Bube's Brewery

Bube's BreweryBube's Brewery
Bube's BreweryBube's Brewery
Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

102 N. Market St.
Mount Joy, Pennsylvania, 17552
United States

(717) 653-2056 | map
bubesbrewery.com
BEER STATS
Average:
3.58
Beers:
50
Ratings:
148
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.66
Reviews:
41
Ratings:
59
pDev:
13.66%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by newbeeraday:
Photo of newbeeraday
Rated by newbeeraday from Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -18%

Nov 29, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.8 by Yellolab2010 from Pennsylvania

Dec 01, 2015
 
Rated: 3.44 by mk66 from Pennsylvania

Oct 28, 2015
 
Rated: 3.78 by JaredSammy from New York

Sep 17, 2015
 
Rated: 3.94 by mandy_mic700 from Pennsylvania

Aug 08, 2015
 
Rated: 3.85 by lamb0176 from Pennsylvania

Jul 28, 2015
 
Rated: 3.86 by therealJAYZ from Pennsylvania

Jul 12, 2015
 
Rated: 3.46 by PA-Michigander from Pennsylvania

Jun 02, 2015
Photo of DaveHack
Rated by DaveHack from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 4.75 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.75 | selection: 3.5
The beer is average, the real draw here is the building and the catacombs
Jan 04, 2015
Photo of Knapp85
Reviewed by Knapp85 from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 3.75
A friend of mine took me here because he said the vibe of the place was really cool. Surely we get there and it's this very old looking building and on the inside it looks even older. Amazing underground tour that reminded me a lot of when I toured Yuengling. The beers aren't anything super special and I wish I could have tried some of the food while I was there but we had other places to be that night. It's definitely a place I would stop back in and check out again sometime.
Jan 03, 2015
 
Rated: 3.99 by FightinIrish88 from New Jersey

Nov 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3.88 by BigRizz62 from Maryland

Aug 19, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by imhoudinibitch from New Jersey

Aug 16, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Kuromaru from Virginia

Jul 09, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Barnsley from Pennsylvania

May 21, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by GeorgianBayPackr from Pennsylvania

Mar 09, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by cujim from Pennsylvania

Dec 14, 2013
Photo of jubraa
Reviewed by jubraa from Pennsylvania

2.15/5  rDev -41.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 1 | service: 2 | selection: 3 | food: 1
We were seating right away. We ordered the beer sampler which was good. We then ordered our appetizer which seemed forever to get, probably 30 min or more, we had the crab dip, which was nice. I then ordered the Cajun Combo, I asked for a loaded baked potato as a side, and she said ok. When I got the meal, the meal SUCKED !! Chicken was overdone as anything, the steak was pork (said they had to substitute) which was too loaded with Cajun seasoning which i couldn't eat, and the shrimp had NO TASTE at all. Worst of all, I asked why my baked potato didn't have any cheese or bacon on it, and server said that the chef would not allow it !!!! WTF !!!! REALLY ! My friends had potato skins for an app and they got bacon and cheese. I called for the OWNER and she didn't give a rats behind that I was unhappy. Honestly, this place sucks and will NEVER go back, please don't waste your time, the atmosphere is GREAT, but food sucks and servers are untrained. We had a party of 6 and most of us were unhappy and will NOT RETURN. What a waste of money !!!! I'm so bummed with this place, and I was really looking forward too it.
Nov 03, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by canawler from Pennsylvania

Oct 30, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by Varkias41 from New Jersey

Oct 16, 2013
Photo of stakem
Reviewed by stakem from Pennsylvania

2.88/5  rDev -21.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3 | food: 3
So I've driven by the general area of Bube's multiple times when I head to the Lancaster area after leaving work in Harrisburg. It wasn't until Monday, 5/23/11 that I finally decided that was the day I was going to check this place out. Their website leads you to believe that Bube's is broken down into several areas of interest: homebrew shop, biergarten, bottlingworks and catacombs. On my visit, it was decent outside and the biergarten was open so that is where we headed. We had to walk through the bottlingworks en route to the outside and seriously I needed a flashlight to see where I was going. This is hands down, the darkest place I've ever been in. I understand the idea of ambiance but seriously, turn some lights on that is rediculous. I can only imagine what the catacombs look like... I couldn't help but think this was their low-budget means of saving money by not turning lights on. Being fairly early on a Monday evening, we were the only patrons in the garden. It was peaceful and had a good vibe to it despite the frustrating dark interior.

