There was a time, not so long ago, that dining in a brewpub offered very few interesting options for foodies. You could pretty much count on menus filled with burgers, nachos, fish & chips, buffalo wings, and the like. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I love a good burger and plate of fish & chips. But I also like variety. And increasingly, many folks ― including beer lovers ― are looking to eat more healthily.
Well, we’re in luck! Because many breweries and brewpubs today offer the type of eclectic eats that you’d probably have thought impossible a decade ago. Here are a few favorites:
Greg Schirf’s Wasatch Brewery is the oldest in Utah, and the menus at Wasatch Brewpubs, like the great Wasatch brews, have evolved through the years. Yes, you can still find fish & chips, meatloaf, and burgers at Wasatch pubs, but you’ll also find a delicious poke bowl, quinoa farro salad, Cubano sandwich, superfood beet salad, and a carne asada pizza to enjoy while sipping Wasatch’s Jalapeño Cream Ale or Island Hop Tropical IPA.
Over at Wasatch’s sister brewpub, Squatters, the jambalaya made with Tooele Valley andouille sausage is a slam-dunk while enjoying an award-winning Squatters Full Suspension Pale Ale.
You might not expect to find a poached pear salad at a brewery, but you will at Midvale’s Bohemian Brewery. That, and tempting dishes such as the house pierogies, beef stroganoff, goulash, schweinshaxen, chicken paprikash, and blackberry brandy chicken are all excellent, especially with a Bohemian Czech Style Pilsner alongside.
At Bewilder Brewing Co., I’d be tempted to order the eclectic Mole Porter to sip with the sausage platter, which features all four of Bewilder’s house-made sausages: bratwurst, Suffolk, spicy Italian, and chorizo antioqueño Colombian sausage.
Not all breweries have their own kitchens, but that can be a good thing. Some local breweries enlist a rotating schedule of food trucks to serve the culinary needs of their customers. For example, you can enjoy a clean, crisp classic Fisher Pilsner with food truck cuisine from the likes of Thai Rex, Bella, Comfort Bowl, Lost Bread, Shylo’s Mobile Cafe, and others at Fisher Brewing Co.
At T.F. Brewing, the Ferda Double IPA or Delmar Imperial Stout can partner up with favorite foods from trucks such as Balabe, District Thai, Chimichurri Grill, Torito’s Tacos, and others. Or, just order the amazing German pretzel from Vosen’s or the Beltex charcuterie board.
Desert Edge Pub & Brewery has been around longer than most in Utah, and never fails to impress with its beloved brews like Latter Day Stout and Happy Valley Hefeweizen. I would pair that hoppy Hefe with the blackened salmon sandwich and mango relish.
Over at Kiitos Brewing, indulge in authentic, fresh, handmade Mexican fare from Jorge Fierro’s Rico Foods, with a beer from Kiitos’ dizzying array ― perhaps a Coconut Stout, Lime Gose, Gluten-Free Golden Ale, or Key Lime Pie Sour.
If my memory is accurate, Red Rock Brewing in downtown SLC was the first local restaurant to serve pizzas from a wood-fired pizza oven, and they are still some of the best pizzas in town. I especially like the arugula and prosciutto pizza, but I’m also drawn to dishes like halibut Provençal and the sweet potato cannelloni, which I’d pair up with Red Rock’s White Rainbow beer ― a crossbreeding of American IPA with Belgian wit bier.
Avenues Proper offers guests an interesting array of from-scratch pub fare that includes dishes like bibimbap, kung pao cauliflower, luscious Parisian-style gnocchi, smoked pork belly tacos, rarebit frites, truffle mac & cheese, beef stroganoff, and many more menu items to enjoy with Proper Brewing’s fine beers such as Hospital IPA, Instigator, Lake Effect, Patersbier, Leisure Brau, and many more.
Craft beers at Hopkins Brewing Company in Sugar House include a tasty Black Sesame Stout, Cascade Oat Saison, NAIPA (Not Another IPA), and more, to sip alongside a yummy raspberry rocket salad with organic arugula, or perhaps totchos: tots with carne asada, beer cheese, guacamole, jalapeño, pico de gallo, and sour cream.
Wood-fired pizzas made with from-scratch sourdough are the main attraction at Level Crossing Brewing Company in South Salt Lake, along with a killer Cubano, hummus flatbread, charcuterie board, and other menu items to enjoy with A Jazz Loon Pilsner, Bat Country Blonde Ale, Soul Rex Double IPA, Dallas Alice Belgian-Style Blonde Ale, or another excellent brew from Level Crossing.
Also located in South Salt Lake, Grid City Beer Works offers a number of vegan menu items, including beet hummus, a vegan Rachel sandwich, vegan cheddar biscuit with vegan sausage and rosemary gravy, and seitan wings with ghost pepper chipotle cherry glaze. Try those wings with Grid City’s intensely hoppy Imperial Pale Ale.
In Ogden and Layton, Roosters Brewing Co. serves a couple of beers I can never get enough of: Blackberry Cream Ale, and Bee’s Knees Honey Wheat Ale. And, I can never visit Roosters without ordering the What a Crock appetizer. It’s been on the menu for as long as I can remember: a blend of eight different cheeses baked with artichoke hearts, crab, spinach, roasted garlic, and served with baguette slices. It’s a delicious dip and one that pairs beautifully with Roosters’ Diamondback Ale.
Stop by Strap Tank Brewery in Lehi for craft brews ranging from oatmeal stout, wit bier, and Munich dunkel, to New England IPA, hazy pale ale, and American wheat beer. There is something for every palate to sip alongside menu items such as seared sesame seed-crusted ahi tuna, grilled salmon tacos, linguini Alfredo, or perhaps chicken fried chicken with mashers and country gravy.
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