101 Beer Kitchen

stercomm

Ohio

4.7/5  rDev +7.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5 | $$$

This place has become our go to restaurant when we feel like getting out, great food, great service, great craft beer selection, great ambiance. Place gets really busy right around normal dinner time so we usually get there by 5:30 PM to grab a table (oops gave away my secret). Let's start with the draft beer, selection tends to lean a slight bit towards Belgium style brews, what is nice is the rotating list of beers on tap, I equate this to opening presents on Christmas day, good news is the selection is broad enough that you will always find something you like. Food is unbelievable, I've had the green chili which was excellent, the forest ( I believe) pizza, it was excellent, our grown kids love the tater tot appetizer. Wait staff that we have had is always knowledgeable about the beers. Sound level is not bad so you can have a good conversation while dining.

Only slight downside is around their growler prices. Great that they offer growlers of their draft, the price is very high compared to Whole Foods, The Daily Growler and Andersens. I've seen this to be consistent with restaurant/bars in the area; they tend to just take what they charge for a pint and multiple it by 4.

01-02-2013 13:22:03 | More by stercomm

LabBrewer

Wisconsin

4.48/5  rDev +2.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4 | $$

Took a visit based on a recommendation. Had a good selection of domestic and a few international beers. The domestic beers included some rare offerings from breweries.

The food was good as well. We had the pumpkin perogies which were very good, as were the muscles and frites.

The atmosphere was great. Had the feel of a neighborhood place, it was a nice mix of couples, families, older people and younger people. The place is still pretty new and still has some room to grow, but it is definitely worth checking out.

11-05-2012 01:27:28 | More by LabBrewer

xdefeatsy

Ohio

3.3/5  rDev -24.5%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$$

Before I go into my review, I would like to note that I am basing my rating as an average of two different visits: Bar Area @ Lunch and Restaurant Area @ Dinner.

This is where the Hoggy's used to be in the Kroger Marketplace Center. It's kind of tucked away and you can't really see it from either Sawmill Road or Hard Road (a big part of why Hoggy's and other restaurants here go out of business). Luckily this is right across the street from me so I knew exactly where to go. The entrance looks a little strange on your first visit and you're not sure if you're entering a restaurant or an office. Once you walk a few more steps inside, it all opens up into a rustic-looking restaurant. The bar area is an island back against the kitchen in the center of the restaurant. If you like rock (mostly indie and alt), you'll especially appreciate the music playing. Average age seems to be 30-something but there are some who are younger and some who are older. The restaurant area seemed to have enough seating (even near the end of Happy Hour into dinner) however the bar seating is rather limited and isn't exactly comfortable for those of us who are shorter and don't have long legs.

The quality of the food and service varied greatly between lunch at the bar and dinner in the restaurant area. My bartender at lunch was very outgoing (but not to the point of being annoying at all), enthusiastic about the beer and the food they offered, and quite helpful. The server I had for dinner in the restaurant area was... for lack of better words... clueless. It became apparent that not only our server but many of the other servers at dinner lacked almost any formal training in food service. They were polite and friendly but they didn't know how to properly carry trays, clear tables, when to re-fill, what drafts were no longer available, and walked around aimlessly when there was clearly work they could have been doing to earn better tips.

The first time, when I sat at the bar, they had 20 taps going and roughly 50 different bottles to choose from. The second time, they must have been between keg shipments because their draft menu was not accurate. I had to ask my waitress 4 times to finally get a draft they actually had. That being said, they definitely have the best selection of craft beer within a 5 mile radius of I-270 & Sawmill Road; definitely something for everyone -- unless you drink BMC, then you're S.O.L! Drafts are half-price at happy hour... only if you sit at the bar. Here's where the small size of the bar factors in, if there aren't seats open then you're paying at least $6 for any beer on tap.

The food seemed to vary. Between visits I tried Mac & Cheese w/ Andouille (dry, not creamy or cheesy enough), Tater Tots (the best I've ever had), Soft Pretzels w/ Beer Cheese Dip (out of this world good), 101 Burger (good but way too greasy), Mussels (delicious), Salmon Cobb Salad (drowned in dressing, soggy), and Pumpkin Bread Pudding (not too sweet, not too filling -- just right). The food is a little pricey but considering portion size and the majority of the food being consistently awesome, you generally get what you pay for.

Overall, I think I'll go here for early happy hour/late lunch from now on. The food is on point for the most part and there's something for everyone. They definitely have the best craft beer selection in Dublin but it's on the pricey side if it's not at the bar during happy hour. The service at the bar is legit, 4.5/5 at least. The service in the restaurant area during dinner was laughable and depressing -- 1/5 for sure. The wait staff clearly had little-to-no training in food service at all, not even basics like when to clear plates or how to hold trays. I want this place to succeed because it's new to my community and I finally have a bar with craft beer I can walk to comfortably. If they can fix some very simple problems, I'd be a regular for sure.

10-18-2012 00:25:23 | More by xdefeatsy

kconradx5

Ohio

5/5  rDev +14.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5 | $$

I have to say that IMO they have the best happy hour on the northwest side of Columbus! What makes it great is that all their draft beers are half price and they have a great selection of craft beer! They have 20 draft beers and lots of bottles. Best chicken sandwich I've ever had. I also sampled the schnitzel sandwich which was totally awesome. I highly recommended this place. They also have a very good kids menu. They are located at the corner of Sawmill Road and Hard Road in the Kroger Shopping Center.

10-07-2012 18:27:10 | More by kconradx5