The quality of this establishment is interesting. We enjoyed some typical bar food while enjoying a few pints so I can't complain. All the beers for the most part were average or slightly above. The food? Well it's kind of hard to screw up deep frying hot poppers, cheese balls and pickels. The menu had the expected bar food, nothing really stuck out as a must-try.

The service was quick and attentive. Lacking a bit in general knowledge of what their beer offerings were but I guess not every waitress cares about what is on tap except for what they like? I was agitated that I had to go into the bar area myself just to see what was on tap because our waitress didn't know other than "we got a blueberry and a wheat" and didn't offer to get the info for us.

The food selection was a bit lacking but covered all of the usual suspects you would expect. The beer selection is what pissed me off. Their website clearly listed 6 of their house made offerings, 2 of them in particular sounded interesting and were my deciding factor in stopping. Upon my arrival, none of the listed brew's were on tap. However, they did have 4 selections to choose from along with guest taps along the likes of Victory, Flying Fish, Guinness, Lost Coast, Spring House, Long Trail and some BMC.

This is a place I wanted to stop at for quite some time. I see I haven't really been missing out on much. I would not visit this place on a regular basis but I might give it a shot sometime again in the distant future to see if anything changes.
May 26, 2011
Photo of ritter57
Reviewed by ritter57 from Pennsylvania

1.98/5  rDev -45.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 2 | service: 2 | selection: 1.5 | food: 2
I live a few miles away and I have always wanted to try this place. It was a brewpub long before brewpubs were cool. But for one reason or another I never made it here before. I found out today that I wasn't missing much. I tried two beers and they were very unfortunate - like so many less than mediocre "microbrews" in unknown corners around the country I've had. You can't just take a biker bar, brew beer in the basement, give it a clever name, get hipsters to serve it, and call it "craft." The beer, food, and service were below average. The place leans on it's history and doesn't seem to try very hard on anything but image.
Nov 14, 2010
Photo of JunkYardJake
Reviewed by JunkYardJake from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
I've patronized Bube's once or twice a year for the better part of a decade and I never know what kind of experience I'm gonna get. Sometimes it's great, other times it's disappointing. The last few years, however, have been more of the latter. That includes the food, service and most importantly, the beer. This time I was impressed. Hopefully, this means things are on the up there. We sat out in the garden and it was packed. Service wasn't great but wasn't terrible either. Food was better than my last few visits. I had a grilled cheese with crab, bacon and tomatoes and a side of onion rings. It was quite good. Everyone else at our table enjoyed their food too. I had the beer sampler to start and enjoyed each beer. Berliner Weiss (very good), Alois Lager (decent), Hopback Amber (good), Scottish ale (decent) and Kolsch (very good). They also had a bunch of other craft brews on tap. Looking forward to going back in a while to see what's brewing. Check it out if you've never been. The building alone is worth the trip.
Aug 10, 2010
Photo of Beerquester
Reviewed by Beerquester from Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +5.2%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 4
One of my favorite places, especially for the atmosphere! The setting is an historic brewery dating from the 1800's. I may be sketchy on some details, but i believe they basically padlocked the doors during prohibition. The equipment remained in the building for decades and now is still viewable in secret hidden rooms throughout the establishment. Historically, this is one of the best kept secrets in American Brewing history.

