Durango Brewing Company is a Real Pub Experience.

Durango Brewing Company

3000 Main Ave.
Durango, CO 81301

(970) 247-3396

Website: http://www.durangobrewing.com






In 1886,  the "Durango Beer and Ice
Company",  changed its name to "Durango Brewing Company, and is now the third oldest microbrewery in Colorado. It is a small establishment; the type of place where you are treated equally whether a local or a visitor to Durango. There is no pretentiousness, and none of that, "you're not a local, so we can't be bothered to serve you" which is definitely what we experienced at another Colorado establishment in Dolores.  We stopped by at around 1:30 pm on a Sunday, there were a few people in the patio area and inside; when we left around 3pm it had become quite busier.  We seated ourselves, but a waitress came over immediately to take our drink orders.  My hubby had a "Durango Dark" which he said was smooth, rich, creamy, a slight hint of chocolate, not very hoppy and absolutely delicious.  The only non-alcoholic beverages are bottled iced teas or Zuberfizz sodas, and water of course.






The food menu is not large, and that ends up being a very good thing; what they do make is great!  We began with the Buffalo Wings; deep fried, not baked with celery sticks and ranch dressing (bleu cheese also available).  A perfect start off for wing lovers!







The waitress was very down to earth, pleasant and answered all our questions; again whether a local or visitor, she treated everyone well and checked to make sure we were all happy.  At first I was going to order a burger, but spied the "Brew House Brat" on the menu.  An El Dorado Cattle Company bratwurst made with Amber Ale, served with sauerkraut and pub chips.  Oh my goodness, I ate the whole thing!  The brat snapped when you bit into it and so juicy; the sauerkraut was fried up, not cold; the pub chips were out of this world...crispy on the outside with a soft center, no ketchup needed!  My mouth is watering just thinking about it!





Hubby ordered the "DBC Pub Burger", a 1/3 pound burger made with Texas Longhorn beef from the El Dorado Cattle Company (all DBC's meat menu items are from there) which comes with lettuce, tomato, pickles, red onion and your choice of cheese (hubby chose Cheddar); extra toppings can be purchased.  This is a "Wow" burger; large and in charge, juicy, perfectly cooked (medium-well), not dry and packed with charcoal flavor from the grill.  The kitchen is small, so we were able to see the flare up of the grill at one point, so knew when the menu said "char grilled" that that was no lie.  A choice of side salad or pub chips comes with this burger.




Durango Brewing Company is a place where you can go with family and/or friends, have a drink or two, eat very good pub style food, and simply relax.  There are some game machines in the pub and they do have Wi-Fi.  Check it out!

Mary Cokenour

Dolores River Brewery is Darn Right Bad!

Dolores River Brewery
100 S. 4th Street
Dolores, Colorado, 81323

(970) 882-4677

Website: www.doloresriverbrewery.com

Last night we decided to try out a brew pub I saw mentioned on the internet. We have frequented several of these microbreweries in the past, and always with a positive result, so why not try this one? It turned out to be a big mistake on our part.

Upon entering the pub area we were greeted by…no one. No hostess, the bartender did not acknowledge us, and there was no wait staff. Not a good first impression; so we seated ourselves at a small table set against the wall, and waited…nothing still. Roy got up, went to the bar and grabbed a couple of menus. So, let’s see what kind of pub grub we were going to experience. It certainly wasn’t the typical pub faire we were used to: snacks consisted of chips with either salsa or guacamole, or an antipasto plate. There were a number of salads to choose from; 3 types of sandwiches, and designer pizzas and calzones. Cheesecake was listed as a dessert, and it was noted on the menu to ask your server about other selections. That would be good, if we had a server.

Going up to the bar, Roy placed our order: Philly Cheese Steak sandwich for him, a calzone called “The New Yorker” for me. While I had iced tea, Roy tried their “Dry Stout”; DRB sings their own praises of their brews. Roy’s assessment of the stout was: the body was so light; it was almost watery, not as rich as the typical stout, medium hoppiness, but smooth. He asked about the specialty brews the menu describes, but the “brew master” had none ready for sale.

What we discovered, upon receiving our meals, was that the wait staff was also the cook staff. After receiving our plates, the bartender finally left his post behind the bar, and asked us if we needed anything else. Nope, not yet; but that was the last time we had any interaction with anyone at DRB, except when we paid…at the bar. Seems if you were not one of the locals, who frequent the bar area, you weren’t worth noticing.

Philly Cheese Steak sandwich is touted as a traditional Philly sandwich with beef, cheese, sautéed peppers and onions, and something called “hot sambal” on a toasted roll. The “hot sambal”, we later read online, is a very spicy chili sauce mainly used in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. How that ended up on a “traditional” Philly Cheese Steak is beyond me; and all we could taste of the sandwich was the hot chili sauce. Picking out the beef, it was tasteless; the cheese was unidentifiable, we saw a few onions and peppers, but they too were tasteless. The sides were a handful of bagged chips and a pickle; not very impressive for the price charged.

