sandwich is a jump-off point to many of the Cape’s enormous charms. It could also be an end point because enjoying the sunset from the deck at high tide is something to behold.
Thank you
Thank you for reading. We look forward to providing further information on our opening very soon. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to us directly at info@treehousebrew.com
