Fitger's Brewhouse

stark379

Minnesota

4.58/5  rDev +6.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 5 | food: 5 | $$

Fitger's is one of the original brewpubs in Duluth. They are constantly making new styles of beer along with the classics that many have come to expect. Bartenders and servers are more than willing to let you try a sample of a beer first before buying a pint, and they also offer tasting flights.

You really can't go wrong with any of their beers. My personal favorites are the El Nino IPA, Superior Trail IPA, and Wildfire. The food in the establishment is usually very good too. Service can be hit or miss, but that is to be expected with many restaurants. Prices are what one would expect for Duluth (tourist area), but nothing outrageous. Beers are around $5 pint and most meals are between $10-15.

Fitger's is definitely worth checking out if you are in the Duluth area. Another thing to note is that some of their beers are served off site at their "sister restaurants" Burrito Union and Tycoon's.

03-12-2013 18:10:43 | More by stark379

pizza

Minnesota

4.83/5  rDev +12.1%
vibe: 4.75 | quality: 5 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.75 | food: 4.75 | $$

Great Brewhouse. A comfortable atmosphere, gets loud at night, often musicians playing.
Fun to go just for a beer or to get dinner. Many options on the menu, from continental to Mexican to fresh fish from the lake outside the back door.
The beer selection is pretty decent, although the same beers stay on tap for very long periods of time. It would be nice to see new IPA's from time to time, even though the El Nino is a classic. Nice to have the option of taking a growler of the good stuff home with you.
Good service. Highly recommended.

02-27-2013 03:55:18 | More by pizza

imthaschmidt

3.65/5  rDev -15.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4 | $$

This place has a very mellow feel to it... i sat upstairs along the rail and its nice to just looks down while drinking some great beer.

Another really cool thing was that the Taps were all made of custome blown glass, i thought this added some character to the place.

Walk downstairs and you can see where the brewq the beer and they also have a gift shop where yo ucan purchase clothing and grownlers of some of the beer they produce.

this place will have a beer that you like, that is guarenteed

Very cool place and i would def go back

12-28-2012 17:48:10 | More by imthaschmidt

MarcatGSB

Michigan

3.25/5  rDev -24.6%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 3 | $$

This place is a complex. You drive up to the building, and it's actually very impressive (or not) to see what they have done with this beautiful older building.

The Brewhouse itself is a lot smaller than I initially thought. Seats maybe about 115 people, with a 10 or so seat bar. We arrived and were told that there was a 15-20 minute wait for the two of us, so we headed across the hall to the little "club" type thing, and had a beer. They serve Fitger beers there as well.

I had the Oatmeal Stout which was pretty tasty, I didn't take any notes for a formal review. we were called for our table in about 3 minutes, so I felt rushed to drink my beer so we didn't have our table given away to another party. Part of the reason I drove to Duluth and to check out Fitger's was their website stated they had a Woodford Reserve ESB on tap, so that was definitely a draw. When we were finally seated, I realized they didn't have the ESB on the tap board, and I asked the server...her response was "Yah, it was on tap the last couple days, but it's not gone, they just aren't pouring it today" Okay? So I can't get one, even though I'm fairly certain it was still on tap, ready to reach my lips. That was a bit frustrating.

I ended up getting the Cherry Batch, which was really tasty, and the Witte was decent as well. Food was slightly above average, but not much more. We had a couple salads, and veggie black bean chili, which was OK, no real stand out flavor for me.

Besides the disappointment of not having a beer available (I understand when a place runs out of a beer, or a menu item in general, but to just not serve it, herm). I'm not hating on Fitger's, but I didn't leave with a warm and fuzzy feeling, and I especially know that a special trip 250 miles across the great north woods isn't worth it, solely for Fitger's.

10-11-2012 21:04:22 | More by MarcatGSB

gatornation

Minnesota

4.33/5  rDev +0.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

always stop here when in Duluth for brew ,food, the lake and the atmosphere, plenty of parking all around fitgers is on the north shore on LK superior its an older classic looking place with a mall inside a hotel specialty shops a growler shop and other retail food and clothing but what i come here for is the ever changing brews and the tried and true ones, the bar is always packed it is 2 levels but i seem to always stay by the small bar, thay offer flight of 7 brews or pints ive never been diisapointed by the brew, the food ,the service or the atmosphere , this is a destination and a must stop when on the north shore i always buy a growler when there and if it were closer to minneapolis i would drive there more often

12-11-2011 00:42:23 | More by gatornation

hohnx012

Ohio

5/5  rDev +16%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5 | $$

Fitger's is hands down the best bar in Duluth. Great beer, great food, great atmosphere. Anyone passing through Duluth should definitely check this place out. While the bar itself has outgrown itself, and can be a little cramped at times, this bar is definitely a unique experience. The Apricot Wheat and Oatmeal Stout are my personal favorites, but its hard to go wrong with any beer at Fitger's. If you're going for dinner, the Wild Rice Burger is a must-try! Delicious! If you're going anywhere in Duluth, it may as well be Fitger's.

