SOMERS POINT — It’s taking a little bit longer than expected but the building that soon will house Bay Ave. Brewery is nearly complete and its owners hope to be pulling drafts by the end of the year.
Longtime summer residents of Ocean City, cousins Tom Dooner and Brian Murphy are behind the project at 435 Bay Ave., the lot on the corner of Maryland Avenue, where they started their project in October 2025.
Dooner said Oct. 14 that he was hoping to have electricity hooked up the next day, followed by gas. That will allow the brewing process to begin.
“We hoped to be open by now but still hopefully before the end of the year,” he said. “This week a lot of big hurdles will be finished.”
The exterior of the building is nearly complete — some work on the porch was still outstanding when we spoke — and all of the concrete work in the parking lot is finished. Getting the lot paved is next up on the list of things to complete.
Inside, Dooner said, the brewing tanks are in place and ready for a deep cleaning and trial run before work gets started on the brews.
“We’re very close to hitting go on that,” he said.
It will take a couple of weeks to brew the first batches of ales and a bit longer for the lagers, so Dooner said they plan to open with a full slate of the former.
“We’re pretty set with our opening tap list. We have certain styles we want to showcase as specialties,” he said, noting in the future they will brew and serve seasonal beers. “Definitely next season’s holidays.”
Dooner said they missed this Octoberfest season but that this time next year they will have a special offering.
“We really want to lean into using fresh hops, so unfortunately we missed that window, too,” he said.
In addition, he said people like drinking heavier, darker beers in the winter but that they will stick to their standard lineup for the time being.
“After we showcase our standards, we will be mixing it up more in future seasons,” he said.
The tasting room has its floor in and is awaiting furniture. Dooner said that would be among the final things installed before opening.
They hope to start brewing before Halloween.
“We’re definitely eager to be open,” he said, noting he and Murphy are brewers by profession, “so we don’t build buildings by nature. It has been a learning process.”
The cousins plan to open with a six-day week (closed Mondays) and expand as demand requires.
Dooner said they hope to cater to the local crowd and is happy to open without the large tourist contingent.
“It’s almost a blessing in disguise that we are opening in winter. There’s not as many seasonal tourists and we want to focus on the Somers Point community,” he said.
The cousins grew up in Pennsylvania but had family homes in Ocean City. Dooner, 33, now lives in Pleasantville while Murphy, 34, lives in Linwood.
Both have worked as professional brewers since earning their graduate-level certification from the University of the Sciences in 2020.
Dooner worked in the quality control lab for Cape May Brewing Co. and at Dock Street Brewery in Philadelphia. Murphy worked at King’s Road Brewing Co. in Haddonfield and Brewery ARS in south Philadelphia.
They both worked locally throughout their youth, with Dooner serving on the Ocean City Beach Patrol from 2013 to 2020 and Murphy working at Uncle Bill’s Pancake House for about a decade.
Their love of beer started long ago, as both were home brewers for years before they earned their certificates.
They plan to brew and serve about 10 beers on tap as owners and operators of the brewery. There will be no food service, which requires a full liquor license, but Dooner said they are allowed to have food trucks on site.
In addition to serving their product on site, they plan to offer their brews to go so customers can enjoy them at home or at local BYOB places.
The cousins said they chose Somers Point partly because of their familiarity with the city and its thriving nightlife.
“We think that there’s a market for it and especially with Somers Point being known for the bar scene,” Dooner said. “We would love to put our beers on tap at local watering holes and hopefully can build relationships that people find out about us at businesses that have been around forever.”
The business joins Caroline’s, which is on the northeast corner, a large housing complex under construction on the southeast corner and a medical office building on the southwest corner.
In addition, next door is Pablo restaurant, which underwent a multimillion-dollar renovation beginning in 2022 when it was known as Mexiquilla, and the Somers Point Paddle Club is just south on Bay Avenue. Motel 6 is just behind the brewery.
– STORY and PHOTOS by CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