The brewhouse is tiny and the brewer is doing his best to produce a quality beer in the space he has available. I went there last summer and was disappointed but a couple weeks ago i was there and I enjoyed about 3 of the 6 house beers which i tried in their sampler. I couldn't decide on which to bring home in a growler. I decided on the DoppelBock. A Belgian trippel was very good but i felt the doppel bock would be better for the party for which i intended it.

Service was great, food was good. They just expanded the space in the Biergarten. I always like to sit outside in the warmer months. As always, there are lots of things going on . Everyone I bring there is always impressed. A worthwhile stop when travelling through the Lancaster/Harrisburg area.
May 21, 2010
Photo of BeerCon5
Reviewed by BeerCon5 from Pennsylvania

3.55/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 3
I think the most alluring of this place is the atmosphere. The place looks as it would have looked when it was built in early 1800's. The most interesting room to me was the dining area underground which was lit only by candle light and gave you an even more colonial feel.

For a brewpub I was disappointed that they only had 3 of their own beers on tap, though they did have a few other tasty beers on tap including some Troegs and Dogfish Head. I had their Belgian Pale which was ok and also the Chocolate Porter which also was just average.

Since my wife an I were there for one of their Murder Mysteries the staff was in full character including the wait staff which made it a bit more entertaining.

The food was average, we were served roast beef and chicken breast family style both were decent, nothing exceptional.

I thought for the show and dinner the price was reasonable, I believe the ticket was $40.
Jan 08, 2010
Photo of Kolsch
Reviewed by Kolsch from Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev +7.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3
Visited late Saturday afternoon; sat outside in the Biergarten on a pleasant Sept day.

Atmosphere: Not to repeat what others have said but if you have never been here before, it is well worth your time to take 15 mins and walk around especially if you can get down to the Catacombs. Very cool indeed.

Quality/Selection: Bube's has taken some hits on this site more than once for brewing mediocre to bad beer served in a unique atmosphere. Being here 5yrs ago, I would completely agree. At the time, the beer was unpalatable. Having said that, the beers I tasted were quite good. Had the Bohemian Pils, Brown Ale and Fresh Hop IPA. All were good with the Bohemian Pils being the standout. Had an opportunity to talk with 1 of the Brewers (Rick) who really seems to care about the beer and is making some interesting styles to say the least. He gave us a taste of a Berliner Weiss that was still in the Fermenter Tank. They only have a 2 barrel system, so there are no year round beers.

Value/Service: service was fine, waiter was attentive as well as the bartender when we moved inside. Value was good. That day, the special was $3 for the Bohemian Pils.

Food: we did eat lunch there and food was average. I had an Omelet which was good. My wife had the Tuna salad and the Tuna was badly burned. What is interesting, last time we were there the food was the standout while the beer was mediocre. Complete turnaround this time.

Overall: I believe they are trying to turn around their image of brewing mediocre beer. I would hope that others give it a try again, just as we did because we were pleasantly surprised.
Sep 10, 2009
Photo of 86sportster883
Reviewed by 86sportster883 from Maryland

3.68/5  rDev +0.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5
Pronounced Boo-bies.

House Beers:
Paranormal Porter (6.1 abv) on cask and tap,
Red Boar Ale (4.9 abv),
Tri-Hops Ale (8.4% abv), and
Kolsch (6.1% abv).

On Tap: FF Farmhouse Summer Ale, Franziskaner Weise, Guinness, Harp, Magic Hat Wacko, Swashbuckler Stout, Yuengling Lager, Sam Adams Summer, Stella Artois, Sierra Nevada Summer Fest, Woodchuck Cider, Miller Lite and Leinenkugel Amber on tap.

Bottles included Bass, Brooklyn Brown & Summer Ale, Red Stripe, Chimay Blue, Czechvar, Lancaster Brewing Strawberry Wheat, New Castle Brown, Sam Adams Imperial Stout, Sam Smith Oatmeal Stout, Troegs' Hop Back Amber and Victory Hop Devil among others.

