Herkimer Pub & Brewery

slyke

Minnesota

4/5  rDev +9.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4 | $$

Stopped in to the Herkimer for an early supper. We found the pub to be cozy with the bar in the center, booths on one side, tables and a view of the brewing equipment on the other.

For beer I had the Alt and found it to be very tasty; the SO had the Gose which she enjoyed quite a bit.

Service was friendly and quick. The waitress really knew her stuff, quick with commercial equivalents when the SO asked about different beers.

Six beers were available, this was the one area we may have wished for more. We also were a bit disappointed at the lack of a sampler.

Food was also good. We had the Puerco and Crab Cake sandwiches, each with sweet potato fries.

Prices were reasonable for the Twin Cities metro area. After such a positive visit, we will be stopping at the Herkimer again and understand why we found a line extending out the door driving by a couple of times before.

09-07-2008 02:23:04 | More by slyke

benito

Oregon

3.4/5  rDev -6.8%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3 | $$

The Herkimer is one of a handful of restaurants in Lyn Lake and remains one of the few brewpubs in Minneapolis proper. Its focus on German-style beers sets it apart from the dime-in-a-dozen mold of American brewpubs, as any visitor is likely to encounter a style (gose, berliner weisse, dunkel, kellerbier) hardly ever seen at other breweries.

The atmosphere is neutral--lots of grays, blacks, and vintage-style posters advertising some of the house beers. There are large, cavernous booths along the perimeter of the bar, and the bar itself occupies the middle of the restaurant. There's a bit of sidewalk seating available as well.

They keep six beers on tap, and when I visited, only one of them was one of the 'year-round' offerings. Instead they had a dortmunder, kellerbier/zwickel, dunkel weiss, gose, alt, and munich dunkel. The gose was an interesting experiment-- somewhere between a wit and a berliner weisse according to the restaurant's description, though the salt flavors were a little overdone. I also sampled the kellerbier and the dunkel weiss; both were above average, if otherwise unmemorable.

Given the paucity of brewpub selections in Minneapolis (and only Minneapolis), the Herkimer is a must-visit stop by default. Overall, the German brews make for an interesting angle on the brewpub; I'd certainly go back for another visit.

08-19-2008 02:13:36 | More by benito

Ragingbull

California

3.23/5  rDev -11.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 2.5 | food: 3 | $$

I have been to the Herkimer a few times in the past year (4 or 5). I go there basically anytime I have company come to town as my first encounter was with my wife and kids and it is not a "kid friendly" establishment as there are no high chairs or booster seats. Let me just go ahead and say that is fine, but I wasn't expecting it. The service was terrific on my visits early in the day and if you sit at the bar but I felt a little forgotten at a table late night. I haven't been enough to know if that is normal. It is a younger crowd even though I am not that old. The shuffleboard games that go on are quite possibly the highlight. The food quality is alright, but that wouldn't be why you went there. The beers made me think that it was great place for people to cross over from drinking macro beers to microbrews as they are more mainstream and less risky than some microbreweries and brewpubs. It is a great place to hang out at night and just "have a few." I have read some others postings about parking and construction, but unless something changed since then I can usually turn up some legal parking despite the construction, but I am also willing to walk further than some. I have tried everything that has been offered on my stops to the Herkimer. I enjoyed the Berliner Weisse (White) and perhaps the novelty of it coming in three separate glasses helped propel it to the top. On other stops I hit the seasonal offering as I have notes on an Oktoberfest here and a kellerbier that wasn't present in my first couple visits. I don't go enough or often enough to know what the "regular" beers are, but I did pick up a stack of coasters that I am pretty sure gives me a hint. Go hang out with a buddy, you will like it.

