Firewaters

FirewatersFirewaters
FirewatersFirewaters
Bar, Eatery

41 State Rt 4
Hackensack, New Jersey, 07601-6337
United States

// CLOSED //
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.42
Reviews:
15
Ratings:
17
pDev:
11.99%
View: Place Reviews
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Ratings by slander:
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Reviewed by slander from New York

3.63/5  rDev +6.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.25 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
‘cause honestly, I’ve always had a morbid curiosity to what goes on here. I mean, I’ve seen the hot mess that is AC, and the Glens Mills Hooters combo (as is this house). Passed it a thousand times before on 4 thinking ‘maybe I’ll, maybe today’, but it’s always been a ‘maybe not, no’. Something sometime will motivate me to go, I’m sure, like St. Patrick’s Day Sunday wanting on wings...

The sign out front reads ‘the best craft beer in town’ (um… you’re the ‘only’ craft beer in town, sandwiched between good bottle sales at Whole Foods this way and Andy’s in Bogota that way). A split space; Firewaters here and Hooters there, separated scantily by not much, but I only pay to play for beer. Rolled in just after opening at 4 to find the place dark, or there about. Large cavernous space; ‘L’ shaped marble topped bar, brick base, & piping foot rail, and seating for 16 on miscolored wood high chairs just off the entrance. The barback holds a long row of 50 taps, alternating up down up down up down on a stainless steel panel wall. Glassware shelved below and below. A large flatscreen sits above on center, and over the coolers on the ends; one with macro bottles, the other with Jager, ‘buca, tequila, & pint glasses (please do not serve me anything in a frosted anything now or ever). A martini glass rack dangles overhead on the end of the bar.

Vertical slat wood walls with beer trays lining atop over brick lowers. The ceiling of black wood plank, I-beams, ducts, & spinny fans, and 1’ colored tiling floorings. Drop swirly colored bulb pan lamps tracing the bar, and track spots. 3 marble topped hightops roundies adjacent to the bar.

Slight step up raised area to the rear, done sectional. A dozen hightop roundies, some of them Red Bull varietals, on one end with darts & a DJ set up space, an open middle area with mirrored panels that used to be a dance floor, and the octagon shaped martini bar on the far end that they apparently get no use out of anymore. Flatscreens and drop color swirly bulb lighting lamps all around, light prints & neon action.

It’s now almost 5 and I’m still the only one here. The printed draft list shows beer, serving size, origin (listing both Ommegang & Lake Placid as NY, NY), ABV, style, & BA numerical score. Some items are shaded, most of which are high octane stuff over, say, 6%, but not all of it. I think someone is new to excel and the color features of font & background. The list is surprisingly craft, and by that I mean, no blatant macros (although I do see posers Shock Top, Blue Moon, & Killians in the mix), and just a handful of imports (Radeberger, Warsteiner, Sapparo, Stella, & Guinness).

Strangely very little representation of home state New Jersey except the Riverhorse IPA. Hell, New York is better represented with 7 selections (Southampton, Captain Lawrence, Defiant, Lake Placid, Ommegang, Ithaca, Saranac), and they’ve got 10 offerings from PA. I started with a Founders All Day IPA (can drink this all night, too), and moved to the Firestone Walker Wookie Jack (love). There will be a 3rd beer but what? She doled me some samples upon request; 16 Mile Inlet IPA, Evil Genius Evil Eye PA, Defiant Medusa IPA, & Troegs Nugget Nectar (which tasted very much like a habanera chili beer, either the wrong beer or the line it was run through). Eyyyeah. Um, Smutty Old Brown Dog, please.

Just shy of 6 PM now and another couple showed up; now we are 4 (to be fair, it is St. Patrick’s Day, and people have parades and whatnot). Got my wings on, done ‘Chesapeake rub’, and oh yes, they had some heat. Lissette tending this afternoon, and she is a pistol; a shell of her former self, apparently. There is a story there worth hearing. She’s dosing beers with green food coloring today, but not mine because, fuck that. Decent tap list, all in all, but nothing amazingly thrilling. It’s better than the other locations; not the total shit show I had imagined it’d be. Good enough for what it is, I suppose; an eat, drink, & game kind of place. But stop icing down them damn glasses, will ‘ya please?
Jul 09, 2013
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.25 by mbeerdino21 from New Jersey

Aug 12, 2014
 
Rated: 2.5 by markgugs from New Jersey

Jul 07, 2014
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Reviewed by r0nyn from New York

3.63/5  rDev +6.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
For a bar attached to a Hooters, this place wasn't too terrible at all. My friend and I actually came to go to Hooters, but were informed that Firewaters serves the same food and drink, so we were more than happy to go there instead of having to deal with the massive line for Hooters. I think we also made the mistake of going on a night when there was some big UFC fight or something, but whatever.

