Taprooms, Craft Beer And Food
Beer and food; food and beer. Seems like there are few things that pair better than these two. But in the craft beer world, you are bound to find some taprooms that offer craft beer and food while others do not.
So if you pick a taproom that lacks food, you’ll need to plan ahead to meet your craving for both craft beer and food.
Let’s take a look at the food options as well as the reasons why a brewery decided not to offer food.
Why A Taproom Doesn’t Offer Food
Before we dive into what we can eat, I think it’s important to understand why many taprooms lack food.
Not Their Thing
I truly believe that we all should focus in on what we do best and do that thing.
For brewers, they do their best work when they make beer. While there are some that probably know how to cook, the majority know that it’s not their strength.
And while they could hire someone to cook, they decide to put their focus on the beer and brewing to ensure it gets all of the attention.
I’ve heard many say, “If I wanted to open a restaurant, I would have opened a restaurant.” Operating a brewery is quite different than a restaurant and many are not willing to do both.
Limited Space
Even if the brewery wants to offer food, there’s a good chance that there isn’t adequate space to make it happen.
Most of the breweries that I visit are strapped for space; especially if they’ve been around for a few years and have needed to expand. The brewery would rather install more fermenters than a kitchen.
Without the right amount and type of space, a kitchen just isn’t a viable option.
Food Is Money
For this reason, a brewery owner may decide that food isn’t the kind of risk they are willing to make. The funds and time spent managing that side of the business are often better invested in making beer.
Red-tape
Opening a brewery isn’t easy; just ask anyone that’s opened a brewery and they will tell you stories about delays. The planning, paperwork, re-planning, more paperwork are all enough to make even the most organized person go crazy.
So the idea of also opening a restaurant at that same time equates to insanity for most.
And it doesn’t stop after opening, both breweries and restaurants have separate regulations, inspections, licenses, etc.
Despite these reasons not to offer food, many breweries do offer food.
They believe it adds to the experience that they are trying to create. And many customers love the idea of grabbing a meal while at the brewery. So it is often a win – win.
Bottom line, it requires operating two businesses to do it properly which isn’t something most people aren’t interested.
Related Article: Great Beer & Food With A View
How To Eat At A Taproom
The way I see it; you’ve got three options when it comes to eating at a taproom.
Onsite
And I get why. Food and beer bring out the best in each other. It also gives more people a reason to visit the taproom and stay for a longer time.
Many times the onsite food is provided through a full scale brewpub model. Locally, I see that executed at the Moerlein Lager House and Rivertown Barrel House And Brewery.
While other times, the brewery has leased space to an outside restaurant to operate within the taproom. This has been very popular in Cincinnati recently as MadTree, Listermann and Fretboard Brewing have all leased spaces to allow for an outside company to provide food onsite.
The only downside is that if the brewery offers food, you are limited to that menu since outside food won’t be permitted.
BYO
When a brewery doesn’t offer food, they allow outside food to be brought in aka Bring Your Own.
This allows customers to have food delivered or pick it up on the way to the taproom. Local restaurants often offer deals for brewery customers to encourage them to order.
If this is the case, make a plan for food ahead of time to ensure you don’t get yourself in a spot where food is hard to get.
Also, since the brewery isn’t operating as a restaurant, you’ll need to make sure that you bring your own utensils, etc.
Food Trucks
This partnership has allowed breweries to offer food and the food truck to have a place to set up where there is a crowd of hungry people.
The use of food trucks allows the brewery to offer different styles of food depending on which truck they can arrange to have onsite.
The downside is food trucks aren’t always consistent. They can breakdown, run out of food or just find a better place to set up for the night. For this reason, you’ll need to contact the brewery to guarantee that the food truck is really there when they say they will be.
Some of the best tacos I’ve ever had was at the Noble Ale Works taproom from a food truck. So don’t be afraid of food trucks; you’ll be amazed at what can be cooked in a mobile kitchen.
Stay At Home
But it is worth noting that drinking and dining at home is always an option.
In this situation, you have total control over which beer you drink and what food you eat. However, if you were looking for a taproom experience then this isn’t what you are looking for.
So you’ll miss the energy and community aspects of the taproom but you will have the opportunity to create your own food and possibly include craft beer as an ingredient in your recipes.
Check Out Recipes With Beer From The Beeroness
The Importance Of Taprooms That Offer Craft Beer And Food
For some, it’s as easy as location. They just head to their local taproom.
For others, they are craving a specific beer or style so the list of options is very short.
But next to the actual beer, most would agree that food options rank very high. This is compounded if you want to convince non-beer drinkers to join you or have kids coming along.
So while beer has the ability to connect people; food has the same power. So naturally, combining beer and food takes this to the next level.
I visit taprooms that do not offer food frequently but even those breweries are constantly working to find ways to provide food to their customers. It’s often a full time job trying to line up food trucks, food events, and partnerships with local restaurants. Which proves the value food has to a taproom.
However, it has to be noted the food should never come before the beer. Without quality beer, there is no value in a brewery.
Do You Prefer Taprooms That Offer Craft Beer And Food?
There is no doubt that food and beer belong together and every brewery thinks about food as their overall plan.
However, there are many different ways to get food into the taproom. Which is best? That’s really preference and is situational.
- If I am looking for a great meal that features craft beer then I look for a brewpub.
- If I want to try something new then a brewery with a food truck would be ideal.
- If I want to get a small meal while at a brewery then I’ll probably look towards a taproom that has a kitchen.
Again, there’s no right or wrong answer. But I will say that the beer and taproom experience come first. Once I’ve located a taproom that I want to visit, then I consider my food options.