marina_schlesinger
A friend and I popped in to the new tap room in Minneapolis (no Trip Advisor page on this different location) on Monday night night and were immediately seated at one of the long tables being shared with other parties. I was happy to be seated at a table with chairs rather than back-less benches though!It's pretty awesome to see a tap line full of only Surly bear, and to really have your pick of the litter. Some rotations, must mostly the classics like a good Furious or Hell.As others mentioned, the food is sort of weird right now. The menu looks great, but I was surprised by the prices despite understanding that they asked a popular local chef design the menu. Typically I do not order hamburgers, but decided to here, while my pal ordered the brisket sandwich. We split each of our sandwiches with eachother, thankfully. His brisket was so good and the fries that accompany both sandwiches are seasoned well. My burger left a lot to be desired as it was am embellished Big Mac on a high-quality bun. There were two, super-flat, well-done hamburger patties laying in my bun with some sauce, lettuce and I don't know what else, and not for lack of understanding what was on the burger, but such surprise that these were the hamburger patties in this burger. How, in a sea of awesome beer, great reputation and a popular chef could this hamburger go so, so wrong? Though of course if you are a Big Mac fan, this may be to your delight, though for $12 you could purchase many in the alternative.The building itself is huge, and the atmosphere is modern. Everything looks really terrific and this will definitely be a huge bonus to the neighborhood and city. I can't wait for warmer weather to bike over (SO MANY BIKE RACKS! It was unbelievable!!!) and spend some time on their patio.
MadCity53562
Visited on a Saturday afternoon a couple of weeks after it opened. There was a line to get it but it moved very fast and the bouncers were aware of the cold so they moved us quickly into the building (thanks!). The facility is impressive - it's wide open "beer hall" type setting with a 2nd level that overlooks the main floor. Since we wanted to eat, we checked in with the hostess, got a buzzer and headed over to the "Beer Here" line which moved quite fast (thanks again - I loath climbing over people at a bar to get a drink). The Fiery Hell was awesome - nice chili burn as it went down. We checked out the place while we waited - including the nice gift shop - and were seated about 1/2 hour after we came in. Yes, the menu might need a little attention (items were all over the board!) and it was a little pricey but my cheeseburger was awesome and my sister's chopped brisket was equally as awesome! My first thought, too, was that it was a small portion but it ended being the just the right size. Need to keep some room for beer! I think the menu will shake out eventually - and hopefully the prices will too. Overall I was very impressed with the operation especially the service. With the amount of people there it could've been a service nightmare but it's clear they have a method to their madness. You will leave happy!
RichmondR
Visited Sunday evening 1/4; beautiful warehouse facility and friendly wait staff. Chances are you will be sharing your long table with other people, but that's doesn't seem to be that big of a deal. The beer is of course wonderful and reasonably priced and the food was tasty. Prices for food seemed quite high relative to the market.Again, the food is good but the portion sizes ... especially at these prices ... for some of the items seems ridiculously small; for example, my shrimp and grits were quite good, but there were THREE shrimp and about a half inch of grits at the bottom of the bowl. I realize this is Minnesota so I wasn't expecting the number of shrimp I would get in the south, but is there a corn shortage in Minnesota? Also, mussels were very small and not exactly large either with two teeny pieces of toast. Another issue is the serving of the food ... it comes out rather quickly but the entrees do not come out together and weren't served by the waiter that takes the order, so no way to make adjustments and request additional things easily (such as, "where's the rest of my entree?" ... smile). That sort of thing will likely get fixed over time. Surly has a great concept here but the food portion sizes needs work ... they are going to screw up their brand as fast as they earned it if people pay $20-25 with a beer and leave hungry.
563JohnD
We were extremely excited to check this place out, really hoping that it would be a great place to frequent. Unfortunately, the only great thing about the new Surly facility is the beer. The new place is very large and industrial much like a convention center. The lighting is harsh, much like you'd expect in in a public bathroom. The view of the brewery is definitely nice but the ambiance is terrible. Most importantly, though, the food isn't great, the portions are small and it is very expensive. To be candid, I'm not particularly price sensitive but the portions are tiny. Additionally, the two rounds of folks who shared our bench table for dinner were utterly disappointed as well. Imagine a convention center with multiple bars, tons of huge open rooms, people sitting on the floors and catered food. Additionally, the bathroom was filthy! Unfortunately we won't be going back. :-(
jamescrc
I love Surly beer. Eagerly awaited the new tap room. Went today for lunch. For $18 got one piece of bread and an extremely small amount of pulled pork, and beans. Quality was food but either cut price in 1/2 or double serving. I planned on going weekly because it is on bike path but will not return.
a_tribe_called_Chris
Love Surly. Really good beer. This tap room was pretty cool but it is closing soon if it hasn't already. Not to worry they will be opening up what sounds to be a premium destination along the Green Line in Minneapolis early 2015. The BC spot was small but really cool for Food Trucks and the tap room. The "tours" were small potatoes if you have ever toured a major brewery like Coors but the quality of the beer brewed by the cats at Surly is the bomb.
