“We should own a pub.”

Who hasn’t put voice to this great Australian dream amongst a few mates after a couple of coldies?

The chance to serve delicious food and refreshing drinks in a lively, friendly atmosphere while great music is playing – it’s got all the ingredients for the best plan ever.

So it may not come as a great surprise that the adventure that is Yard Kings Brewing Co. started in somewhat similar circumstances, beers in hand and dreams being voiced.

It’s just that rather than stop at “we should own a pub”, we took it all the way to a far more ambitious and crazier conclusion.

“We should own a brewery!”

Who are Yard Kings Brewing Co?

We are five families from a local, tight-knit beach community on the Central Coast who love nothing more than an afternoon of fun, food and frothies in each other’s company.

We’re great mates, united by a deep love of the beach, brews, and our neighbourhood.

We live in a community that feels like times gone by. Where neighbours aren’t strangers you nod at as you pass them in the street, but actual mates who you not only say g’day to but then stop and have a proper yarn with. Where, thanks to this shared trust and friendship, kids roam free until dinner time without a care.

We surf, we laugh and we drink beer – a LOT of it.

We ultimately wanted to celebrate and share this beaut community so, with a number of avid homebrewers amongst us, a brewery felt like the perfect way to extend our community.

Our mission is to make quality beer that brings great people together.

So, about that name …

Yard Kings. It’s not the most conventional name, we’ll agree – but then we’re not the most conventional people!

To us, ‘The Yard’ is a sacred space to hang with your favourite people and feel at home… But that’s not actually how we came up with this unique moniker.

It came about one sunny Saturday arvo, having a barbie in one of the family’s backyards and playing a game of ‘Yardzee’ (for the uninitiated, it’s the classic game ‘Yahtzee’, just played on the lawn with enormous timber dice – and therefore heaps more fun).

The guys declared their team the ‘Yard Kings’. Fair play, it was a solid name for a game of Yardzee and it got stuck in everyone’s heads – so much so that a few beers later, when the new Aussie dream of opening our own brewery was mentioned, then actually discussed, then talked about earnestly and excitedly as not just a possibility but a legitimately great idea, one name seemed the logical choice.

Yard Kings. It just felt right.

(As for who actually won the game of Yardzee that fateful afternoon, be sure to ask us in person when you come in for a beer and a feed – just don’t expect to get the same answer from any two people!)

The Yard – Our Home

With the name and the plan firmly in place, the next major piece in the puzzle was finding the perfect venue to bring our dream to life.

Being from the Coast, we wanted to keep things in our neck of the woods so as to showcase our love and pride in this amazing part of the world, so that helped to narrow things down.

And when we came upon the space at 32 Accolade Ave, Morisset, we knew immediately we could call the search off.

We had found our home.

Here, we have built a space for our customers that feels both comfy and lively – a place where anyone and everyone will feel at home and be eager to come back time and time again.

On a buzzing Saturday night, you and your crew will be able to share the most delicious, slow-cooked food and indulge in a top-quality beverage or two, all while nodding along or having a bit of a boogie to a chill set from the best local musicians.

It’s going to be like a low-key house-party at your best mate’s place (so you don’t have to clean up!)

And all within walking distance of the soon to be Cedar Mill outdoor concert venue being built just down the road.

Our Yard Kings Logo

The craft beer scene is absolutely booming in Australia so we knew if we were going to stand out, we needed a distinct logo – something that separated us from the pack, while still remaining true to who we are.

We took our ideas to the local Lake Macquarie legends at psyborg®, where company founder and absolute top bloke Dan Borg was excited about bringing our vision to life.

Given our love of the surf, we originally explored having a trident-wielding king on our logo, a bit like the Greek god of the sea Poseidon (or, let’s be honest, Ariel’s dad in The Little Mermaid, King Triton). But while we all grew up on the coast, it just didn’t feel right. We’re down to earth people, so having a magical bloke with a crown and a three-pronged spear felt… just a bit much.

We did want our King to have a memorable face so when you’re scanning the taps at the bar or the cans at the bottle-o, his luscious beard jumps out at you. But at the same time, he needed to feel familiar and distinctly Aussie.

So Dan began sketching concepts and, little by little, our King emerged.

So who is he? Just an average bloke who’s happiest when he’s sipping on a coldie and chilling with his favourite people.

He’s nobody and he’s everybody.

And with that philosophy, we are building a brand that’s for everyone. We hope our King reminds you of your dad, brother, favourite uncle, cousin or best mate – someone who is the life of the party not because he’s the most outrageous bloke in the building, but because he’s the person who genuinely cares about people and makes the effort to ensure everyone is having the best time!

Who are the Yardies?

In the development stages, our founding group (there are 11 of us!) affectionately started calling each other as “The Yardies”.

That said, we’re not looking to be exclusive – we want as many Yardies as possible in our crew!

So how does one become a Yardie and what does it mean?

In a similar vein to the classic definition of being an Aussie, we’re about realising and appreciating the best and most important things in life – looking after your family and friends, and treating people how you want to be treated.

It’s a simple philosophy but as long as you can get around it, then you’ll always be welcome at our Yard!