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I've been to GLBC at least 10 times in the last few years. It's one of those mainstay signature places that helps characterize Cleveland. After all, the fact that we have such a great beer, brewed right here in Cleveland is something to be proud of, right?
The circa 1865 Victorian building in which the Great Lakes Brew Pub resides has a ton of character, especially the basement! I also like sitting out on the Ohio City patio. At nighttime, it's especially charming with all of the lights that are strung about.
During our most recent visit, we sampled a few of the freshly drafted brews. The selection at the bar is more extensive than what you will find available at any given time in the stores. For instance, in July I had the Independence Ale, Prohibition Pilsner and the typically seasonal Christmas Ale (X-Mas in July, get it?!)
The food shouldn't be an afterthought either. While I've only eaten here a handful of times, I must say that everything I've ordered has been more than acceptable, especially the Bratwurst and Pierogi Dinner.
Overall, this is a very enjoyable place to go. Whenever I have family or friends come in from out of town, this is one of the few places I find absolutely necessary to take them.
Great Lakes, are you listening? The food needs to improve. You have so much potential, and your beer rules - why not bring in a young chef and let her go to town on your menu? (Out with the processed deli meat, in with some fresh roast turkey, etc.)
Step up your game, and I'll be one of your most loyal customers, promise!
Great Lakes has the worst graphic design you've seen since 1981, but the beer is damn good. It's… Read more »
I've been 3 times, and I've ordered the potroast, the brats+mash, and the burger:
- Potroast - when they have it - is mindblasting. Melt-in-your-mouth, slow-cooked, thick, savory beef with buttery mashed potatoes and veggies. Topped with gravy: it was spot on. Not salty, not dry. Excellent. Around $13.
- Brats & mash = exactly what I hoped for: a couple of tasty brats, a dollop of tangy brown mustard, some cabbage, and a few pierogies. A hearty meal - nothing fancy - but solid. Around $11.
- Burgers: they frickin' blow. A huge letdown for a brewery. I mean, what's a brewery without the standard American staple item? The burger tasted like it came from the frozen food isle at Dave's - too salty, as if it was spiced with Season All. With generic white buns to boot. The burger was so disappointing, I can't remember what the fries tasted like (sorry).
Summary: burger was crap, but the other 2 items have been outstanding. Service is average, nothing to call home about. And, of course, the beer is delicious.
3 and a half for Great Lakes. We went for the tour and stayed for dinner. The space seemed similar to the Great Dane in Madison. Big, pretty, and has a downstairs sort of dungeon bar. I was a little bummed they didn't have any cask conditioned ales. I guess that was a lot to expect, but the dungeon really did seem perfect for a cask pour.
The tour was good, not great. Our tour guide, Erica, was funny and had a lot of info on Elliot Ness. Not too informative on the brewing process. I've been on a ton of brew tours, so I feel pretty "in the know," but my mom and the other tour mates maybe would have preferred she slow down a bit. That being said, they pour three generous tastings, and it's all free.
They have a gift shop, so I guess business is doing pretty well! Dinner was good; we shared the cheese and meat plate which was great. Also shared the brats and pirogi and pickled cabbage, which was totally delicious. I wish they had more beers on draft that you can't get in a bottle in Chicago. I feel like that is really the treat of going to a brewpub; you've had their six or so beers that they bottle, but the seasonal stuff you can only get there is usually mind-blowing. (i.e. Tyranena, Two Brothers, Goose Island, New Holland...)
Good though, and really easy to get to from Downtown Cleveland. One stop on the RTA.
I love a great local company and to see Great Lakes thrive in Cleveland is refreshing. I am a sucker for their Christmas Ale and go out of my way to get my hands on it. I even pay the absurd price of 5.50 for a glass of it. I believe their prices weren't that high but all the local bars around me charge that much. Damn our demand for Christmas Ale is very inelastic...anyway, great stuff. Last night was the first time i went down to their actual place and loved it. I didn't get any food but it looked amazing, so i have to go back for another round at least. I also tried the pumpkin ale and OMG it was better than the Christmas ale?! I loved it, it actually tasted like pumpkin pie. It was great. So in summary, great beer, great company, and probably good food?!