The bier garden was quite comfortable and if I did not have to drive, I could have stayed there all night. This is one unique place, very relaxing, historic and interesting. Both staff and patrons seemed genuinely friendly, laid back and somewhat removed from the rest of the world. No TVs anywhere w/a little Stevie Ray playing somewhere off in the background, almost imperceptible but there none the less.

I tried the Porter, the Tri-Hop and the Red and found them all to be very drinkable. I was impressed at the way the Tri-Hop was able to reach a balance between hop bitterness and alcohol heat, so that you hardly knew it was such a big beer. My food, a chicken dish off the specials menu, was just a cut above average.

I really liked this place, on a relatively quite weekday night, and would probably go out of my way to visit again.
Jul 21, 2009
Photo of daveGsus
Reviewed by daveGsus from Pennsylvania

4.38/5  rDev +19.7%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
bubes may be the center of the universe. I didn't have much to eat but what I did eat was good. the house brews are above average a couple are excepitional. the outmeal stout was the best beer I've EVER had in my life. they don't do a lot of in-house brews but the ones they do, they do well. the service may not be the fastest but it is entertaining. there are characters everywhere. our bartender bill is a great guy. he has great stories and jokes.the building itself is a marvel. they have a lot of special events going on. if you are ever in the neighborhood I'd make it a point to stop in.
Feb 25, 2009
Photo of WesWes
Reviewed by WesWes from New York

3.13/5  rDev -14.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3
I stopped here while on the way to Downingtown. It's located in an old brick building that looks like it has been around since the late 1800's. The bar is right inside and not well lit. It has a colonial era feel, whick is pretty cool, but that's where the coolness ends.

The quality of this place isn't that great. It's crowded and dark with a damp feel. The gift shop is loocated on the second floor in some sort of musuem slash grain room. There was a 1/4" of dust on the display case.

The selection of beer was quite limited. There were five beers total and the quality was not very good. The head brewer said he was a full time chemist and that brewing was easy. I would have to say that I've had much better beer from people who never even went to brewers college.

I won't be back here again anytime soon. It's shame, because the atmosphere looks quite interesting. They just need to retool the business plan.
Sep 25, 2008
Photo of DIM
Reviewed by DIM from Pennsylvania

3.13/5  rDev -14.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 2 | food: 3
This review is based on my experience in the outdoor seating area.

The outdoor seating are looks great. Plenty of mature trees and bamboo shade the entire area. The bricks on the ground look old, worn, and rustic. It is a fantastic looking space. On the down side, based on the number of flies I would have guessed we were sitting next to a dumpster. From what I saw the bar area was inundated as well.

The beer selection was slim. A heffe, wit, tripel and one other offering were all they had. Unfortunately I had the wit.

The food was good, but not great. My pulled pork sandwich was tasty but skimpy. My girlfriend had a black and bleu burger, The bleu cheese was all but flavorless. Our waitress was very friendly.

There are five brewpubs in Lancaster county and Bube's is at the bottom of list by far. Not recommended.
Jun 29, 2008
Photo of Edgecrusher
Reviewed by Edgecrusher from New Jersey

3.9/5  rDev +6.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
Atmosphere: Outstanding. True to its roots. Offers a variety of places to eat, drink and explore.

Quality: Overall quality was good. In house beers were a little on the flat side, but still tasted fresh. Food quality was good.

Service: Our server was excellent-very friendly and outgoing-interacted with out party of 8.

Selection: Slighlty above average. In addition to their house brewed beer offered a selection of other craft beers and the regs.

Food: Good. Out of our party of 8, evereyone enjoyed their meal. Menu selection at the Bottling Works was nice.

Value: Very reasonably priced-especially compared to the Philly area-which is where i do my eating and drinking.

