Backcountry Pizza & Tap House

Mebuzzard

Colorado

4.13/5  rDev -5.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

I have driven by this place many times and skipped it. Stupid me.

A nice pizza joint with pretty good and friendly service. Oh, and they serve beer. I'm guessing 30 tap handles, with a good selection of styles. I had the Deviant Dale's on hand-pull. Not a bad start.

The place is big, but the set up makes it smaller. The pinball room is a nice tough. I haven't seen pinball machines for centuries. cool.

Pizza is nice. Not the best, but surely not the worst. Good pricing and to pair with the beer, this is a nice stop in Boulder.

02-21-2012 05:48:13 | More by Mebuzzard

mttdls

New York

4.18/5  rDev -3.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5 | $$

As stated in other reviews, this place's beer selection sums up its quality. If you are going to Boulder, then this must be a stopping point. I'm used to bars in the South East US having 100+ beers on tap, but I was more than surprised when the server mentioned all the Russian River beers that were recently tapped. After drinking Pliny, I was also able to try some delicious local Stouts and Porters on Tap.

In addition to the list of great beers (rotating and standard list), the food was quality and not expensive.

03-08-2013 21:23:21 | More by mttdls

harperman69

Tennessee

4.85/5  rDev +11.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5 | $$

Unbelievable. Selection is phenomenal, with lots of rare stuff available as well as rare local selections. Management staff and servers went out of their way to please us. Garrett, made accommodations and promises that were well kept the second time. I counted 34 beers that I haven't tried that we're high on my list to try. My servers that I had on the two occasions knew there stuff frontwards and backwards. Had Pliny, Cantillon and many others that I cannot find on the in he southeast, this store had the best selection I think even bettering the Brick Store in Atlanta and The Nook in Huntsville. Food was above average and reasonable, the pizza is better than most places serve in Colorado. Staff would take the time to talk to you and make some great selections. I cannot more highly recommend a place than this one.

09-01-2012 03:37:13 | More by harperman69

blindpiggie

Colorado

4.15/5  rDev -4.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | food: 3.5 | $$$

Went here for the first time yesterday before Avery's barrel-aged release event.

The interior of the place is much nicer than the exterior would indicate and the row of tap handles is imposing. Even more imposing is the bottle list, which includes some pretty desirable and rare beers at not much more than 20% markup from the store.

Ordered a pizza (natch), which arrived looking like an abstract painting with each topping heavily distributed on various sections of the pie. It tasted pretty good at least.

My first beer selection was Crooked Stave's Surrette which lived up to the sourness I was looking for and the waitress had promised. The second beer I ordered, Monk's Cafe Flemish Sour, was just terrible, but based on what I've heard since, I don't think the restaurant can be blamed for that.

Nice place, probably the best beer bar in Boulder.

06-25-2012 19:19:07 | More by blindpiggie

StoneTSR

Colorado

4.3/5  rDev -1.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | food: 3.5 | $

Falling Rock Taproom may have more beers available, but it is worth the trip up to Boulder to come to Backcountry.

The 20 static taps they have includes Blind Pig from Russian River, which is enough to make it thee go to spot in Boulder, but the 30 rotating taps they have make this the most inspired tap list in the state of Colorado.

I have had Dogfish 120 Minute, Palo Santo, Lagunitas Sucks, Sumpin Sumpin, Sumpin Wild, Stone Ruination DDH, Pliny the Elder and a whole bunch of one offs from Jolly Pumpkin, Avery, Oskar Blues and a host of others.

The staff is generally very informative and usually very friendly. There have been moments where they have lacked on either category, but those are few and far between. These people love beer and want you to love beer just as much as they do.

They also have some pretty decent food. The apps are solid and then being able to order a slice of pizza with any ingredients you want on it is outstanding.

Long story short, Backcountry is hands down the best beer bar in Boulder (maybe outside of Avery's taproom). You can get almost anything you want and you'll get it at an affordable price. Even the expensive beer is poured in a smaller portion so it can be affordable.

01-10-2012 09:09:18 | More by StoneTSR

claytong

Vermont

4.43/5  rDev +1.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

atmosphere - pizza place with sports bar look with some beer memorabilia, nothing great, nothing bad

quality - they have pretty solid offerings all the time. theres always one thing at least i havent tried and this being something pretty damn good.

service - one time a waiter didnt seem too happy to serve me some tasters beforehand, but otherwise its not bad.

selection - great selection. good bottle list. one of the best in town if not the best.

food - i hear great pizza from them. ive had the buffalo burger and appetizers and thats it, the buffalo burger was a little on the wet side, otherwise good.

overall - i just come here to have a few tasters and a pint and some good quality pub food.

10-30-2011 17:37:16 | More by claytong

LittleDon

Texas

4.22/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

Best selection of taps in Boulder in a sports bar-esque setting. Decent service, decent food.

Most of the better beer establishments in Boulder are either brewery tap rooms or brew pubs. This is not a complaint, merely the state of matters. It is unusually that in a town with such a fine beer pedigree, it's hard to find a place that has a wide selection of local and non-local offerings. Consider Backcountry Pizza & Tap House one of the best that Boulder has to offer. While the sports bar atmosphere is not typically my thing, I found myself there this past Saturday to watch the game. The place was neither crowded nor noisy. Add to that the decent food, the sunny interior, and 80's and 90's pinball and video games, you get a sports bar that isn't quite a sports bar. Service was attentive, staffed with knowledgeable servers.

While all of this is OK, but wouldn't bring me back, the selection would. Forty plus taps, two hand pumps, nitro, and great selection of local and non-local beers from the expected (Avery, Oskar Blues, Great Divide) to the unexpected (Dry Dock, Jolly Pumpkin, Lost Abbey, Russian River). This is the place to go if you're not in the mood for Avery or Mountain Sun. Worth a return visit.

09-19-2011 17:14:33 | More by LittleDon

yemenmocha

Arizona

4.58/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4 | $$$

Newish place with a fantastic draft list, bottles too - plus a "cellar" room with a bunch of stuff getting some age. Beer-wise this place is right on the mark for BA's.

Regional crafts are represented well but what I liked even more was the range of imported craft, especially Germany and Belgium. I'm sick of all the hoppy stuff... give me some doppelbocks, kolsch, and a few tripels or quads.

Pizza was above average, and I had the thick crust. Decent cheese, sauce, and crust-ends were nice and chewy.

Homemade chips were tasty, but I think they need an alternative to that tartar-like dipping sauce.

Mellow college place sort of vibe, somewhat dark in the main dining area, and an impressive row of taps in the bar area. Not sure if this place gets crazy on weekend nights, but it was mellow with great service on a Sunday afternoon for me.

07-26-2011 00:48:49 | More by yemenmocha