JDD800
One of the best craft beer pubs and samples ever. I have been to a bunch but the selection and quality was one of best. Great atmosphere too
tpc2001
It's a little out of the way, and it closes early, but they place is beautiful in a relaxed, mid-century kind of way. Surly is distributed in only a few states outside MN, so for someone from the east, I was wondering if the beer could somehow live up to it's hype. It does.
DanJ840
This place has nothing but amazing, world class beer. Great for tasting all of their varieties, or just hanging out with friends. We went as a group for a bachelor party, enjoying their beer and a beanbag tournament outside.
frozen-in-MN-US
We had some difficultly getting to the place, thinking Hwy 100 was closed and there were a lot of other closed roads on our alternate routes - but we eventually made it.We got there early Saturday afternoon and just missed the start of a tour - but the bartender just told us we could go catch up with the group. The tour is really just a monologue about how they started, and a little bit about the brewing and canning process - but the speaker was really quite entertaining and did a nice job. There were no free samples - maybe that's gone away?We enjoyed the beer in the tap room - my wife had the coffee Bender and I had regular Bender - $5 a pint which seems pretty standard at taprooms. They have some outside picnic benches, beanbag games, and a food truck.And a very large gift shop for all your Surly apparel and barware ($3 for a Surly pint glass - pretty good!).We'll go again - and visit their new one when they get it opened.
OnTheGoAtTimes
The anticipation was high, and we were getting close - according to our GPS. The dead-end street, and lack of any signage, made us think we were on the wrong path. Never fear. The final left turn bend, parked cars, some people, and the Surly Brewing Co. sign on the building. Tried the Schadenfreude, Pentagram, Furious (Cask!), and Blakkr just to name a few. Michael - beer guy pouring the brews - very cool and informative. Tanner selling merch was solid on the information front too with new brewery facts, tidbits, and more. If ever in the Twin Cities area, this brewery is worth the stop.
820JenniferL
So the current location will remain but their new operation will be moving soon to St Paul (Wah!) I recommend taking the tour (it has been a year or so since I took it so please don't rag on me if things have changed!) But you have to order tickets to get into the tour...It is free - but you need to order your tickets about 2 weeks prior to the date you want (they open it up at 9am Central 2 weeks before the weekend you want on a Friday). They also ask you to bring a few canned goods for their food drive. (Nice Idea!) - When you arrive - you are given 5 drink nickles. For 5 pretty big drinks (they are not 20 oz, not 16 oz, but more than a 12 oz drink). While you are enjoying one of the many different seasonal or specialty beers they have, you can take the tour. The tours I have been on have been given by the owner. He is great. A great story teller about how Surly got started. It is definitely worth the trip. They also have a sample room that you can go to on non-tour days/times. The drinks range between $5 and $7 - which always bothers me since they don't have to ship the beers any where... and you can get the same beers in many of the local bars around town. Just saying.
Alinmn
Surly brews are well-known in the Twin Cities and the brewery is expanding to another site in the Minneapolis to vastly expand production. The brewery in Brooklyn Center is the original brewery and offers a fun time that doesn't need to be pre-planned.You can walk right in and grab a beer. I recommend coming an hour early and getting on the tour list (check website for tour times). The tour was a 30 minute discussion. It was funny and easy to listen to, but not really on par with a serious beer tour (in terms of seeing the production). You can ask, see a little, but not touch (apparently the health department doesn't let people back by the fermenters anymore). Still, it entertains and breaks up the beer drinking. I recommend it, but the taproom and beer is the real draw here. Don't fret if you miss the tour.The taproom has all of the Surly beers on tap, and they are all of good quality. I wouldn't recommend trying all of them in one visit unless you've got a ride home planned. They keep a food truck parked outside, which is fine. It'll work in a pinch, but it isn't a substitute for a real meal (so don't go expecting that). Beers are $3-5 each.This isn't really a review of the beer, but the beer is very good. They offer small batch tests as well as the favorite. If you don't find a beer you like, you don't like beer. Pros-Really good beer, many different kindsFun atmosphereSmells like grain and beerDecent, moderately priced merchandiseFriendly staffFree tourCons-Kind of tricky to find (use Maps on your phone)Not kid-friendly (very bar-like atmosphere)
Tuckerhayward
The current tap room and brewery has character and provides various amenities for customers whether it is watching the game after a tour, relaxing with friends, playing games outside, eating from the food truck or just getting to know their customers, the brewery has it all covered!If that wasn't enough, the brewery will be expanding in the near future to a larger centre between Minneapolis and St. Paul! Oh, don't forget the Surley Bill that got brewering to its current state in Minnesota and something tells me they are not yet done!
rosalync134
Really like there services and all are nice. Enjoy all always. I will must come this place again next time.