Overall a unique experience. Visited with a party of 8 and everyone had a great time and enjoyed the food and brew. If in the area i recomend stopping by. It is not your typical brewpub/restaurant. Make sure ya walk the premises and checkout the old brew barrels!
Apr 28, 2008
Photo of jneiswender
Reviewed by jneiswender from Massachusetts

2.6/5  rDev -29%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | food: 1
Went on a Sunday afternoon for lunch with the family. Mt Joy is not the most happening place in the world so parking is not really an issue. So the streets are just fine. However, there is a parking lot adjacent that likely comes in handy when they have music. The atmosphere is great, we were seated immediately. The decor of funny bar signs was nice. Particularly like the "no shirt, no skirt, full service" was good. Before or after dinner, its worth walking around the place. They have century old ale fermentors downstairs. The waitstaff was very nice and was willing to answer the questions we had. The beer (brewed on premises) was mostly mediocre. The bitter was the best of the bunch and very traditional tasting. I heard the kiwi-strawberry beer was good but they didn't have it. The rest of what they had was just not spectacular nor was it very fresh tasting. The food was horrendous. I had the fish and chips. A quartered potatoe that was burnt until it was charcoal and an equally burnt piece of fish. No ones food looked great, although the hamburgers were at least done right. Other than the name, Bube, I don't know if I would recommend this to anyone.
Feb 24, 2008
Photo of mjc410
Reviewed by mjc410 from Vermont

4.18/5  rDev +14.2%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5
Went to Bube's on Saturday, Jan. 12 to celebrate mine and my brother-in-law's birthdays (24/32...oi). I didn't know what to expect beyond a big, old, stone and brick brewpub, but I was thoroughly impressed.

The building sits just off of Main Street in Mt. Joy, which I had never been to, despite passing by dozens of times in the past. There was ample parking in a large lot behind the building, as well as on the street, although most of it was full, even at 7PM on a Saturday. I have no idea where everyone else parked, since it became quite crowded soon after...

We walked in (though the ground floor would be largely handicapped-accessible), and seated ourselves at the bar in what we would find out to be the Bottling Works. Surroundings were dim, but filled with hundreds/thousands of antique colored glass bottles lining the wooden ceiling supports. Behind the bar was a large collection of craft beer bottles. Otherwise, the stone floor, old bricks and wood, and brass draft towers behind the bar (not on it) created a very authentic and cozy feeling.

On tap were five of the house beers. The lower alcohol (4.2?) oatmeal stout was great, and very roasty. There was a golden/amber lager as well, which doesn't appear to be listed. It had a nice breadiness, but wasn't a standout. The hefe, at 6.6%, was a monster. It had a hugely banana-forward taste, and was very well done. The dunkel weizen was also very nice, with subtle fruit and spice behind some very strong roasted flavors - this was more potent in that regard than any dunkel I'd had, but very nice. The last beer, a Belgian-style pale ale, was kicked before I got to it, but I my brother-in-law thoroughly enjoyed it. So, I got myself another oatmeal, which turned out to be my favorite.

Besides the house beer, there were probably at leat ten other beers on tap. I didn't notice any macro stuff, but I saw things like Troegs, Guinness, and the locally brewed Swashbuckler, made nearby at the PA Ren Faire. You don't see that many places off-site...

Despite the quality offerings, there were still a number of people drinking such things as Coors light from the bottle, so folks came for a lot more than just the great beer! Which should get me back to atmosphere...

After a few brews, I felt the need to wander. The building seemed to be huge, and I wasn't proved wrong! I saw a large party emerging from a steep and long stone stair, so I headed down, coming out in the servers' station in the rough stone-vaulted cellar that Bube's calls the catacombs. There were a lot of long wooden tables, and huge wooded beer tanks there, and the surroundings felt ancient and somehow intimate.

Anyway, I left quickly, and explored some more. I passed by a number of freestanding iron stoves in some relatively empty areas, saw, through a partially closed door, a collection of modern stainless brewing vessels behind a window, and then found my way into a cramped warehouse filled with a few massive, perhaps ten foot-diameter wooden beer tanks. It seems that I'd found my way into the museum. There were a few folks standing around, chatting with beer in their hands. I passed through a thick wooden door, and found another musem area, filled with a number of century-old home implements. I did'y linger here, but instead passed through another door, and found a Victorian-decorated area with rich wallpaper. I climbed a stair and found my way into the Alois bar, which reminded me of a few pubs in Ireland, with its dark brass and ceramic draft tower, thick wallpaper, and carpeting in some parts. I felt the need for a Guinness, which the barman ran to get, but oddly never came back, leaving the area unstaffed for a few minutes...I left, but wanted to come back to this area for the stuffy, Victorian feeling. There was even a live jazz band playing quitely in the corner.