I really wanted to love this place. Great ambience, great beers, and they support local and organic small crop farmers. Unfortunately, while the service was great and the items my dining companions ordered were great, my burger was so salty it actually felt like I was getting a 'salt burn'. Yeah, that salty. And I normally love salt. It was, frankly, inedible.
Didn't have time to send it back, as we had tix to the Indians game that night. Will go back at some point, as everthing else we ordered was really good. I'd notch this up to a fluke, rather than the norm.
Really cool place. I wish we could have toured the actual brewery, which is HUGE and looked pretty cool (the outer walls were shaking from the music blasting inside).
The restaurant and pub were sooo much fun. The restaurant is upstairs and the strictly brew area is on the lower level... as are the bathrooms. DANGER, DANGER... climbing stairs after drinking their fabu pumpkin beer is deadly.
The atmosphere was wonderful, the service was all with a smile, and their selection was fab. We got there around, I wanna say, 7:00 ish on a Friday and realized that the lower pub area had a happy hour- Elliot Ness pints for $2? Did I say I wanted one? I meant I'll take 2!
If you ever find yourself in Cleveland be sure to swing by Great Lakes. :)
If you're at all interested in what goes into your beer and how it's produced, I'd suggest going on the brewery tour. Our tour guide was very informative and funny.
The brewpub was wonderful. I was very excited to try GLBC's pub exclusives, which were very good. It's also interesting to note that drinking a pint of one of their year-round drafts (e.g. Dortmunder or Eliot Ness) will taste a little different than if you had it elsewhere. If you're there this summer, try their saison, Grassroots Ale, for a fresh and herb infused beer.
The pub itself is separated into three distinct parts (the bar, the covered patio, and the downstairs seating area), as well as a sidewalk patio area. We sat on the patio and had great service and plenty of delicious food. It wasn't incredibly cheap, but I really liked that their meats and produce are locally and sustainably grown.
It's a destination for beer lovers if you're in Cleveland.
Being from Northeastern Ohio, I build up Great Lakes brewing, their beers are top notch (Burning River being my personal favorite pale), however on my first stop in to eat I found myself extremely dissappointed. From the beginning things started off on the wrong foot. My mother and I had to interject in the conversation the hostess was having with who I assume was the manager on duty, just to get ourselves noticed so we could be seated.
When asked where we'd like to sit, we said "outside", they sat us in the patio, completely indoors. I ordered a holy moses, it was a warm afternoon. It's a good beer, but the lipstick on the glass definitely wasn't mine. Nancy, our server, empathized and understood our disgust and brought me another beer (we paid for it, shouldn't have had to, but whatever). My mother and I ordered the bruschetta which was two 1" thick pieces of bread with skimpy toppings put on a plate, it looked rather boring, and lacked any creativity whatsoever. The heirloom tomatoes were delicious although there were barely any to eat.
It should be noted that they use white cloth napkins, which is a terrible choice for casual dining, especially if used outdoors as Great Lakes does. No matter how much they clean them, they'll never look clean, in fact, ours looked filthy.
For our entree, I had the ($11) reuben sandwich with green beans. They may have given me 10 green beans which were badly dimpled and should have been thrown out days before. The sandwich was tiny, and relatively flavorless, for $11 I chuckled as it was all I could do in the face of absolutely poor value. My mother's cobb salad came out with greens so wilted, bruised and brown that I'd be embarassed to use them as rabbit-food, they were that bad. Not one piece of lettuce looked fresh. The hard-boiled eggs were probably some of the most overcooked eggs I have seen, the brown ring of overcooked yolk was nearly 1/8" thick! They had to have left the eggs in the water or steamer for well over 30 minutes to cook an egg that poorly. The balsamic vinaigrettte was good, but couldnt mask the poor quality of the greens or overcooked grossness of the eggs.
All in all, I doubt I'd return to the brewpub for comestibles of any sort. The beer is good, but after a situation that occurred with the Great Lakes owner at my place of work in Chicago, and after this poor experience at their brewpub, management really needs to get things back on track if they want to survive. Goose Island's two restaurants serve very good food and concentrate on food quality just as much as they focus on the quality of their beers. I wish I could say the same of Great Lakes.