Atmosphere is okay. It's in Jersey and we went on a Saturday night, so there were a rather large number of guidos milling about sipping on their Coronas and being generally obnoxious with shouting and hand gestures and whatnot. The bar itself is pretty well set up, with lots of room and stools and a number of large flatscreens for viewing both at the counter and in the main area.

Service was decent. The bartender knew that I was ordering a Franziskaner hefeweizen and even pronounced it correctly. She took a pretty long time in getting it for me though. The food also took a while, I saw people who came in after us get their orders before we did. Not entirely the bartender's fault, but there's something to be said for providing timely service.

Selection is definitely the strong point of this bar. There was a wall full of taps with run-of-the-mill BMC garbage at the cheap end and quality craft brews at the pricey end. I ordered a Founders Breakfast Stout for my friend as I got my Franziskaner and was impressed with the quality of the beer, having had both previously. There were a number of other eye-catching names as well, including Chimay, Lindemans and Stone. Great selection of beers, especially for a bar in the middle of New Jersey. Food was pretty good too, especially since everyone comes to Hooters for the wings, right?

My pint of Franziskaner was $6 and my friends FBS was $7, so the beer prices are a little on the high end, at least for my tastes, especially when I can get bottles for half that price at my local.

Still, it was a decidedly positive experience I had at Firewaters. If I was ever in the area again, I wouldn't mind stopping by for a good craft brew.
Aug 08, 2010
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Reviewed by DanielDanza from New Jersey

3.35/5  rDev -2%
vibe: 2.5 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5
As stated before, this is quite a strange place.

Others have used the word "schizophrenic," which is warranted. I've been here twice, once on a Saturday when the place was absolutely inundated with guidos. I used to live in the area so we stopped in to see what the deal was and left promptly. Had no idea they had so much beer. I came back a few days ago after learning from BA that they boasted an impressive 50 taps and somewhere between 75 and 100 bottles. This was something of a shock considering my last visit.

Being a Wednesday night the (pretty large) bar was not crowded at all. Typical sort of people one might expect, mostly drinking Coors and mixed drinks with a few people drinking one of the many micros. I had a Chimay Red in bottle which was poured into the proper goblet, which was excellent as always. However, my Abita Purple Haze (tap) was rather watery, flat and tasted old and kind of tinny. I had never had this beer before so I suppose my review is a bit hasty but suffice to say it simply didn't taste "right." My friend had a Paulaner Hefe Weiss (on tap) which tasted fine and fresh. It was poured into a regular pint glass despite a selection of Weiss glasses cleared marked "wheat beer glasses," but this is a pretty minor complaint.

Definitely not my crowd but nobody was an asshole. Service was relatively attentive and the bartender seemed to know the basics, although there wasn't much of a crowd. They could probably afford to keep their lines cleaner and perhaps replace their beer more often. About 8 of the 50 taps were marked out but that's still a considerable collection. I suppose the place is worth a try if you're in the region but come by on a quiet night unless you're looking for the typical Jersey club atmosphere.
Aug 23, 2009
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Reviewed by njmoons from New Jersey

3.33/5  rDev -2.6%
vibe: 2.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
Firewaters is a good idea. A beer bar conveinently located and comfortable.

The execution is pretty generic. Bar, a couple tables, dart boards, dance floor. Could use a little imagination, less volume on the music, and more light. At least until later in the night.

Service was poor, I asked for a sampler, and I guess that it was too much to wait for me to make a decision. I had to chase my beers, and even had trouble getting a bill.

On the up side the selection is great. 50 beers on tap including some great ones, and another 100 in bottles. Not many places compete with that.

Price, I showed up on a Tuesday and all drafts were $2. I'd go back if it was every Tuesday!
Jul 30, 2009
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Reviewed by Bergenboy1981 from New Jersey

3.94/5  rDev +15.2%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5
This place was pretty nice. I've driven past this place sooo many times but never went in because I was under the impression it was a sports bar, being connected to a hooters and all.
The selection of beer at this bar is pretty good, from many beers on tap including ones I don't see often like Chimay white....and had many bottled beers I dont see in bars often such as Delerium and Hitachino White.

The service isnt bad, however loses points because the woman bartender really knew nothing about the beers they sold, what she had in stock, or even the styles of the beers.