Finally, the food. It wasn't especially nice, but it served. The French onion soup was better than average, and they also served some thickly covered bacon and cheese potato wedges. They might have more interesting items, but that's all I know.

The atmosphere, and the ability to explore and drink wherever would make this a great place to bring a huge group, and float around between folks if they spread between the various areas. I imagine it would be even better in milder weather with the outdoor biergarten open, so I will be sure to be back, probably after a trip to the PA Ren Faire this Autumn, if not sooner!.
Jan 14, 2008
Photo of Drewcifer
Reviewed by Drewcifer from Pennsylvania

3.96/5  rDev +8.2%
vibe: 5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Bube's Brewery is a hidden gem in the back streets of Mount Joy, a great place that, unfortunately, is off the beaten path and thus less visited than a number of other local bars with less atmosphere, less quality, and less choice of brews.

The atmosphere is quite varied, depending on the area of the brewery to decide to plant yourself in for your visit. Alois is a wonderful, somewhat Victorian setting that is more suited for wining and dining. The Catacombs are just that, catacombs carved out underneath the streets of Mount Joy. The Brewing Works, essentially the main bar, harkens back to the 18th and 19th centuries. While slightly cramped on a busy night, it is quite comfortable and often has live music. Lastly, the Biergarten, open in the summers, is an outdoor garden area, paved with uneven bricks and stones, lined with well-maintained fauna, all centered around a boiler and smokestack.

Bube's brews some of their own beers, which are hit and miss. Having tried their heffweizen, red ale, lager, kolsch and IPA, I can say that, while they are generally good, once in a while you'll get a brew that just doesn't taste right. Some of it may have to do with their turnover - the Bube's brews don't seem to sell that well, as Yuengling seems to be in every other beer glass in the place. Some of it may have to do with experimentation on the part of the brew master. The red ale and the IPA were consistently good, however, the lager and kolsch have been off-and-on, while I've never enjoyed their heff.

The service is what is generally quite good. However, the cramped space behind the bar in the Bottling Works seems to slow up service now and then. The barkeeps know what they're doing, and the waitresses are prompt and friendly. If you're a good customer, you'll get great service. But if you're a rude customer, they have no problem returning the favor, which I find to be a good quality in barkeeps.

The selection is also pretty good. Aside from their own brews and the usual tap selections, they have a good number of imports and crafts on tap and in bottles. Not an overwhelming amount, but more than most bars of its size.

Overall, if you're planning on drinking beer in Lancaster county, Bube's has to be in your top 5 places to stop by. I'd recommend going in the summer to enjoy the Biergarten, or going for a dinner in Alois or the Catacombs.
Nov 18, 2007
Photo of Slatetank
Reviewed by Slatetank from Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +12%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
I made my third visit to Bube's recently and thought I would give them a review. I must say it was a bit hard to navigate through all the construction, the main road was closed off completely. I found a place to park, though and made me way in to the Bottling works.

The first time I ever had the pleasure of experiencing Bube's I took my ex-girlfriend there for a Valentine's day dinner at Alois. The whole experience there was incredible. I very 5 star feel of fine dining. I enjoyed Roasted duck and Chimay. That was about 11 years ago and one of the first experiences w/ Chimay for me.

I returned to enjoyed some roots rock in the Bottling works a few months back and enjoyed my first Bube's brew. They weren't brewing back when I enjoyed the Valentine's dinner. The porter was very good and I didn't really get a chance to take the whole place in, so I returned to get a second look.

