Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe

Vansmack

California

2.48/5  rDev -33.7%
vibe: 2 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 2 | food: 1.5 | $$$

Charging for a sampler of beer? I still don't understand this. Why!!!! The beer was crappy and the food was just ok. I have to say, I was not impressed at all. Don't go here. I would have to say that the only reason to go here is to look at the hot bod on the bartender... I believe it's marlene or something. Wow. But the rest of the place can just shut down.

The fish and chips made me hit the bathroom a few times on my way to redding. The atmosphere was full of trashy people who couldn't even afford a damn beer.

My recommendation... stay away from this place!

05-06-2008 16:46:11 | More by Vansmack

tjensen3618

California

2.83/5  rDev -24.3%
vibe: 1.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3 | $$

After a long but beautiful drive down from OR we planned on staying in Eureka for a night to get some rest and check out the area.
The brewery is in the downtown area, the vibe of the whole are seemed strange, the buildings had great architecture and had so much potential to be a great little town but we seemed to be outnumbered by homeless folks by about 5:1. We were there on a Thurs. and I am going to be generous and assume this isn't the case over the weekends.

The inside of Lost Coast was dated, the whole place felt a bit grimy. I was happy with their beer selection as there were several more interesting styles available than what we can get in bottles down in So. CA. I got the Barleywine which was very nice, they should start bottling that one!

There menu was standard brewpub fare, burgers, sandwiches, wings, maybe a pizza or pasta dish, etc. The food was decent nothing great nothing bad.

Overall it was an ok experience, however next time I'm in the area to enjoy the beauty up there, I'll probably steer clear of Eureka as a whole.

12-06-2011 20:11:06 | More by tjensen3618

DrunkenMonk

California

2.95/5  rDev -21.1%
vibe: 2.5 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | food: 3 | $$

While I love Tangerine Wheat, Lost Coast is a lot like Eureka. I WANT to love the place, but the atmospere drives me away. It has so much potential, yet is stuck in its mediocrity.

The fish tacos weren't that good. The beer batter was awful; acting as grease mops. I had the sample paddle of 10 beers. I really liked the apricot wheat. It was lighter flavored than Pyramid's and I liked it. The paddle was confusing though as the beers were placed haphazardly rather than light to dark or sweet to bitter. So the pallet was given a work out.

The place was cramped and dark with various junk on the walls. They really need a decorator to give this place some life, as the atmosphere is grungy. It looks like someone had ten bucks to decorate with and went to a yard sale to find things.

Like Eureka I want to love this place. But the surrounding homeless and transient population tarnish it. Sadly, many of the locals contribute to the grunge element as well. Yet, the surrounding communities don't appear to have this problem.

Recommendations:
Redecorate, hiring a professional.
Hire a chef, not a cook- and make better food.
Get a bigger place, or remodel to create a gift shop area for the shirts and drinkware, etc.

07-22-2012 07:16:30 | More by DrunkenMonk

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

3.15/5  rDev -15.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

The production facility was on W 3rd St, but the pub was on W 4th St between "G" and "H" Sts. It was a green and yellow building with a wide front which opened onto the m.d.s., followed by a sea of standard restaurant tables and chairs. The copper-topped, "J"-shaped bar was along the right wall and continued aft to a separate set of seating all of the way aft. Also in the back was a pool table and a few electronic games to the right and a dark green futon to the left, just before the back entrance from the rear (metered) parking lot. The interior artwork was Cubist/Picasso-like and the overhead was teeming with papier mache monsters, and oversized Black Widow spider, inflatable palm trees, and other eclectic stuff. The kitchen was off to the left with a glass case of logo items just beyond. This included the Beer Pest gamut of growlers, patches, and posters. There was additional seating on the second floor, but we were satisfied on the first floor. The service tended towards obliviousness and in my frustration, I asked for some of the "Free Wi-Fi" mentioned on the side of the building to go.

I really got a kick out of a great reproduction of an old sign for "Simonds' Milk Stout", which featured a dapper Reading Brewery barrel with his arm around a shyly smiling pint of milk as they sat on a bench under a grinning moon. So that's how it's made!

Beers: 8-Ball Stout; Alleycat Amber; Pale Ale; Harvest Wheat; Great White; Indica IPA; Double IPA; Downtown Brown; Raspberry Brown; Apricot Wheat; Tangerine Wheat; and Imperial Pils. They were so-so, at best. The advertising was better than the beer being advertised. Sad but (IMHO) true.

08-25-2008 22:36:10 | More by woodychandler

monkeybeer

California

3.18/5  rDev -15%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3 | $

I try to go to Lost Coast when ever I am in town. It is a cramp brewpub with lots of character. Look at the chalkboard for the daily selections of beers. The only foods I have had have been appetizers (wings, artichokes and nachos). All of these have been very good and well priced. I can not speak for the rest of the food because I have not had it. Eureka is a small town and Lost Coast has that small town feel. I go there with family that lives in town and they all seem to know my brother-in-law (don’t now if that is a good thing or not). It has been a while since I have been there, bit I try to get the beers that I can not get locally in bottles. I have not been disappointed with anything I have had.

10-26-2007 16:11:06 | More by monkeybeer

GreenWBush

Oregon

3.38/5  rDev -9.6%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5

I was perusing through notes from my left-coast trip of the past summer and realized I forgot to mention anything about Lost Coast. I must not be alone in that sentiment, with only a few other reviewers so far.