07-11-2008 02:11:58 | More by Ragingbull

morimech

Minnesota

4.05/5  rDev +11%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4 | $$$

If you fight through the road construction and the lack of parking you will find a nice brewpub. I guess everyone parks, as I did, in the VFW parking lot and risk being towed. I visited during a weekday afternoon so the place was completely dead. There is seating in front of the pub but I wouldn't think that was very attractive considering the street traffic and heavy construction vehicles surrounding you. Inside is a quiet and clean pub. The brewing equipment sits off in one corner while tables sit along the walls surrounding the huge bar. The floor is unfinished concrete which I found slightly amusing. Service was good and friendly.

I think 6 of their beers are on tap. I had a Keller and a Kolsh. Both were delicious and priced at $4.50 a pint. The food was good but the meun seemed a bit limited. Still there should be something that you will find appetizing. I think this is an underappreciated brewpub in the Twin Cities.

05-15-2008 23:17:09 | More by morimech

Deuane

Pennsylvania

3.86/5  rDev +5.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$

Since we were already on Lyndale, we decided to stop in at The Herkimer Pub & Brewery. It isn't highlighted on BA, and several of the people we talked to about beer talked about it as an afterthought. We're not big lager fans, but we decided to try it anyway.

Considering the style, it was not that bad! We started with their two GABF gold winners - Sky Pilot Keller Bier and Alt Bier - which were both pretty good. I really enjoy Kellerbier, simply because it is so unique, and C enjoyed the Alt because it did carry a nice hoppiness with it.

By the time we ordered the next beer, it was happy hour, which is 2 for 1, so even though we didn't intend to, when I ordered a High Point Dunkle, we were served up two pints.

Herkimer had free Wi-Fi, so that gave us a reason to linger and enjoy the additional pint. The Dunkle was lightly smoked and a beautiful dark color, almost like a light porter.

Herkimer really is a worthy stop if you find yourself on that edge of town. I wish they had a few more beer style selections but overall not a bad place.

04-01-2008 12:20:20 | More by Deuane

LeonTrotsky

Minnesota

4/5  rDev +9.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

This brewpub is populated with the typical uptown crowd and music (and it's right next to the VFW if you happen to be in the mood for some karaoke). One thing I really like is the vintage style posters they have for their beer all over the walls. In addition the service has always been good.

The first time I came here it was about 1am and I had been at drinking at the Minnesota Irish Fair all day. It was a very hot day, then it rained, hard, while I was at said fair, which didn't seem to stop my drinking or enjoyment. Anyway, I was kind of tired and Herkimer was out of their beers taps that I wanted to try, namely the schwarzbier and and the dunkel. What they did have was their Daily Pils and Dortmunder Gold, both of which I though were sub par. Needless to say I was disappointed but I thought that since it was my neighborhood brewpub I should give them a second chance.

I did give them a second chance and I have returned several times since. Upon my return trips they have yet to be out of any beers and I have enjoyed the ones I have tried, the schwarz, alt, bock, dopplebock and dunkel are all quite tasty.

02-27-2008 19:15:29 | More by LeonTrotsky

ndolover

Minnesota

3.78/5  rDev +3.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3 | $$$

I visited Herkimer recently to see a basketball game (thank you Big Ten Network). It is located in the LynLake neighborhood. I nice spot for food and drinks if you ask me. Herkimer stands out for 3 things in my mind:
1. Packer Bar (take it for what it is worth)
2. Uptown hip flair (I see a wide assortment of folks which adds to the fun
3. Lagers...they usually have the best assortment of brewpub Lagers in the Twin Cities.

On my visit I had he Kolsch and the Alt. The Kolsch was a bit bitter for a Kolsch, but was fine. The Alt was outstanding. A true session beer. I must have had 4 of them while watching the game with my wife. It was a great time. The music selection was great, but not too loud. There were TV's, but not too many. People seem to be having a good time and playing misc. games in the background.

The food has always been hit or miss. This time was a miss. I had a normal cheeseburger and it was dry and the bun was flaky. The service was okay, as it would seem that they only had one guy worker the bar with about 15-20 people sitting down. It seemed more then he could handle.

Herkimer also seemed to be hosting a Homebrewers meeting which tends to lend street cred. that this is a good place to drink beer.

