Two cooks prep for the Friday night crowd as head brewer Warren Hendrickson monitors six fermenters in the back of the narrow restaurant in Eastport, hours before Forward Brewing opens.

Owner Cam Bowdren opens a side window because the front windows of the old building are fogging up from the heat inside — which happens so often that they’ve named a beer after it.

Beyond the routine of preparing for customers on a Friday morning, Forward Brewing, which opened in 2020, is also locked in a battle to continue its outdoor dining, which has set off a firestorm in this breezy Annapolis neighborhood.

Regulating outdoor dining that expanded during the pandemic has become contentious in Annapolis and communities across the country.

During the first year of the pandemic, the microbrewery quickly pivoted to outdoor dining to stay afloat. Today, it’s a popular restaurant that hosts clubs and trivia nights, and has established roots in the community.

Having abundant outdoor space on its private parking lot has become part of Forward’s identity‚ even when it’s chilly. Inside, it seats only 28.

With outdoor dining rules formalized by the City Council last year, owners Cam and Claire Bowdren applied for 89 seats outside, which they say is how many the restaurant has had for at least a year or two. In a memo, a city planner recommended cutting that to no more than 45 seats.

That cut would affect the viability of the business, Cam Bowdren said. An outdoor seat is worth maybe “a quarter” of a seat indoors, he said, because bad weather means people won’t always want to eat outside.

“We need that scale. If we can only seat 45 people during the sunniest day, we’re not going to have the revenue we need,” Cam Bowdren said.

The city’s Board of Appeals is set to hold a hearing on Forward Brewing’s application at 7 p.m on Tuesday, Feb. 3.

The fight

Annapolis allowed more outdoor dining to help restaurants during periods of mandated social distancing and other public health measures. It extended those temporary measures until last year, when it finalized new outdoor dining rules.

Now, restaurants may apply for a permit to offer outdoor dining for nine months out of the year. Permits are required for street and sidewalk cafes. Businesses that want to convert parking lots into outdoor dining, such as Forward Brewing, must apply for a special exception and go before the Board of Appeals.

In Eastport, some nearby residents complain that Forward Brewing’s patrons take up street parking and that outdoor crowds can be noisy.

In written comments submitted to the board, they also accuse Forward of being dishonest and operating beyond what the city initially approved for the business.

“It started as a charming concept ... that has grown far in excess of what should be in that space,” wrote Eastport resident Jackie Wells. She did not respond to a request for comment.

When the brewery first opened, Claire Bowdren told the Capital Gazette that its focus would be on “our space, our taproom and being a restaurant.”

“Yes, 28 seats was our plan indoors,” Cam Bowdren said. “And then things changed, and outdoor dining became an option. It actually became a necessity during COVID, and then it stuck around. Now it’s become our identity.”

Claire Bowdren said they “struggle” to get people indoors sometimes, because the restaurant’s identity is so closely tied to outdoor dining.

As the hearing date nears, Cam Bowdren and Forward Brewing submitted a revision to their application, asking for 77 outdoor seats, which is what the nearby Boatyard Grill was permitted.

Forward in the community

Some city residents have rallied around Forward Brewing’s application. Dozens have submitted written comments to the city in support of the restaurant. (Of the 100-plus submissions, Cam Bowdren said he counted about 18 that were in opposition.)

During a public meeting, former Mayor Gavin Buckley called Forward Brewing the “future of Annapolis” and said the city should “prioritize people over cars.”

Ross Arnett, a former alderman who represented Eastport, helped formalize the outdoor dining rules in the city code. He called Forward Brewery popular, and said he goes there himself.

He acknowledged there have been complaints about noise, folks standing in groups drinking instead of sitting at tables, and crowds “spilling onto” the sidewalk. But he said those are enforcement issues — “not issues that are something that the special exception [for outdoor dining] speaks to.”

“I don’t think Forward Brewing stands out as some kind of a menace or anything like that,” Arnett said. “Everybody takes their knocks here and there and then you get back in line and follow the rules.”

The Anne Arundel County Public Library Foundation has hosted events at Forward for about four years, said Cathleen Sparrow, the foundation’s executive director.

The foundation chose Forward — and other local breweries — to meet customers where they are, Sparrow said. Forward is the “kickoff” location for the series of events, called Cheers to AACPL.

“It’s a really lovely partnership,” Sparrow said. “They understand the importance of a place that welcomes everyone, which is exactly what the library is all about.”

Gabby Fitzmaurice, director of donor engagements and events at the Anne Arundel County Medical Center Foundation, said collaborations and fundraisers with Forward Brewing have brought in $5,000. The money goes toward Fish For a Cure, an annual fishing tournament that raises money for the Cancer Survivorship Program at Luminis Health.

“This town is built on those small, special businesses, and Forward has really come out as one of them,” Fitzmaurice said.

The Forward Run Club gathers weekly for near-5K runs, said Colin Gotimer, one of the club’s organizers. Even in the winter, the club sees about a dozen people come out.

“Forward is more than just a brewery at this point, because of what it’s been allowed to become,” Gotimer said.