An award-winning craft brewery in Houston’s East Downtown neighborhood has announced plans to close its taproom at the end of April, citing the controversial Interstate 45 expansion project as a contributing factor.
True Anomaly Brewing Co., founded in 2019 and located at 2012 Dallas St., was named Brewery of the Year at the Texas Craft Brewers Cup in both 2023 and 2024. Its co-founders met while working together at NASA and the Johnson Space Center.
I-45 is being expanded and rerouted in the downtown area as part of a multi-billion-dollar project by the Texas Department of Transportation that has drawn pushback from local residents and elected officials because it will displace nearby homes and businesses. Construction began in late 2024 and is expected to last until the 2040s.
The plan calls for the freeway to be shifted from the west side of downtown to the east side, aligning it with I-69/US 59. True Anomaly is located immediately to the east of the latter freeway.
“Over the past year we found ourselves caught in the path of the I-45 expansion while also working to open a second location nearby,” the brewery wrote in a Thursday post on its Instagram page. “Construction delays and shifting timelines pushed that project further and further out. We kept brewing and kept believing it would come together, but eventually the stars just stopped aligning.”
It was not immediately clear Friday whether True Anomaly would be ceasing operations altogether or merely closing its taproom and retooling its business. Brewery management did not immediately respond to a voice message and email seeking clarification.
The social media post drew compliments and well-wishes from some other prominent Houston-area craft breweries, including Eureka Heights Brew Co., Frost Town Brewing and 11 Below Brewing Company.
True Anomaly asked its customers to share their favorite memories of the brewery “as we count down to one final celebration with all of you.”
A “Celebration of Life” will be held April 26, the anniversary of True Anomaly’s grand opening, the brewery said.
The taproom’s last day will be April 30.
“We wanted to create a place where people could gather, share ideas, celebrate milestones, and build something together around great beer,” True Anomaly wrote in its post. “Over the years, this taproom became exactly that. A meeting place for neighbors, artists, astronauts, dog lovers, first dates, birthday parties, and countless late nights that somehow turned into unforgettable memories.”
