Taproom (Spring House Brewing Company)

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

3.5/5  rDev -12.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3 | $$

Had some unexpected free time this week, as the office was closed due to a power outage.

Located in downtown Lancaster, the tasting room is a modest size afair, with a decent size, wrap around bar area and then a number of table and chairs in the front area. There is some interesting art work on the walls, and I otherwise enjoyed the warm color scheme in the taproom.

As for the beer selection, there were 10 beers on tap this day, which included a guest beer from Troegs (the sunshine pils). Everything else was from Spring House brewing, and I thought the quality was interesting. A belgiain style wit was pasable, while the cosmic monster, fruit flavored quad was almost undrinkable. On the other hand, the peanut butter imperial stout (the Big Gruesome) was outstanding, and would have me stopping by on a regular basis if I lived nearby. There was also a pale ale and DIPA on tap today, but as I'd had the latter at a DIPA tasting some years ago (and hadn't cared for it), I limited myself to just the three beers.

In terms of food, I got the lunch portion ceaser salad. It was decent enough, though I'm not sure the salad dressing had ever been near any lemon, garlic or anchovies. I'll order something different if I'm ever by here again.

Prices were reasonable I thought, and I liked the fact you could order beer by the pint or half pint. Service was OK, though my server seemed a bit preoccupied at times, and so occasionally there was a bit of a wait.

If I was a huge fan of Spring House beers and I lived nearby, I'd certainly come here from time to time. However, other than the stout I wasn't really impressed with anything I tried, so I'm not sure how often I'll be back. Really did like the PB stout though...

07-06-2012 15:40:04 | More by johnmichaelsen

jerdude

Pennsylvania

3.14/5  rDev -21.1%
vibe: 1 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | $$$

Atmosphere - This place is cramped and has the most ridiculous echo. It can be loud with only a few people in there.

Quality - The beer here runs anywhere from awful to mediocre.

Service - I've never had really great or really poor service here.

Selection - They always have a great variety of beers. Almost always something new from them and typically a few from other local craft breweries.

Value - The beer here is really expensive for the quality you get.

03-14-2013 12:02:00 | More by jerdude

howsmydrinking

New Jersey

2.93/5  rDev -26.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2.75 | service: 2.75 | selection: 3.25 | food: 2 | $$

How can this place be rated above Quipps and The Fridge? The beer is average at best and the food is below average. I was here twice shortly after opening and once more recently.

Does anybody really think that guava or peanut butter flavors should be found in beer??

Their flagship pale ale is below average and everything else is pretty much the same. This place is for hipsters who don't know what craft beer is.

The only redeeming feature of this place is that they sometimes put on beers that are not theirs (Victory, Troegs).

Building is noisy and gets incredibly crowded on weekends.

Avoid.

02-17-2013 18:44:03 | More by howsmydrinking

teman11111

New Jersey

4.86/5  rDev +22.1%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$

Wow! This place is fantastic! Great little bar with pub fare in nice downtown section of Lancaster. They had 11 beers on tap, and there is not anything short of good in the bunch. I got a sampler of all 11 - probably not something to try without a designated driver. Their double IPA was fantastic, and I took a growler home. Other standouts were the stouts; mint chocolate chip, peanut butter chocolate, and eggnog. All had very strong complex flavor, with hint of chocolate. I didn't really taste the peanut butter, but the mint was a nice feel.

12-29-2012 00:35:11 | More by teman11111

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.78/5  rDev -5%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

A decent place, fairly small, with a medium-sized bar and a few tables. Windows give you a view of the town, and the walls are otherwise decorated with the brewery's artwork. On tap is a good selection of 10 Spring House brews and a local guest brew (e.g. Victory Headwaters). Service was fine but a bit uncoordinated: for example, our bartender gave us menus to look at, and before we could even glance at them, another bartender took them away and put them back behind the bar. Ok then. I'm being a little bit generous with the food rating, it's just on the border of 3/3.5. The menu selection was fine, but the food wasn't great. I got some sort of grilled meat & cheese sandwich that was ok but not great, my wife got wings that were served sans bleu cheese, and we split the crab mac&cheese bites, which sounded better than they tasted. Prices were pretty decent for food and beer.

I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to visit again, but if I find myself in Lancaster for whatever reason, it's good to know this place is here.

11-20-2012 02:19:24 | More by Rifugium

Slatetank

Pennsylvania

3.3/5  rDev -17.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | $$

I have been to spring house taproom 3 times now the first was an evening dropping off homebrew to enter the competition they sponsored to have them brew the winning beer and had a pint with stakem. The second the day of the results being read for the competition I was here about 10 minutes -it was so loud and crowded I couldn't make it to the bar for a pint and left after meeting a friend and went to Iron Hill. The last occasion was not quite as hectic I came with my brother and cousin and we all had a pint while waiting for Pour on Prince to open on a Sunday afternoon.