Lost Coast is very easy to find once you've made it to the downtown area of Eureka. Maybe it was just the particular night I was there, but it really seemed to be one of the few things around that was hoppin'.

Anyway, the bar and restaurant are housed within a beautifully restored old building with a rather hippyish vibe inside, only to be expected here in the "heart of humboldt country".

As far as the brew goes, Indica is really really good fresh off the tap. Quite delicious and blew away the relatively fresh bottled version I would experience later on in the night. The white ale was decent as well as their brown, which i'm not really too big of a fan of. The amber and pale were also middle of the road. But I was there for the Indica. mmm...

The service was relatively snappy while being a bit robotic. I never got the homey feel from any waitstaff like I did at most other brewpubs in the PacNW/left coast area. Very 'get you in and out' at the tables. I also really resented the fact that I had to hear the boss-waitress ordering around her waitstaff like they were incapable children.

The food was pretty good but nothing extraordinary. I had a burger that was tasty but expensive in terms of quantity. The wifey had a nice spinach salad with Feta.

Altogether a very pleasant experience with a damn fine IPA in hand the whole while. The food was decent, as was the service, and some of the beers left a little to be desired. Stick with the Indica, get to know some locals and you'll have a fine time.

11-09-2004 00:11:23 | More by GreenWBush

williamjbauer

West Virginia

3.43/5  rDev -8.3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3 | $$

The location is good coming south on 101 through the downtown. We always parked on the side street and it seems like parking shouldn't be an issue in the back.

They had cute Halloween decor and while I don't like their beer's graphic design, the bar has a nice assortment of brewing decor.

Service was great, not too busy.

10 regular beers for sampler and 3 seasonal, not bad!

Food is a little above average.

Decent prices.

Overall, I don't really like their beer that much to frequent often, but if you are in town, it is not a bad place to check out.

02-02-2012 21:35:21 | More by williamjbauer

dbalsock

Vermont

3.5/5  rDev -6.4%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3 | $$

Atmosphere: Large front room with lots of lighting and spider that comes down to scare you in front of the door, that they've had up since october. Many tables with appropriate spacing, but nothing in here makes me feel comfortable. It's all kinda cold and impersonal.

Quality: The beers are all about average quality, with a couple being good and a couple being bad. Not much to say about that. The quality of the people that come here is about the same as the beer.

Service: The service has always been good, even when very crowded. The wait-staff aren't super knowledgeable about beer, but they will ask the bartender who has been able to answer all of my questions.

Selection: They have their standard offerings on tap, plus a couple bonus fruit-beers and a couple bonus seasonal offerings. The seasonals are always interesting and I tend to stick with them or the pale-ale.

Food: Not anything to write home about, except for maybe the seasoned fries. Everything else is standard pub-grub and not the best in the area.

05-05-2008 22:35:00 | More by dbalsock

Crotor

California

3.56/5  rDev -4.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5

This clean, classy brewbup is in a convenient location along southbound 101 in downtown Eureka. Inside, it's as comfortable and unintimidating as your neighborhood bar, but you'll also notice businesspeople in their suits out to lunch...

The overall beer quality is above average (all worthwhile), but nothing is that striking.

The service was quick and amicable, as to be expected. No indication one way or the other as to beer knowledge...

The selection was somewhat above average, with all the brewery's flagship brews (5 or so) as well as two seasonals.

Overall, an enjoyable place, definately worth visiting if you're in the area.

03-30-2005 01:47:53 | More by Crotor

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

3.65/5  rDev -2.4%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

Stopped in on my way back to Portland. This was the first time I'd been by Lost Coast in a number of years.

LC Brewery and Cafe is a good size restaurant/pub, fronting right on hiway 101/4th street in downtown Eureka. The place has a very relaxed, informal vibe, with a good size bar area in the center/right part of the pub, and with some rickety tables and chairs spread around haphazzardly both around the bar area downstairs, as well as upstairs in the auxillary dining area. There is also a pool table and some pin ball machines in the back area. The place was bustling at 5:30 on a Sunday afternoon, and I was impressed by the number of families I saw in attendance (which speaks, I think, to the value aspect of the food menu - good size portions of decent food at reasonable prices). As for the beer, all 13 beers on the draft list were brewed in house, consisting of the core beers, three fruit beers, and three seasonals (one of which, the cherry stout, was on cask). I sampled the great white wit and the imperial stout (the latter seemed very similar to the regular 8 ball, but was a bit richer, higher in alcohol, and had a bit more of a punch), both of which were very enjoyable and well made. Service was fine for what it was. Our young waitress was quick, efficient and friendly. I tend to doubt she knew much about any of the beers available, but I didn't really require any assistance or advice anyway. As for the food, it was OK. The wings I ordered were nothing special but still pasable, but my friend's portabello and spinach quesadilla was actually quite good. Prices here were quite reasonable I thought. Pints for the core beers were $3.50, and my two beers and our food came to under $24 total after tax.

All in all, I was happy with our visit to Lost Coast. Neither the food nor the beer is going to leave anyone going "wow" after a meal here, but nevertheless, this is a good place to stop for a relaxing respite after a day of driving on 101. Hopefully it won't be another decade or more before I stop by here again.

12-27-2010 04:57:02 | More by johnmichaelsen