Odd Breed Wild Ales this week will open quietly in Pompano Beach’s Old Town, a historic district that local businesses are transforming anew.

The brewery will start serving up its all-natural beers, ciders and honey wines across from a coffee shop called Blooming Bean Coffee Roasters that opened within the renovated Bailey Contemporary Arts, once the historic Bailey Hotel. The owners of The Foundry have signed a lease to open another restaurant called the Electric Owl next door to the brewery.

“Things will be drastically different next year from at this point,” said Sharon Stephenson, co-founder of Blooming Bean Coffee Roasters, Odd Breed’s neighbor. “You have a local roaster, a local art gallery, a green market and now you have Odd Breed, which is a nighttime concept. It’s definitely going to make a shift, for sure.”

It took about a year for Matt Manthe and Daniel Naumko, co-owners of Odd Breed, to find the spot. Greg Lieberman, owner of 26 Brewing Co., told the duo about the 2,500 square-foot location at 50 N.E. First St. Then they met with the Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency, which is spearheading transformative projects including the city’s Innovation District and pier redevelopment.

“We met with the CRA and saw their vision for that area with an anchor tenant like us,” Manthe said. “It made perfect sense.”

Manthe and Naumko are inserting their quirky personalities into the day-to-day operations of the business. For instance, the cat lovers are seeking a permit to allow feline pets in their taproom. Their dog-loving patrons, however, can expect a “No Dogs Allowed” sign.

Odd Breed was a longtime dream of Manthe and Naumko, who met at Naumko’s restaurant, Sybarite Pig. After five years operating the restaurant, Naumko is selling the Boca Raton gastropub to focus on this new venture. Its employees will likely be hired at Odd Breed, he said.

“We’re going to have some really interesting things available to our visitors,” he said.

Manthe and Naumko own Odd Breed with an investor that has a minority stake in the company.

Source: SFBJ