See my review of Willoughby Brewing Co. There's a place to go if you love beer and want a great place to eat.
I think that this place has been adequately reviewed, judging by the quantity and quality of the other reviews listed. I'd just like to chime in that this is a great place to sample Great Lakes Brewing's brews right next to their origin. It's a neat venue, with a lot of its own charm.
Great menu, great beers, huge enormous gigantic brewery. Maybe my expectations were too great? I did love that the server told us which menu items featured produce from local farms. I also liked that they had a homemade vegan black bean burger. But I would have liked it a lot more if it didn't taste like a scoop of refried beans between two pieces of wheat roll. Not very good. The sweet potato fries with honey and herbs were delicious and sticky and a great idea. But other than that, and the great beer of course, nothing really stands out about the experience. Of course Great Lakes is easy enough to find in Chicago, so I'll make my own burger next time...
In a city with limited beer options, Great Lakes stands out. There pub is rather expansive covering 3 floors and a patio. There food looks good on the menu but I found it uninspired. My fries were soft and burnt at the same time. Not sure how that happens and it's not like anyone even asked me how they were. While the beer was good, there was only one beer that was a pub exclusive. Do yourself a favor and go to the store and buy a six pack of singles.
The beer is wonderful. I haven't tried one I didn't like here and trust me, I've had most of them - if not all of them. (Hey, I like to drink!)
The atmosphere in general is nice. I'm in love with the cellar (or whatever they call it) - I'm a sucker for stone walls.
I've had great service each time I've visited.
The food? I'd say it's mediocre which is why I'm giving GLBC 4 stars. Otherwise, I'd give it a 5.
Christmas Ale is dangerous...well really it is the operator of the glass. I love the ambiance of this restaurant but the lower level definitely has a hipper vibe, perhaps more for the young locals.
To tell the truth I don't really remember too much about the food except the sweet potato fries were delicious and my hamburger was really pink...as in too pink, but if your looking for some danger and do not want to truck it downtown you can find Christmas ale sold at other places.
I've bought enough Burning River Pale Ale in my lifetime that I should probably at least have my name on a barstool at this place.
Oh, this place is a restaurant, as well. For my busted-ass-broke self, it's a bit pricey, so I generally don't head here after work for a few brews and, say, a $20 steak platter, but it's great for bigger office get-togethers or, ideally, for when parents come to town.
A Cleveland must do! The beer here is incredible! Try the stout or the dortmunder .....
The food is a bit of a bummer, but really, is that why you came ?
Happy hour tip - each week the feature a different $2 draft.
Anyone living in the OH area knows all about Great Lakes. Most of their stuff is rated B+ on beer advocate, which sounds about right; maybe not standing out, but definitely some solid brews. However, the dinning experience in the restaurant of this hometown Cleveland brewpub translates into one of the best meals I've ever had. I should mention that this review is only based on one visit, but the atmosphere, presentation, and menu range were totally impressive. Pairing several select GL beers on draft with our orders made the experience even more memorable. Eager to return.
Bier is outstanding - from the Christmas Ale to the IPA. You can actually smell the brewery walking from the parking lot across the street; authentic.
Unfortunately, service could be much better - I visited on Monday night at about 8 pm, it was crowded, so I went to the bar. It was about ten/fifteen minutes before I was even greeted and served!
Food is adequate; service could be better.
Again, bier is outstanding, able to purchase in stores - brewery has a concession in the airport in Concourse A...
Will have to visit again to see if my experience was an exception and not the norm.
Another highlight of my trip to Cleveland. Great Lakes makes some very good beer, but if you're a local you probably know that already. The two I tried--the Dortmunder and the Eliot Ness--are easy to drink without tasting like water (I'm looking at you, Bud). I'm sure there are people who can talk about beer more eloquently than I can, but I will say one thing. I had the Dortmunder for the first time on tap at the brewery and it was awesome. I noticed that it was served a little warmer than I would have expected. Not warm like British beer warm, just not super cold. The next night I had it elsewhere out of a bottle and very cold. It wasn't as good. I don't know if it was bottle or temperature, but I'm going to take a case back to Maryland with me and experiment.