I'd def go back, and Id bring friends
Sep 11, 2008
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Reviewed by koopa from New Jersey

3.6/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4
I've been to Firewaters in Hackensack a couple of times now as its close to where I live and has a great selection coupled with good service depending on who is working when you visit. Sonia is the only bartender there that has shown any bit of passion for craft beer while I've visited.

The atmosphere here in Hackensack is pretty typical for a NJ bar with a Hooters attached :) What you expect is what you get. Lots of sleazy guido dudes eating Hooters Wings while drinking Coors light at the bar. And some of us more refined drinkers trying to be adults by refraining from mocking them :)

Pricing is more expensive than a standard bar but not as much as you would expect from a high end beer bar.

Pints range from $4 - $8 bucks for the most part. 750ml bottles can range from $10 - 25 bucks on average. Obviously they have some selections that are more expensive but I'm just trying to illustrate that lots of offerings are there to be had in the price ranges I've listed.
Sep 01, 2008
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Reviewed by Loki from North Carolina

3.73/5  rDev +9.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
Visited on 6/12/08

This place is more than a little confusing. First it looks like there are three places and more than one entrance. Well there are kind of three places (only two of which were open) and there is only one entrance.

As the other reviews have stated, it is a long building with three business. If you are looking at the front you have Firewaters on the the left, a deli in the middle, and Hooters on the right.

The place looked promising with a wide selection of taps and coolers on each side with bottles. However, there wasn't anything too exciting on the list. And what was exciting or new was out. They had multiple taps out when I came in that they knew about and soon discovered they had two more.

The food was average as it comes from next door. Had I know that in advance I would have ordered the wings, not the burger.

Everything was handled well and the bartender knew a decent amount about the beer. At least enough to get the general idea right.

Not a bad place, but not a place I would go out of my way for if I was in the area.

It worked out well as it wasn't far from Andy's Corner bar so I went here for a quick bit and a few good pints and then went to Andy's for some great pints.
Jul 02, 2008
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Reviewed by Poppypitbull from New Jersey

2.65/5  rDev -22.5%
vibe: 2 | quality: 1.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 2.5
I don't know, maybe as I get older I get harder to impress or I just expect more for my money. But what exactly is this place trying to be? For a place that has the beer selection that they do, they sure do seem to attract the anti good beer crowd. It's more like being trapped in a bad guido sponsored movie, sorry. Stripped shirt idiots with brainless bar trash following them around sucking down their top 40 beers. Terrible, just terrible. The help was clueless on beer but decent eye candy. The food was so/so, the beer selection was good but out of date and in some cases the taps weren't even working. If you are going to proudly display something it best be in the tap.
The potential is there but get the help in here that knows what they are doing and can help the customers who are genuinely interested in good beer. Route out the bar trash that hangs out there as well and the atmosphere will receive a huge adjustment. One other thing, it appears to be a sports bar but you can’t wear a sports jersey?
Mar 20, 2007
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Reviewed by dherling from New Jersey

4.06/5  rDev +18.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 5
Wow, this place is buzzarre. IT's next to a Hooters, and you have to walk past a small deli to get in. There's a nice looking wrap around bar, looks almost like a college bar or sports bar. Then there's a bit of a dive bar area, with some high tables, seats, darts, jukebox, and video game. Next up is a 8"x8" dance floor situated next to a lunge with plush sofas. Past that is a fancy looking vodka/martini bar with blue and purple lighting. There have to be at least 50 taps here, with a reputation for not being the cleanest,and over time it's been a bit of hit and miss with me. I've had tapped beers there I was suspect of. In bottles is a huge list, well over 100 of them, along with their ratebeer.com ratings. The female staff are pretty cute, but mostly clueless when it comes to the beer. The guys aren't much better. Come here in the daytime and you can get all the attention you want. At night, this turns into a guido fest, people wearing too much cologne, and ordering too much bud light. or martinis. I give this place a 4.5 for atmosphere just because it is so surreal.
Oct 08, 2006
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Reviewed by Nutleybeer from New Jersey

3.03/5  rDev -11.4%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3
Have been here several times...usually on off hours and it has been pretty decent. Their beer listings, though, are usually out of date, so you have to look at the taps. My wife and I each asked for beer menus and they were both totally different. Mine actually advertised their Oktoberfest beers. (so, unless they are really ahead of schedule, this is pretty outdated)

As the prior reviewer noted, far too often the decent microbrews are tapped. Last night, I literally had to go thru about 5 choices until I got one. The cool thing about Firewaters has always been their selection of micros and less common imports...but it seems like the majority of their taps are dedicated to Coors Lite, Bud, Pilsner Urquel, Miller, Guiness, Stella, etc...which they never apparently run out of.

