Commissary Kitchen & Café Construction

When Nemesis Coffee set out to build Dope Bakehouse in North Vancouver, the goal was bigger than a bakery.

The space was designed to serve as the production hub for their growing network of cafés, while also creating a neighbourhood-facing front-of-house that reflects the brand’s creative, design-forward identity.

Pacific Solutions Contracting worked alongside Nemesis Coffee, SML Architecture, and the broader consultant team to bring the space together - balancing the technical demands of a commercial commissary kitchen with the experience of a smaller, public café environment.

Built to Produce (and Look Good Doing It)

Behind the front counter, Dope Bakehouse is a serious piece of infrastructure.

This commercial bakery construction project in North Vancouver required coordination across mechanical systems, production workflows, and base-building constraints to support high-volume baking operations without compromising the design experience up front.

Because at Nemesis, the back-of-house matters just as much as what customers see.

Solving the Invisible Stuff First

One of the biggest technical challenges? Routing the grease interceptor installation through the parkade below the building.

Between base-building limitations and an early mechanical layout that didn’t quite cooperate, the solution required a full rethink. Working closely with consultants, the City of North Vancouver, and the base-building team, we developed a revised strategy that kept everything moving without impacting schedule or design intent.

Exactly the kind of coordination-heavy puzzle we enjoy.

Details That Carry the Space

Dope Bakehouse doesn’t try to blend in - and neither did the build.

Highlights include:

Custom millwork service counter
Finished with automotive paint for durability and a clean, high-impact finish.

Signature orange curtain feature
A bold visual anchor that sets the tone the moment you walk in.

Colour-matched epoxy flooring
Durable enough for production, dialed enough for the front-of-house experience.

Integrated ceiling lighting
Fully concealed for a seamless, gallery-like finish overhead.

Consistent coved detailing throughout
Small moves that quietly pull the whole space together.

The Result

A commercial bakery and café build in North Vancouver that works as hard as it looks good.

Dope Bakehouse now serves as the production backbone for Nemesis Coffee while giving the neighbourhood a space that feels distinctly their own - confident, creative, and built with intention from slab to service counter.

Exactly the kind of project we like getting our hands on.