11-23-2011 15:25:12 | More by hohnx012

DesMoinesMike

Iowa

4.58/5  rDev +6.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$$

This place is truly the gem of Duluth. Out of the remnants of a defunct mass-production brewery is this eclectic brewpub that employs lots of innovation while appreciating its roots. The building that is almost two complete city block is now a brewpub, brewery museum, motel, bar, other restaurants, and a mall with several shops.

The brewpub takes up 2 stories, with the fermentation tanks visible from the interior mall corridor. The menu has many burgers and sandwiches, with pizzas and typical pub appetizers. The beer selection consisted of 8 or 9 house brews, some with atypical names. The el Nino IPA, at 7%, seemed like a good option and turned out to be a good pick. For food I got some southwest chicken sandwich that had some great tasting BBQ sauce. The stout was nice, the cask beer didn't have much flavor to it, and the black IPA was nasty, like sour candy and pepper mixed together.

The service was great. The staff answered many questions and was happy to get any extras I wanted.

If you are fortunate enough to visit this city that's a hidden treasure of the Midwest, Fitger's is a required stop.

10-04-2011 03:02:10 | More by DesMoinesMike

kbaker91

Minnesota

4.28/5  rDev -0.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

Spent the weekend in Duluth with my wife, so we made our way to Fitgers a couple of times. Have been there several times in the past.

The Brewhouse is in the Fitgers complex on the shoreline of Lake Superior in Downtown Duluth. The place itself is a little small, which means it can get crowded at lunch or dinner time. It would have been nice if the brewhouse was on the other (lake) side of the hall, perhaps with a patio overlooking the Lake.

The service was fine, with young and attractive twenty-somethings answering questions and providing quick service.

The food is decent, a little better than average bar food done well.

The beer that the Brewhouse produces is excellent. I had a pilsner, an IPA, and a belgian strong ale. All were tremendous. We made sure we picked up a couple of growlers for our return to the Cities.

Prices were fair.

Overall, this place is a must-visit for anyone traveling to or through Duluth.

08-07-2011 21:43:32 | More by kbaker91

steggers

Minnesota

2.08/5  rDev -51.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 1.5 | service: 2 | selection: 2.5 | food: 1 | $$

Wow, where to begin? Took the whole family out to dinner at the Brewpub at my request. Three kids 6 and under, my wife, In-laws, and myself.
Let's start with the good. The beer was great. I started with a pint of El Niño followed by a Starfire ale. Both delicious.
The restaurant was busy because it was dinner, but it was a Tuesday night. The food took the better part of 30 minutes. We ordered an appetizer for the kids just it case the food took too long. It never came.
The food came out to the table and they were missing one of the kids meals. Seven minutes later for the missing chicken fingers, and we all could eat. My mushroom and Swiss burger resembled a hockey puck, dry and burnt. The waitress never checked on us to see how the food was. Not until she cleared our plates and noticed that I took three bites did she inquire. They did take my burger off the bill which was nice, but no further apology was given for the other issues.
Needless to say, the only way I will be going back on our next vacation is by myself, just for the beer.

07-29-2011 19:00:44 | More by steggers

mwilbur

Minnesota

4.38/5  rDev +1.6%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

Stayed at Fitger's over the 4th. For the atmosphere, the rating is based upon the entire Fitger's experience (their superb location sitting on Lake Superior, the aroma of brewing beer as you walk through the complex, etc.) not just the inside of the brewpub.
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of both brew and grub. They had several offerings on tap (and on the menu was a sampler of 7 beers for 7 bucks). I went for the Starfire on cask and the nitro-tap oatmeal stout (excellent!). They offer good pub fare...I enjoyed the salmon burger (the salmon comes from the local Northern Waters Smokehaus...also worth a visit) and would have it again next time. If you are in Duluth, you should do yourself a favor and stop in!
PS--If you are headed to the BWCA and can bear the weight, fill up one of their nalgene adventure growlers.
PPS--Also gotta love a brewpub that will deliver growlers to you (within the Duluth area)!

07-11-2011 04:44:03 | More by mwilbur