If you are in the Uptown area, and/or like lagers...and maybe even want to hang with your Wisconsin brothers...check this place out!

02-24-2008 17:35:35 | More by ndolover

KarlHungus

Minnesota

4.18/5  rDev +14.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5 | $$

My girlfriend and I stopped by Herkimer at about noonish after visiting the Walker Art Center. Parking was easy to spot, but hard to get to on behalf of road construction. Once inside the place is fairly inviting. I liked how all the brewing equipment is very visable, and I liked the tiled pillars. I also liked the tinned roof that only covered a small section directly over the bar, which was odd but interesting. The servicer was excellent (I think his name was Eric): very attentive, very friendly, and knowledgeable about the beers. The food was pretty good, but standard pub fare. I was a little disappointed to find out that the lunch menu is a lot smaller than the dinner menu which is on their website. The citrus chicken club I had was good, and paired very well with the Berliner Weisse I was drinking with it. My girlfriend insisted that her burger was the best she had had in a long time, and was way better than my meal. I was very impressed with the beer. I have read a lot of mixed reviews on this site about the beer at Herkimer, but I really enjoyed the two beers I tried. They only do German style beers, which I like and dislike. I lived in Germany for over three years, and learned to love beer there. I was also frustrated with the lack of creativity in the German brewing scene. While I do think that they are handcuffing themselves from a creative standpoint, I do like how they are at least venturing into some obscure styles of German beer. The first beer I had was there Sky Pilot Kellerbier, which one them a gold medal at the 2006 GABF. It was incredible, enough noble hops to create a meriad of flavor and enough malt to keep me from calling it hoppy. The second beer I ordered was their Berliner Weisse. To my astonishment, when the server brought it out he brought two 10oz goblits, with two shot glasses (one for woodruff syrup, and one for raspberry). I had had Beliner Weisse before, but with out the syrup. Herkimer's Berliner tasted great on its own with a wonderful sour, tart, lactic taste to it. I liked it even more with the woodruff syrup which added some sweetness, but still let the sournees/tartness to come through. I thought the raspberry syrup made the beer a little too sweet, but it was still enjoyable. I ordered a growler of the Berliner Weisse and the server through in a couple plactic containers of the woodruff syrup for free. Overall, I was very impressed with Herkimer, and will certianly visit again as there were a lot more beer on the menu that I would like to try.

07-26-2007 17:19:23 | More by KarlHungus

FightingEntropy

Minnesota

3.64/5  rDev -0.3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$$

The last time I was here in 2001, Herkimer was having some problems. Two beers were on tap, the food was mediocre at best, and seemed bery overpriced. The prices haven't come down much, but the beer has clearly improved and I've heard the food has as well. They are making progress.

Inside is well maintained, clean, somewhat open and sterile when empty, but has lots of room for weekend uptown crowds. The patio is in the alley behind concrete barricades, but the people I saw in it seemed to be having a good time. The two beers I had, Toolies Weiss and the Alt Bier were both good but not great. The weiss seemed a bit out of balance, but refreshing and fairly well done. The alt had a slightly astringent taste in it, but was adequate as well.

If someone invited Herkimer, I'd go without hesitation. Perfectly fine, and the menu looks like it has a couple interesting vegetarian options that weren't there before, so that would be interesting to try with a couple of new beers. But, I doubt I'll go too far out of my way to get there my self.

06-15-2007 13:08:43 | More by FightingEntropy

tempest

Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +13.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

This brewpub is a little different than what most BA;s are looking for, but worth a stop. They brew only German lagers and do a pretty good job of it. I happened upon their Gose, a fairly rare style of wheat beer, which was very tasty.

The service has been consistently good. The staff usually isn't the most enthusiastic group of folks, but they're friendly enough and do good work. I sat on the patio/former parking lot on my last visit, but inside is more comfortable in poor weather.

If you're hitting up all the area brewpubs, this is a good change of pace from Town Hall, Barley John's, and Great Waters.

06-06-2007 05:34:25 | More by tempest