Choice City Butcher Shop And Deli

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

2.1/5  rDev -50.8%
vibe: 1.25 | quality: 2 | service: 1 | selection: 3.5 | food: 2.5 | $$

Wow, what a dump. Maybe this place cuts it for local yokels, but not for me. No bar, no service, just kind of a free-for-all where you order your food at one place and your beer from the cashier. Atmosphere was just lame all over, with terrible clientele, and chaotic general operations, cheap rickety tables and stuff--not in a rustic "we're gritty and throwbackish" way, but in a cheap-out "we suck, give us your money" way. Layout was, well, basically a deli, as would be imagined. A selection of meats and whatnot, with a long but basic menu posted on the wall.

Beer selection was decent. The tap list wasn't too impressive; they had a slightly better bottle selection, including some stuff that's uncommon but not necessarily hard to find, considering many local micros are within a few miles driving and/or walking distance. Food was presented good, all said and done, but it was not that good quality overall. I had a sub-par / pink sludge burger and the wife had a salad that she ended up picking half apart because of the ingredients.

Service was lousy: the cashier/waitress was nice enough, but was left all alone to tend to the small rush of customers, meanwhile pouring beers incorrectly, and not properly filled, into incorrect glassware. No one there really knew what they were doing and they didn't display any knowledge about the beer served...just no.

This wasn't a good place, and to advertise it as #9 on the list of best "bars" in the world? I've been to Ebenezer's and to put this place anywhere within 500 spots is just disgraceful. I've been to dives way better than this place. And delis for that matter.

Definitely to be avoided. Do yourself a favor and go to Mayor of Old Town, just a few blocks away, where they have 100 beers on tap, good food, and an incredibly nicer atmosphere. Or get food somewhere and go to Equinox. Nothing choice about Choice City.

08-12-2011 07:48:16 | More by Rifugium

MsRif

Pennsylvania

2.73/5  rDev -36.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 2.5 | service: 2 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3 | $$$

Stopped here because it was rated in the top beer bars across the US. When I walked in, I wondered if I was in the right place. Having been to Ebenezer's and other top bars, this place just didn't seem right. It was chaotic and seemed more like a Starbucks than a quality beer bar. However...I was in fact in the right place. I waited in line to order my salad and then waited in the other line to pay (what?) and get my beer. I am not sure if they got an infected batch of brew, but my beer from Equinox did not taste right at all. This was confirmed for me later when I drank the brew straight from the source at Equinox and it was phenomenal. My salad came up and it was pretty sub-par. Considering how people raved about the food, I was vastly disappointed. I only drank the one brew and then my husband and I left for Equinox. Service was pretty much "serve yourself" and the atmosphere was exactly like I described...it reminded me of a Starbucks. Very much a college crowd.

Selection was fair, but I have seen FAR better selections. This was nothing amazing, especially given the beer scene in this general area. Mayor of Old Town has 100 taps...if you want a real selection, head there. I am glad that I stopped in for the experience, but I would certainly not pay this place another visit.

10-25-2011 00:39:02 | More by MsRif

rhinos00

Colorado

3.65/5  rDev -14.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5 | $$$

While visiting Fort Collins I decided to make the stop here. I was in a mood for a sandwich and it was a gorgeous day out.

A- Wow was this place busy! I liked the fact that it was real laid back with lots of people drinking a pint of beer with their lunches. Dogs everywhere, people bustling in and out and while hectic maintained a nice feel.

Q- The quality of beers was pretty good, but nothing special when compared to places in Ohio. They had St. Bernardus 12 and Odell's Bourbon Stout, but nothing out of the ordinary. As for the bottles, there really wasn't anything exciting. LA Carnivale and Witches' Wit was about as out of the ordinary as it got. My biggest gripe was that I saw a bottle of New Glarus Iced Barleywine sitting in the fridge. I had been eyeing it the whole time as I slowly made my way to the front of the line. When I ordered it, the clerk started to ring it up and someone from behind the counter told her that it wasn't for sale. Awesome! However, the clerk was nice enough to comp me and take $2 of the Chimay I bought instead.

S- This was another big problem. The whole system of ordering in one place and then standing in line to pay at another place simply wasn't working. I think this was in large part because there was no bottle list and the fact that they only had one person at the register, who was also filling the beers that were on-tap. With only 5 people in line in front of me, I must have waited to pay at the register for 15 minutes. Every person that was paying was constantly asking what was in the fridge (would be very difficult to see if you have bad eye sight or are not tall enough to see over the counter). I think it would have definitely benefitted to have a bottle list to begin with and more than one person to take orders at the register, pour the beers on-tap, and constantly have to wonder over to the fridge to let people know what bottles they had.

S- The selection was pretty good for a quick lunch stop. They had a decent amount of bottles in the fridge along with 10 or so taps.

F- The food was the best part of this place. I had an italian sandwich for $11 and it was pretty damn tasty.

V- As far as value goes, I probably won't be coming here too often. The food is amazing, but a bill of $35 for two sandwiches and two chimay triples is a little too rich for my taste, especially when we are talking lunch for two. I like the concept of this place, but definitely overpriced.

05-15-2009 17:20:31 | More by rhinos00

bditty187

Nebraska

4.05/5  rDev -5.2%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 5 | $$$

We waited until nearly the last meal in town to visit Choice City. I wasn't sure what to expect. It is not a beer bar... that was clear as soon as we walked in. It is a butcher shop/deli and sandwich place. It is a functional retail store that has great beer on-tap and great food. That, my friends, is freaking cool.