“The New Yorker” calzone looked wonderful when first presented; a massive dough dome, dark brown and when cut into, steam escaping. Our first reaction though was, “I bet this is nothing but hot air”, and we were right. While the dough was cooked on the outside (burned on the bottom I found out as I tried to eat it), the contents in the center were barely warm. DRB brags about spending hours on their dough which simply tastes like white bread. Toast me some, spread some butter on it, and I would not have been able to tell the difference from it and white bread from the supermarket. I cut the calzone down the center; one side consisted of ricotta cheese (not a sign of mozzarella, except as listed on the menu), the other had pepperoni (limp and tasteless) crammed in a large clump of slices which needed to be pulled apart. The sausage was spicy hot (not described as such on the menu), and a complete, unpleasant surprise. DRB claims to be a family/kid friendly place; but if any parent with small children surprised them with the spicy sausage within the calzone; they would have been screaming. The menu only states sausage, but no mention of the spice intensity. There was a smear of sauce on the bottom, and luckily I was able to peel off the burnt layer of dough before trying it.

Again, no one came by to ask about how the food was, if we needed anything, or just to say hello. Roy had to go to the bar, ask for the bill and pay there. The bartender did say goodbye as we left though, so a point for that effort.

The front of house is the dining area and bar, while back of house is the kitchen and brewing area. The bathroom (single toilet available) is co-ed with a changing table available. The one positive aspect of DRB; the atmosphere is rustic (wooden furniture), and quiet (no music) and can enjoy conversation without having to shout over noise.

Do yourself the favor and avoid Dolores River Brewery if traveling through, or staying in Dolores, Colorado; there are other places to eat there that are much better, and worth your time and money.

Mary Cokenour

Eddie McStiff's

Eddie McStiff's
57 S Main (Eddie McStiff's Plaza)
Moab, Utah, 84532

(435) 259-2337

Website: http://www.eddiemcstiffs.com/

Eddie McStiff's is located on the main street (Rte 191) of Moab at the rear of their own named plaza. Outside the restaurant is patio seating where one can enjoy drinks, meals and a view of the Red Rocks in the distance. Inside, the restaurant is divided into various areas where the lighting is neither too dark, nor too bright, but just right as Goldilocks would say. We went at a time when it was not too busy, so were able to seat ourselves; when busy, a hostess will seat you.

Our waitress, Natalin, was very friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable about the food items and drinks. The menus for food and drink are not overly large, and that is a good thing, so the staff can concentrate on putting out quality, not quantity.

Eddie McStiff's is a microbrewery, so have a selection of their own brewed products: Rock Amber and Canyon Cream Ales, Raspberry, Blueberry and Pure Desert Wheats. Roy had a Rock Amber Ale which he stated was medium bodied, smooth, slight flowery aftertaste, and slightly hoppy.

To start off our meal, first Brew City Onion Rings - light and cripsy batter; the onions soft, so when you took a bite, the whole onion didn't come out and leave you with a hollow shell; very tasty and served with ranch dressing.

Jumbo Buffalo Hot Wings - these are traditional Buffalo Wings, and when they say hot, they mean spicy hot. Served with bleu cheese dressing (ranch if you ask for it) and celery sticks. They are large, juicy; the skin is not overly mushy, nor overly crisp - Roy described them as "medium crispy".

Main Entrees - Roy had the Philly Cheese Steak which consisted of a toasted roll with provolone cheese, sauteed peppers and onions, and piled high with thinly sliced prime rib. Roy could taste every item separately, and also how they worked together - it was a great team effort too.

I had the McFish-n-Chips: beer battered tempura cod. Now I've had fish and chips at many places, and you usually get 2 pieces about 3 inches large, or one large piece about 6 inches long. I swear, I think I got a school of cod on my plate- 3 overwhelming pieces which hung off the plate that I had to take some home, and that's even after Roy tried some of it.
The tempura batter was crispy, and tasted clean;no oily taste. The cole slaw side was creamy and went perfect with the cod;tartar sauce was the condiment, but I didn't even need it.

We both had the french fries which were skin on potatoes, cripsy, and fluffy on the inside.

Now we've been to Eddie McStiff's many times, and only been disappointed with one item on the menu - the mixed greens salads; or what you would find in the produce department as "mixed spring salad". It's a combination of baby lettuces and other baby leafy vegetables which we find to be either bitter and/or tasteless; and adding dressing makes the leaves more soggy. Now if the mixed greens were added to a crispier lettuce, such as Romaine and/or Iceberg; then there would be a good assembly of tastes and textures. Dressings would enhance, not sog up, the salad itself.

Overall, if you're visiting, or even live near or around, Moab; try out Eddie McStiff's. You won't be sorry.