Their bottle selection is still impressive, but I think this place needs to get on top of their drafts. I always find the bartenders (always females) to be nice enough, and some of them are pretty good with knowing the beers, but some of them are just oblivious...I asked for a Climax Dubbel Bock, which was on their listing, yet it became a 5 minute affair for her to realize it is not even on tap anymore.

They have displays on their bar advertising food, yet when we asked, for whatever the reason, nothing could be made. They had some happy hour food out, but not really what we wanted. We asked for the meat and cheese platter and was told they "can't make anything that needs to be microwaved." (huh...?)

My tab came and there were 2 beers added onto it that we had not even ordered. It took like 10 minutes for that to get corrected.

On the positive side, though, you will always find 2-3 each of Brooklyn and Dogfish on tap. They also had Stone's Arrogant Bastard and Imperial Porter (a nice treat). It is actually pretty good everytime I have gone in the past, but last night was just a bad experience.
Jun 03, 2006
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Reviewed by Jacobier10 from New Jersey

3.14/5  rDev -8.2%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 2 | service: 3 | selection: 4
After going to Firewaters several times, I have to say I enjoy going there, but a few changes must be made if they want to keep their customers coming back.

I love the atmosphere inside. Lots of tv's, a fairly large bar, plenty of tables towards the back, two dartboards, some couches, and a cool-looking martini bar in the rear.

The service is fine, nothing really to complain about, but you have to go up to the bar to order beers and it can take a few mins sometimes if there's a crowd.

The selection is great. A lot of the classics on tap mixed in with some seasonals as well as some of the more off-beat craft offerings. Solid bottle selection as well. You're sure to find a beer that you like. Some of the more notables that I've had on tap are Brooklyn Saison, DFH World Wide Stout, DFH 90 min, and Aventinus. In bottles, I got the chance to try Three Floyds Gumballhead and Alpha King. The Alpha King was very reasonable at $4 for a 12oz. bottle, but the Gumballhead was $16 for a 22 oz. bomber! A friend picked it out for me and him not knowing the price, but no way was it worth the money. However, this is not where my biggest problem lies.

The selection is great...when they have the beer in stock. Way too many times have I gone there and ordered a beer from their list, only to have them say that the keg has been kicked. It once took me 4 tries just to get a beer they actually had in stock. The beer list is out of date and there is nothing in the bar telling you what is out of stock, which would make your life 100X easier. This really needs to be dealt with.

Also, I have seen two of my friends served beers that were completely watered down. It was evident that the tap lines were not being taken care of properly and I recommended that my friend take the beer back both times. Simply inexcusable.

The selection is great though and beats out most other places in the area so I will return. Also, drafts are half price from 7pm-close on Sunday nights which is a great deal to hit up.
Feb 17, 2006
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Reviewed by IPA17 from New Jersey

3.69/5  rDev +7.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5
Finally made it out here (even thought it's about 5 miles from my house) and was disappointed to hear that they no longer had the Aecht Rauchbier on tap. I tried a couple of other beers and they were good. They had several TVs and video games and sports games. Anyway, the bar was crowded when I was there but it had all the right things--TVs, beer, video games, good music and a Hooters next door. They had at least 20-25 beers on tap and 75-100 in bottles. The bartender was nice and I liked the place. Thumbs up.
Aug 22, 2005
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Reviewed by EPseja from New Jersey

3.3/5  rDev -3.5%
vibe: 3 | quality: 2 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
A: Firewaters is connected to Hooters on Rt. 4 in Hackensack, NJ and right beyond the front doors of "A Dam Good Deli". It has high ceilings with uncovered piping, a checked tile floor, and wood/mirror walls. The main point of interest is the steel tap wall on which are mounted 50 taps. On either side and just above the taps, you'll also find an interesting array of bottles, both 10-oz. and 22-oz. from around the world. The urethaned wooden bar runs the length of the tap wall and around a corner. The atmosphere in Firewaters is a hybrid beer bar, sports bar, martini bar, and college bar. In the daytime you'll find mainly older businessmen. In the night time, you'll find mainly young 20-somethings. At any time, you'll find a smattering of 30-somethings. Since I prefer a nice, dimly lit, understated pub to the neon lights of your typical bar, I consider this one to be average in atmosphere.