When you walk through the arched wooden doors it is like steppin' back in time. You feel like you are experiencing a little bit of PA history with the Victorian style architechture. They have antiques and breweriana displayed along w/ some interesting pumping devices. The bottling works is very cool with hundreds of bottles stacked on top of each other going up the wall that look like they are a couple hundred years old. The bar has a snakeskin accent and there are gas lights hanging along with mugs on chains coming from the ceiling. It feels like you wandered into someone's personal lagering cave.

I stepped up and took a seat at the bar and was informed I was the 1st customer of the day at 3pm. They said most people assume they are closed during construction. I enjoyed a Portabella pita sandwich and a Kolsch while checking out the upcoming brews on the brewery board. IPA, Roggenbier and Octoberfest Steam were just a few of the on deck beers. I got a chance to talk to one of the brewers who was a real great bloke, just down to earth talking about music from the 70's and 80's w/ me. I got a chance to sample all three house beers and the quality was very good. The selection is small, but for a 3.5 barrel brewery that is par for the course I suppose. They had Fat Dog, Dead Guy and Magner's cider along w/ Yuengling on tap w/ about a dozen local craft brew bottles available.

I really like the atmosphere and quality service that you get at Bube's. I was offered info on the beer they brew w/out even asking and it shows they care about the product they produce. The food is always fresh. I had a beer cheese w/ pretzels appetizer that was huge and great tasting. It had nice beer flavor in the cheese, like it was made with a hoppy ale. I recommend checking out the biergarten and Alois, I can't wait to attend one of their Medeival feasts that they host regularly. The only thing negative I would say is the Bottling works gets smokey since it is a tight bar w/ out much ventilation. I highly recommend Bube's and I can't to go back and get a taste of the IPA and Tripel when they brew it again.
Sep 20, 2007
Photo of tweeder263
Reviewed by tweeder263 from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4
Visited and had dinner down in the catacombs. Was quite the experience. The hostess took us around and gave us a little tour while she was taking us to our seats.Most of the old breweries equiptment was still present in exceptional condition. The catacombs are dimly lit by candles giving it a cool eerie appeal. They had a roman feast in the other portion of the catacombs whick looked like a lot of fun.Had 3 of their beers,,an old ale which was good,,a black lager which was good,,and a kolsch which was ok. They also have quite a bit of other microbrews {possibly 15 or more}. All in all a great place to have visited,,i will DEFINITELY be back when i am in the area. There is also an attached hotel which will apparently be reopened soon.
Sep 18, 2007
Photo of BeerIsland
Reviewed by BeerIsland from Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev -0.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3
I laste reviewed Bube's about 4 years and I don't know how many brewers ago. As this review now replaces that one, let's just say the beer was bad. I was in about a week ago after hearing that the new regime was making some real strides. It just happened to be their first Firkin Friday as well so that was a nice coincidence. Well, the beers are MUCH better. All four were pretty well made, very drinkable, and I liked the HempAle in particular. I had a chance to talk to Rick, one of the 3 brewers, as he struggled with a big wooden cask of HempAle for the firkin rollout. He indicated that much of Bube's spotty history may have been due to fermenter temperature control which seemed to be infested with gremlins. They are brewing once a week (all have outside jobs) and are looking forward to increasing the variety and quality. He is extremely enthusiastic about the future and I will probably be making my way there more frequently to enjoy the much improved product.
May 10, 2007
Photo of pjschurr
Reviewed by pjschurr from New Jersey

2.75/5  rDev -24.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 2
My husband and I checked out Bube's on a rainy Saturday afternoon around 2:30 or so.

The best part about this place is definitely the atmosphere. They have a small museum upstairs with very old brewing equipment. There are various old brewing vats downstairs as well. I would love to check out the catacombs sometime. They seem to host events there. There was also a large open courtyard where they have a biergarten when the weather permits.