The atmoshpher is a standard bar with some of Spring House's label art displayed on the wall, the place is loud even when it isn't crowded because it is all hard surfaces and there is nothing to soften the reverb. I think the beer is better than average but overall it is not the best choice of Lancaster city beer bars for selection or service. I would come here if meeting someone on a slow night but in general I am not really going to make this my first choice of places to go when in Lancaster. I never tried the food, but I have heard good things. I guess it depends on how much you love Spring House beer, to me they are kind of hit or miss, so take that with a grain of salt.

08-10-2012 13:13:55 | More by Slatetank

mendvicdog

Maryland

4.35/5  rDev +9.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5 | $$

Tried this place out yesterday. I tried pints of the PB Choc Stout, DIPA, and Pecan Sandie Porter. All were pretty good but not outstanding. The sampler of all 9 beers on tap for around $5 seems like a great deal. They had a good selection of their different beers. Although I have not been to Lancaster Brewing in a while, I feel that this place has slightly better quality brews. Taproom beers are definitely more interesting to me than what is offered at Lancaster.

The service was excellent. I sat at the bar and the two guys working the whole place were pretty quick. I think service is not as good if you sit at one of the tables since there is no table service.

The pepperoni pizza I ordered was great. They only offer pub food at reasonable prices; right up my alley. They were playing 90s rock at just the right volume where you could still talk to people around you but hear the music as well.

I would go back here if I am in the area, but I would not seek it out.

01-15-2012 15:41:29 | More by mendvicdog

thain709

Pennsylvania

4.15/5  rDev +4.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

I've been here a few times now, so I feel I can give a proper review.

The Taproom is located on the busy King Street in Lancaster. It has nice big windows that allow you to people watch while you enjoy your beer. I like sitting at the bar so I can watch out the windows. The ceilings are very high inside which makes for a loud atmosphere, but there are plenty of seats at the bar as well as tables.

The beer has always been super fresh. The always have Seven Gates on tap as well as seven others. I've seen Gates 3 and 4, Mango IPA, Beyond the Gates DIPA, Oyster Stout, Dr. Wit, Littler Gruesome, Planet Bean, and the oh-so delicious Big Gruesome. Pint prices are very reasonable as well as a growler fill. They offer a sample try that will not disappoint.

On one of my visits I was able to sample the food. They have a nice menu with many offerings from quesadillas, nachos, wings, dips, burgers, sandwiches, and hot dogs. I enjoyed a fresh cheesesteak that was very filling.

I have never had a problem with the service. As soon as my glass was empty, there was always someone asking what I would like next. I guess it helps that I've always been here in the afternoon when it's not very busy.

This is a place that I will keep visiting until they run out of beer. They will always have something that you will like whether it be food or beer.

08-30-2011 16:49:17 | More by thain709

ShanePB

Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev +5.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

Spring House Taproom located in downtown Lancaster on King St in a very urban looking section of town. It's quite nice and there are a lot of shops around the immediate area. The Taproom in fact, is located right in the entrance of a shopping "centre" for a loose term.

The atmosphere is awesome, very modern looking, somewhat trendy and clean. The big open windows at the front are a nice touch, along with high top tables and a wrap-around horseshoe bar. Visiting with my girlfriend, we sat at the bar and were immediately greeted by the bartender. The draft list is all Spring House beers so it's relatively smaller in comparison however all their beer on tap were excellent that I had. The Little Gruesome (aka PB&J), Big Gruesome (PB chocolate stout) and Mango IPA were wonderful. Servings are a nonic, 20 ounce pint, 12 ounce snifters or half-pour 10 ounce glasses.

The food we had was also very good, we sampled the macaroni and cheese, pulled pork quesadilla and the buffalo wings. All were wonderful and very adequate portion sizes even as appetizers to split with two people. Also, the prices were very reasonable for the food as well as the beer.

From the beer, service, growler fills (they fill any growler) and quality of the beer, everything seems to be in motion to have a stand out establishment. It's definitely a fun place to have a beer and has become a new favorite in Lancaster.

08-30-2011 14:40:25 | More by ShanePB

JunkYardJake

Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev +5.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

It's hard to believe that it took me so long to stop in here since I live less than 5 minutes away. The place is small and has a good city beer bar feel to it. The place is one room and very noisy which keeps things lively. This is clearly intended to be a loud beer bar, not a fine dining atmosphere. That being said, my party did get food and everything was delicious. The beer was great for the most part. The Big Gruesome (PB&Choco Stout)was awesome and Beyond the Gates tasted way better than I remember it being. The Little Gruesome (PB&J Ale) was a swing and a miss for me and the usually tasty Diabolical Dr. Wit was undrinkable. In their defense, I was warned that it was almost empty and was a little "funky". I ordered a 1/2 pint and it was a drain pour. They should have taken it off rather than sell it with a disclaimer but I think this was probably an isolated case. Other than that, I was very impressed and will be back often.

08-01-2011 21:27:05 | More by JunkYardJake