“We have something for everybody there,” explains Alex Fisher, one of four partners that developed Salisbury’s newest local restaurant and brewery, Burnish Beer Company. Quietly opened on Oct. 23 this year, the eatery is quickly becoming a local treasure.
“A lot of people express to us they love having Burnish on the north end [of Salisbury],” Fisher said, referring to their location at 2305 Northwood Drive in the city, just off of Naylor Mill Road.
Building Burnish was a process over two years in the making, having begun in 2019 when local partners, Randy Mills, Taylor Wade, Mathew Shockley, and Fisher came together with the vision of a brewery and adjoining restaurant. Managing member and head brewer, Mills, came to Shockley, a graphic design artist, with the dream of starting his own brewery. From there, they’d look to Wade, of Parsonsburg’s Aerial Crane, and, later, Fisher, a lawyer, to create the ideal team. Together, they had expertise to run, design, and build a company and a brand with the ability to navigate all aspects legality from licenses to zoning.
Development took more than the perfect team; it took time and work. Fisher explains that, “in the beginning there’s a lot of business plans and due diligence before breaking ground,” and that the impact of renovating and building during the pandemic resulted in some uncontrollable setbacks. Transforming an old boat warehouse space into what it is today was not an overnight feat, but it couldn’t have become their vision any other way.
What Burnish is today is something Fisher says, “we’re really proud of.” The design and architecture include a wood fired brick pizza oven and some remnants of the original warehouse still visible in the main dining area. In the Tap Room, glass, roll-up doors invite in natural light to bathe the large open space that has an, “industrial, weathered look,” according to Fisher. Guests can stop and view the inside of the brewery through windows and maybe even see the brewing process in action. Outside, the beer garden is taking shape with outdoor seating on artificial turf that, in the spring, will boast a bar made from a shipping container sourced from the original warehouse.
Fisher highlights; “We spent the extra time and effort on detail, and it’s the space that we dreamed of.”
