“Freehouse feels like you are in a grown-up Willy Wonka factory that sells homemade brew instead of chocolate,” says Lisa Westerman Pope, design director at Gensler, and part of the team that designed the Freehouse restaurant in Minneapolis.

Set in the historic Loose-Wiles building, a former biscuit factory, Freehouse takes advantage of the existing architecture to celebrate the craft of brewing beer.

Enclosed in glass, the brew tanks sit adjacent to the bar to immediately make the connection with the beer-making process

“The bar is intended to be a place where people can meet and enjoy their favorite brew,” explains Courtney Armstrong, interior designer at Gensler.

“Each space has its own unique interaction with the brewing process and therefore is named for its own distinct feel,” says Betsy Vohs, senior associate at Gensler.

The building has four distinct zones: the patio, bar, main dining room, and a private dining room.

“The balance between brewery as theater and the food as the focus was our greatest challenge,” says Betsy Vohs, senior associate at Gensler.

A portrait of Andrew Volstead—former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota who is known as the father of Prohibition Act—is rendered in beer caps and hangs in the private dining room.

Beer casks are used for both lighting and architecture in the private space.

Scattered closely together on the ceiling, the casks create a warmer aesthetic that recalls the restaurant’s focus.