On to the restaurant. I splurged (and took a risk, considering I generally don't like fish) and got the Arctic char, which came with rice, spinach, and a tomato-cream sauce. The fish was fantastic, not fishy at all, and the sauce was great. The rice and spinach, however, were extremely bland. Just a little more sauce would have saved the whole dish, but for the most part the only flavorful bites I took had some of the fish in them. I'm only docking one star here, though, because the fish really was tasty. Service was great as well. Our waitress was funny and personable and brought our food out pretty quickly. I'd definitely go back if I ever found myself in Cleveland again.
I think that the main focus of my review here will be on what I feel is most important - the beer!
There isn't enough I can say about the beer at Great Lakes Brewing Company. I am quite sure that as far as quality AND selection go, GLBC has to have one of the greatest lines of beer in the country. Now, being from Cleveland I could be biased, but I strongly believe this. The range from Dortmunder to Burning River, Eliot Ness to (the ultimate and seasonal) Christmas Ale - Great Lakes covers all the bases.
I challenge anyone to find me another brewery with as extensive a list of quality beers as GLBC. Though they are limited to their beer when visiting the restaurant or bar, that is all you really need.
If you are in town for a while, or just new to the area, I strongly encourage you to visit Great Lakes at some point soon. The Christmas Ale is fantastic, as are any of the other beers on the list.
Not to mention that they have a quality menu with many of the ingredients sourced locally as much as possible. One of my favorites.
I will cheat a little bit and strictly rate the beer, not the actual brewpub, which I never managed to visit when I lived in Cleveland.
But the beer is worthy of a 5-star rating, as it is simply fantastic all across the board. Coming from Philadelphia (which other than Denver is mircobrew central), I can say with all honesty that Great Lakes would beat almost all of them (Dogfish Head is still the one ring to rule them all, though). Seriously, they are all excellent. Burning River Pale Ale tops the list of the regulars, and the Christmas Ale tops the entire list.
Even if I just got a sixpack at Giant Eagle, I found it to always be fresh and tasty. Any bar I ever went to in Cleveland that had Great Lakes was one of my favorites, and I always ordered Great Lakes. Always. I miss Great Lakes. Its one reason I will return to Cleveland one day, if only to get totally plowed on beer.
Parking was a bit of a hassle, and I noticed that the people of Cleveland don't seem to pay attention to the posted signs. No parking on the street until 6:30pm? Psh. Watch me hold up traffic while I parallel park. Right underneath this sign that clearly says NO. Kind of awesome, actually.
Anyway, the brewery.
It's got a great atmosphere and an amazingly attentive staff. It's quiet (but not dull), warm and inviting, and it's got plenty of restaurant, patio, and bar seating. Something for everyone.
They've got a full menu offering more than the standard pub fare and a huge selection of beer. Unfortunately, my appetite wasn't big enough to warrant a full meal, so I settled for the Eliot Ness lager and a bowl of soup. So, so good.
Also, a note of warning: the Blackout Stout will knock you on your ass if you're not careful.
There was lots of outdoor seating but I decided to eat inside. It was a little too warm to go al fresco.
Inside, the combination restaurant and bar was made up mostly of wood. Lots of shades of brown, black and off white made up the colors on the inside. Very rustic, especially the hardwood floor, which was worn and scuffed but looked pretty good. Overall, great atmosphere, with energy, but not conversational challenging.
The service was friendly, helpful and prompt, and a bit chatty, which was cool.
On this visit I had the 'Black and Blue Burger'- fresh burger meat with Cajun spices and topped with blue cheese on a toasted pretzel bun. The meat was juicy and assertive, almost like a steak, but not greasy. Very tasty and filling in a good way. This meal came with fresh cut fries, which were not greasy and full of potato flavor.
The meal cost $10.00. A bit on the high side but worth it.
Yes, I had a glass of their 'Burning River Pale Ale', which I highly recommend. I wanted their white ale but they ran out. Ive tried some of their other brews. In general, Great Lakes makes a good craft.
They have a gift store next to the restaurant. I decided to splurge and buy a t-shirt. Good price and I like the design. They have a lot of nice items for sale, though many items are typically priced too high.