We stopped in on a Monday sometime after 2pm. It was slow and we got helped right away (order at the counter). We ordered a couple beers (Saison Dupont on-tap = yummy!) and some sandwiches. We didn't wait long. My buffalo burger was awesome. I also got a bite of a Buffalo burger rueben and it was amazing! IMO, the food is the star of the show. Great sandwiches!

There is plenty of great beers on-tap and in bottles. What a great place to grab lunch and a beer.

I want to make it clear to people that this is more of a store, a retail store than a bar and it is more of a sandwich shop than a full on restaurant. It is a great mix however. I loved it. This isn't the place you'd come to have many beers, IMO, but it is a great place to grab something to eat and have a beer.

Just remember, this is not a bar!

07-29-2010 22:58:01 | More by bditty187

chugalug06

Colorado

4.05/5  rDev -5.2%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | food: 3.5 | $$$

A very nice, not too well known spot in Old Town Fort Collins. Small, plenty of tables, and plenty of choices... Great atmosphere.

The only reason I'm scoring a 4 for quality is due to the fact we ordered an aged brew that was HORRIBLY miss poured... I almost turned it away. I would love to share what brew this was, but it would only make you incredibly jealous. The food was quite good, but pretty expensive for what it was... My friend and I bth ordered the buffalo sliders for $13. Most entrees seemed to be nicely overpriced, but hey, some decent food with an amazing brew selection? Who could complain too much?

We also had terrible service, our waitress seemed very flustered and overwhelmed by her job... To CCBSaD's credit I've been here numerous time prior to this experience and had GREAT service.

Well worth your trip and dollars to find this place and stay a while.

Cheers!

04-22-2011 01:38:52 | More by chugalug06

Ave

Iowa

4.13/5  rDev -3.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5 | $$

This place is a open for all three meals, but closes in the early evening, 6 or so. It is primarily a butcher shop and deli, that serves sandwiches and does a lot of catering. They have great food menus for breakfast and lunch, simple sandwiches mostly but very well done. There beer menu is short, carefully chosen and exemplary, rotating choices typically include a few of the locals, Odells and New Belgium, a few choice American crafts, Stone and Rouge, and a few tasty imports, Chimay and Ayinger. Small but great selection all in all.

03-23-2008 16:30:20 | More by Ave

mkorpal

Wyoming

4.15/5  rDev -2.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5 | $$$

I can't believe I never reviewed my favorite place. maybe I did and it just disappeared. Who knows.

Anyway, Choice City tripples as a great butcher, and awesome deli, and a world class beer bar. They only have 15 or so taps available. however, they are all high quality. At one time, they had Avery Samael's, Lost Abby Angels Share, and Oskar Blues ten Fidy on tap. That was just a few of the awesome brews available. They also have a bunch of bottles, but it's hard to tell what they actually have at times.

The food is some of the best in the city. Typical deli stuff with sandwiches and burgers. The sandwhiches are huge and tasty, while the burgers are fresh and juicy. They do an incredible job with the food.

Service can sometimes be a bit spotty, especially when it is quiet. The line can also stop if someone like myself can't make up their mind on the beer. Oh well, it isn't bad enough for me to dock them far, and it's the beer that should be front and center.

price wise, the food is expensive, but the beer is fairly priced. they also will drop a dollar of you pint when you order a meal. my suggestion, the Choice City burger, mashed potatoes, and an Erics Ale.

07-28-2010 22:15:33 | More by mkorpal

denver10

Colorado

4.15/5  rDev -2.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

A cool place to grab some (unhealthy) quality food and along with some quality beer. Great combo of quality food and drink here. The service is spotty; first time I was there was during their Thursday/Friday/Saturday dinner and the server was quite good and had something to offer with her recommendations. She was also more than willing to offer free samples of a beer to check out. Check. The other times were during regular hours and the workers were far less knowledgeable and had a hard teem even trying to explain what some of their beers were. Same deal with the food as well. Overall, though, I dig the place. Definitely screams mom and pop local joint, with a nice casual environment.

08-07-2012 21:15:32 | More by denver10

Kemmerlin

Colorado

4.18/5  rDev -2.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 5 | food: 5 | $$$

What an outstanding concept...combine choice selections of deli meats an amazing selection of quality beer and good breakfast, lunch, and dinner entree meals. Voted best breakfast in Fort Collins and has great helpful owners. The first day we were in town they recommended another good resturant for the type of food we were looking for and called the other owners to let them know we were coming. Only thing is that everytime we have gone back the service was awful. The beer selection is amazing though as they are the only ones in Northern Colorado who we have found to have Russian River beer on tap and several other rare varieties.

11-02-2008 23:29:20 | More by Kemmerlin

Bitterbill

Wyoming

4.28/5  rDev +0.2%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5 | $$

From my notes of May 9th, 2009

I arrived about 2PM and, of course, people were scurrying in and out...this is usually a very busy place and no wonder.

I ordered a full classic Italian sandwich and a pint of NB Eric's Ale. The sandwich was as good as I've ever had and the Wild Ale was simply superb! So damn good that I had to have a second pint. At $5 per, I thought the price was very reasonable.

I've been here before so I knew you had to walk over to the deli counter to put my order in for the sandwich(I chose a garlic mashed potato for my included side) and walk to the beer counter for my beer. A bit unusual for a first time customer but easy to get used to.

So...my say is that this is a must stop if you're in town. Great food and a wide range of beers on tap and even more goodies in bottles.
I highly recommend it!

05-11-2009 23:29:56 | More by Bitterbill