They only had three of their own beers on tap. An IPA, a Scottish Ale & a Hemp beer. They did have some other beers on tap as well but nothing out of the ordinary. My husband and I tried their Scottish ale. Honestly, I have had much better Scottish Ales. Just really didn't stand out in any way (and wasn't particularly Scottish).

We sat at the bar which was open other than another couple. The bartender stood talking with other staff for 5-10 minutes. Though when she did finally acknowledge us, she was very friendly and personable. Just seems that on a slow day, it shouldn't have taken so long to get her attention.

It was worth it to see the building & museum. But I wouldn't go back for the beer.
Apr 30, 2007
Photo of guinnessfan
Reviewed by guinnessfan from Pennsylvania

4.06/5  rDev +10.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
We went here Friday night to see my friend's band, Homeward Down, play. Very cool looking place, reminds me of my old basement, only much cooler. It looked like they had like 5 or 6 of their own beers, at least that's what was printed on the chalkboard. It was too busy to talk to the bartender. I tried their Kolsch, which wasn't that bad. The seating is decent for a small bar, but quickly fills up on a popular night. We sat upstair in the "VIP" section. The only problem was the stair to get up to that area. The are really steep and narrow, not drunk friendly. The barmaid knew my friends so service was a non-issue, although she was pretty friendly to the other patrons as well. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay that long, so I never got to see the bottled selection. I would love to bring my wife here sometime to actually get the full experience. Seems like a really cool place to relax on an off night. Also, I'd love to get a better feel for the other beers, of course. This is a place I will definately visit in the future.
Jan 15, 2007
Photo of Phatz
Reviewed by Phatz from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3 | food: 4
What a truly unique place from the moment you walk up to the massive wooden doors. Certainly the empire that is Bubes Brewery makes it’s money on being a Historic Landmark, An extremely formal restaurant (the Catacombs), and the host of impressive themed middle ages feasts, a beer bar and lastly a brewery. When I was there they had just hired a brewer again. And had one of their own beers on for the first time in 3 months. I understand that over the summer they did have 5 or six beers on but brewing is clearly not the focus of this massive business. For the atmosphere you can choose where you want to go and you will have a different experience. There is very formal and pricey dining down in the caves (the Catacombs) below the 100+ year old brewery. Around the corner [same building] there is a Martini Bar (as I understand though I haven’t visited that yet). In the door and up the stairs to the left is a museum / gift shop / homebrew supply store. Basically they have a few antique trinkets and if they are not out of them, you could purchase an old spigot or airlock and even an old bottle capper. As well as looking at some antique brewing supplies. Off to the right, from the massive doorway is the Bar. With Trivia on Tuesdays a decent dining area, and more up the steps, and a 10 seat bar; it is a respectable beer bar. The chalkboard and the taps indicated that though they have space for 8 only one brew that was Bubes Brewery beer was available. Word from the bar tender is they hired a new brewer who is using two assistants to and a Drooling Elf Winter will be available soon and brewery production should be increasing in the near future. Their own beers aside they did have DFH 60, SA Winter Lager, Magic Hat #9, Lanc Brewing Winter Warmer, and the like are the beers on tap options. In other words it is making an effort a little bit. Sierra Nevada and Sam Adams along with Magic hat is a notable step up from most places. The Bottled beer is also respectable on a small scale but from such a huge place I would love to see them get a little more carried away with the craft beer bottles if they aren’t actively brewing much beer. The food and pricing at the bar were a solid ‘good ranking’ in my opinion but I hear that down in the catacombs the prices are much higher. I had a pulled pork sandwich for $7 at the bar. Tasty! The quality of the one beer they had on tap a House Red Ale was sufficient in the Smithwicks league but not quit the Ohara’s Irish Red league.
Overall: The place is certainly worth experiencing; but don’t just go and see the bar. Ask to look around and certainly wonder. It is a cool place to explore.

Hope this is helpful.
Cheers!
Nov 26, 2006
Bube's Brewery in Mount Joy, PA
Brewery rating: 3.58 out of 5 with 148 ratings