I like this place. I'll be back. Anyone who visits me will be treated to lunch or dinner at this place. I guess I'll get others hooked on a Cleveland institution *wink*
Being such a fan of the beer, I could not pass up the opportunity to actually check out the brew/pub located in Cleveland.
First about the beer - this stuff is epic. I can't say enough about how much I love their beer. Eliot Ness is my fav
Now the food - my guest and I ordered two appetizers (their take on artichoke dips and the sirloin tips) and were disappointed with both. The dip just tasted like ground up banana peppers and the tips tasted like nothing more then chunks of beef with way too much Lawry's seasoned salt on them. For the price, the quality kinda sucked.
I love the brewpub. I'm not so fond of the gift shop. Let me explain.
The brewpub has four distinct sections. One is a cool, dark, polished bar with small seating nooks and maximized standing room. One is a bright, open, large-tabled room for big groups that want to eat. One is a spacious patio on a quiet city street. Another is underground; I didn't check that one out.
Anyway, the beer selection is wonderful, with many brews you can't get in stores. I'm a big fan of the aptly named Blackout Stout.
Our server, Kevin, also was the bartender. He amazingly kept up with the droves of people who appeared around 6:30 p.m. and seemed to have an eye on everyone in the room. He knew when I needed a beer, when I wanted food, when I was hunting a restroom. Awesome, awesome service.
Service was decidedly not awesome in the gift shop. I think dude was (understandably) drinking. He wasn't much help when I asked about growlers, and he really seemed to want me to leave. The packaged beers were kinda' overpriced. Brews that would cost me $7 at my local shop cost $8 in the gift shop. I'm AT the brewery! How you gonna charge me more.
Food prices were pricey for Ohio but not astronomical. Most dishes run in the teens, and my calamari plate was $4 during happy hour, which lasts until 7 p.m.
Parking can be scarce, but it's not impossible and certainly doesn't justify using the nearby pay lot. If you don't mind walking a block or two, you'll be OK. After 6:30 p.m., lots of parking opens up as Cleveland's no-stopping rule is lifted.
The local beer here is as good as it gets in Cleveland, so it has a lot of admirers locally. Unfortunately, the beer in Cleveland isn't that great, and if you've been in a city with a vibrant local beer scene, you're likely to come away disappointed. It's fine beer, but not as stellar as others make it out.
The food? Perfectly serviceable for a brewpub, if slightly on the spendy side. I've been twice now, and liked it both times, but each time found it about $5-10 more than I wanted to pay. Still, for the best beer in the Land of Cleve, this is the place to go.
I want to give this place 5 stars, oh heck, I will... but that was close... it was almost a 4. I do a lot of travelling, and try to sample the local fare when I have the time. I'm a HUGE fan of Great Lakes' brews. They are so tasty, and I have many a fond memory of cooling myself with a Holy Moses on an obscenely hot summer day or losing myself in the unsightly amber hues of Mr. Eliot Ness. It makes me happy just to think about those liquids of love.
I stopped into the restaurant for at late lunch a few months back. It had been a long day, thus far, and was pleased to make it to the home of one of my favorite beers. I had the honey mustard chicken sandwich. The food was good, but maybe a little pricey (though, that's probably because they purchase their food from local sources, which is much-appreciated). But I'll say this, they had a pub-exclusive beer called the "Alberta Clipper" on tap, which knocked my socks off. I was so infatuated with the beer that I didn't even finish my fries (and I'm of the no-fry-gets-left-behind theory). It was chocolatey and raspberry-y and I can hardly think about it without being sorry I don't live in Cleveland. ::sigh::
In any event, the place was overall tasty but maybe slighly pricey... but the super-fantastic beer makes up for any price differential.
For the beer, this is sort of the Holy Grail for me as far as Midwestern beer. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a 6-pack of the IPA while I was in the area a couple of years ago and, since then, have been trying to find a place that carries it. However, it's apparently only shipped as far west as Eastern Missouri.
For the brewpub, this is a very cool place and how, I think, a brewpub should be. First, it's in the Ohio City neighborhood, a historic and slightly hip section of Cleveland just west of Downtown. There's a Rapid station across the street, as well as the wonderful Westside Market. The building is obviously a bit old because the arrangement is a bit awkward. When you first come in, you immediately hit the bar, so you have a slew of people standing by the doors trying to get their bearings upon entering the place. Also, the bathrooms are downstairs, adjacent to a strange underground room that almost looks like it used to be part of a speakeasy. The bar is also small for most standards, seating maybe ten total, although there are booths next to it.
The food menu is pretty extensive and inventive, but runs a bit expensive. I didn't have the food. Great Lakes is just about the beer to me.
So, I have to gush about "Big Black." He's now my new best friend. Seriously, this is the best porter I've ever had. At something like 6.5%, you wouldn't expect it to be smooth, but it goes down like a nice, refreshing drink, and it tastes just wonderful. I can't say enough good things about it. This is exactly how all porters should be.
They also had a seasonal saison on tap, called a Grassroots. Saisons are always fun because they have so much flavor and complexity. This one was especially complex, and I spent my time while drinking trying to figure out what was in it.
Great Lakes is made even better by their weeknight happy hour. M-F, 4-7, they take $0.75 off their pints, which puts most at $3.25. No food specials though, unfortunately.
The bartenders are really nice and quick. Your glass is not empty for long, no matter how busy they are (they were very busy this night).
Parking is a bit difficult, but really not that bad. There are meters all around Ohio City (they run until 6) and, if you can't do parallel parking to save your life, there's a lot at the end of the block for $5.
This is one of the many things about Cleveland that, in my opinion, make it a really great town. If you're here, you should either come here or, at the least, get one of their six packs. They're available almost everywhere around town.
Blackout Stout. 9% APV. I know it's named after the blackout a few years back, but two of those and it brought on a brand new meaning. Whoa!
Amish-raised beef, huh? Yummers...
Great pub atmosphere, friendly service...since my bro had a six-pack of what he lovingly calls "Christmas Crack" in the refrigerator, I decided to try a lighter beer for contrast and it was gooooooood...wish I remembered the name of it. :/
Prices are a bit high, but not totally unreasonable.
A fun place with a decent selection of brews on tap. We went there after the program interview. I order some salmon and a lager.
I like the ambience, although I wish I was sitting next to more of the prettier girls from our interview group and less with the guys that were interviewing.
Overall, the food selection was great and so was the brews
How do you know the beer is good? Better yet, how do you know it's strong? When the bar itself puts a limit on how many Christmas Ales it is allowed to serve you.
It really is a home. Not in that drunken Barney, The Simpson's, type of fashion. In that Norm and Clifford type of way, but to think of it - I'm not sure if that is an improvement. The staff are helpful - they're beer lovers, and they're always getting new brews and they encourage everyone to sample the beers.
- Hey try this new beer.
- Why thank you. Of course I will accept a tasting of free beer.
Most of the wait staff are friends, and afterwards, when their shift has ended - they've joined me for a couple of beers. It's never a place that you're alone - the people that work there to the patrons are always friendly. It's a great environment, and I'm getting homesick just talking about it.
The layout is pretty impressive. There's an upstairs for dining. There is also another section for dining on the main floor, plus a pub. Next door is "The Beer Garden," which is an outside dining area that can be enclosed - with a fire place. Then there's a downstairs area, which is more like a English Pub. And of course, when the weather is right - the entire area in the front is converted into a dining area.
In March from the 16th to the 24th. You can find me there, and if I'm on the floor - leave a post it note on me that says hi.
Since everyone has already talked about how amazing the beer is here, i am going to say something that not that many people know about The Great Lakes Brewing Company.
Did you know they have a zero emissions brewery and have several VERY VERY Advanced systems inorder to produce ZERO solid waste from the restaurant. Its amazing. Its the only completely sustainable, completely green brewery in the COUNTRY. right here in cleveland. its amazing.
- all the scraps from your plates are put in compost piles in a basement level. Its then sold as mulch to local farmers.
- they buy only local ohio grown food
- ALL VEGGIE OIL used in the making of the beer and food is used to power ALL distribution trucks for the ENTIRE brewery. zero emissions.
-The plant is powered by all forms of renewable energy.
YES- DEFINATELY GO THERE FOR THE FOOD AND BEER. Christmas ale is what makes you a REAL clevelander. But
GO THERE TO SAVE THE WORLD!!!!!!!
Hooray for Good Beer and So-So Food!
THE UP-SIDE:
As has been mentioned, they brew great beer. In addition, they have a pretty nice space with a pleasing atmosphere. The servers are always friendly.
THE DOWN-SIDE:
The food is just so-so; at times, downright greasy. And please... The beer is good but it's not the best in the country.
THE SUM-IT-UP:
I firmly believe that this place would get great reviews from most people; solely based on the fact that they brew great beer. However, when you step back from the beer angle, it's not so hot. For all the hype, you think that they'd have a more decent menu.
I really enjoyed this brewery and the restaurant. Food was awesome and I loved the Edmund Fitzgerald ale. I remember I had some great crab cakes as an app. I liked the beer so much that I bought a case and checked it as luggage on my flight home - marked fragile! It got home in one piece though.
We had a fantastic beer at the bar and meal in the beer garden yesterday. It was an all-around great experience...extremely enthusiastic service, warm and light atmosphere, great food, and - of course - excellent beer.
We started with stilton cheddar cheese soup and the sausage sampler - both quite pleasing. The sausage was fresh from the West Side Market (across the street). My sandwich (pulled BBQ pork topped with onion straws) tasted amazing. I'm guessing the spicy BBQ sauce was a house recipe because I've never tasted anything quite like it. He liked his burger. As for beer, I usually enjoy either a Belgian or hefeweizen. The Holy Moses was right on. My other half - always fond of a nice porter - enjoyed the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The beer garden was warmed by a real fire and pleasantly full with families and couples dining, yet it never got too loud.
Great Lakes makes our visits to my family in Ohio bearable, so it was great to get the opportunity to visit in person.
Been coming here for a year or so when my friends when we need a different location to chill at in Cleveland.
My friends love the beer..I love the appetizers (PUB fries are fantastic, good pizzas too) and the atmosphere. I've never eaten upstairs for a meal, but the pub is fun.
We went on a beer tour here as well.. It was very educational with good samples and nice presenter. I enjoyed (and, I don't even love beer). It's nice to know we have a local brewery with a good reputation.
Downside: not much room in the pub during busy times (it's small!) and it closes early for the weekend hours.
al capone couldn't get him; kevin costner tried (fortunately, the untouchables was pre-waterworld); but rumor has it elliot ness almost bought the farm at the great lakes brewing company. the bar is one of cleveland's oldest and, in a former life, was called the taproom. the taproom was frequented by ness, post-capone, and the bullet holes in the bar were shots allegedly aimed at, or fired by, ness.
but, enough history, on to the beer. the dortmunder gold is one of the best lagers i've ever had. hands down. they do a very good job with all of their beers but, if i had to select just one, it would be the dortmunder. the elliot ness amber, burning river pale and edmund fitzgerald porter are also all solid choices.
if you happen to go in, god and your liver willing, i'd recommend you try them all. the christmas ale is definitely the best of their seasonals. you wouldn't think a cinnamonny-nutmeggy beer would be that good, but it is. i actually think it would be excellent served warm, but, apparently, that's just me.
i've never eaten here, so i can tell you squat about the food. but the beer . . . oh, the beer.
I was just thinking about the content of my review for Great Lakes Brewing Co. while on my way home tonight, and was just going to write
"Two words:
Christmas. Ale."
Though Susan S. beat me to that one, I stand by it. :)
For real. Tasty beer with spices and honey, enjoyed after working 30 hours over the past... 64, I think...? Whatever, I'm a performer, not a mathematician. And also exhausted.
Anyway, you go, Christmas Ale.
Yep.
Celebration Ale, come on!
It's a celebration.... (insert Kool & the Gang theme here)
Cleveland, OH
Category: Breweries
Cleveland, OH
Category: Restaurants
Cleveland, OH
Category: Diners
Cleveland, OH
Category: Restaurants
Cleveland, OH
Category: Vietnamese
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