Q: It pains me to have to dish out some tough love here since the service and staff are always top quality (personality-wise), but improvement only comes when shortcomings are brought to light. Now, for a place that has 50 tap beers, over 1/2 of which are considered to be higher-quality craft-brews, the bartenders could really benefit from some beer education, if not some interest in the products they sell. For instance, no matter which beer is ordered, you'll more than likely get it in a frosted pint glass - Bud Light, Schneider Weiss, and Perkunno's Hammer the same - unless you specifically ask for the correct glassware, despite the fact that all of the "special" glasses sit on a shelf directly below the tap wall. Even if you do ask for the correct glass by name, it's probable that you'll have to point out the correct one to the bartender as well.

Along similar lines, most of the staff do not know how to correctly pull a draught. It's rare to see the bartender pull a beer without watching at least a good 8 oz. go down the drain as foam. It's "tap on at 100%" or "tap off" regardless of what beer is getting pulled. While this isn't a particularly big deal for the customer directly, wasted beer leads to less servings per keg, which leads to more expensive drink prices.

On a good note however, 10-20% of their taps change up fairly often and their kegs don't take long to turn over, leading to fresher beer. After all, I had my best pint of Dogfish Head 90 Min. IPA here.

S: In a direct contrast to the beer knowledgeability of the staff, their service savvy is fantastic. I never have to wait for a new pint. All of the pulls (despite their pouring methods described above) are full, correct pints with the head just at or above the rim. Want to taste a beer you've never tried? No problem! I even had a mistakenly poured (and relatively expensive) beer replaced with a correction without any fuss. Lastly, and the shining star of the Hackensack Firewaters, is the beer manager, AD. This man is completely into his beers. He is friendly, knowledgeable, and has a great vision of turning his bar into a real destination for beer lovers. If only he could clone himself and have his doubles working behind the bar, we'd then have the quality we need.

S: Unfortunately, out of the 50 taps, there are at least 10 that I would consider macro-swill (i.e. Bud, Coors Light, Pabst Blue Ribbon, etc.). That leaves 35. Of these, there are about 15 of the "usual import and domestic suspects" (i.e. Heineken, Labatt's, Yuengling, Bass, Guinness). That leaves 25. These 25 are where the beauty lies. You'll find things like Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, La Chouffe, Perkuno's Hammer, Schneider Weiss, Brooklyner Weissbock, Rammstein Maibock, Schlenkerla Urbock and others that don't spring to mind just now. For a 50 tap beer bar, the selection is good. If you consider this a 25 tap beer bar, then the selection is excellent.

F: Firewaters is located right next door to a Hooters as well as A Dam Good Deli, and you are welcome to order from either and have it served to you at the bar. The deli sports $6 sandwiches made to order that include chips and a soft drink. The sandwiches are very good for the price and nothing goes nicer with a Schlenkerla Urbock than a nice smoked turkey sandwich. And Hooters? Well, we know Hooters...

V: Food aside, I'll have to rate this venue as pricey. Craft draughts are regularly $5-6 plus, which breaks my "good price" barrier. Perhaps more judicious pouring (as mentioned above) could knock a few cents off that figure in the future.

SUMMARY: I really like Firewaters, and most beer conniseurs will like it, too. However, with some much needed improvements, there's no doubt that it could become a much better destination for the discerning beer drinker. As with all of my Beer Fly reviews, I will update this review as things change for the better - which I know they will.
Jun 08, 2005
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Reviewed by yelterdow from New Jersey

3.55/5  rDev +3.8%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
This beer bar opened recently, owned by and attached to Hooters of Hackensack. I have visited this establishment about two dozen times now, so I will review it based on the average of all my experiences.

Atmosphere: Upon entering, you will notice a list of what *not* will be acceptable attire, especially on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights.. These include:

-Backwards baseball caps
-Sleeveless tees (guys only)
-Excessively long shorts (described in detail)
-Sports jerseys of any kind (...huh?)
...and more.

After double-checking the clothes you are presently wearing, you will be greeted by a friendly man or woman behind the deli counter. Mark makes great sandwiches, you might be lucky enough to have him take your order. Then have a seat at the bar where your food will be brought out promply, with a side of chips and a soft drink. Nice touch.

The barstools here suck. It's not just me, I'm telling you everyone I have brought here thus far has winced at the instant wedgie/ass-grab that these horrendous seats display. Once you get past that, you will be ready to tackle the 51-beer tap list and 100+ bottles. A gentleman by the name of A.D. is indispensible here, and the reasons for that will follow. He works long and damn hard to make sure the selections are fresh and available, as best he can.

The problems here are few, but important. I love the staff and bartenders, but there is a level of knowledge that is necessary in a place like this... most importantly and urgent: the proper glassware, and a course in beer basics 101. Today I was about to be served a Schneider Weiss in a pint glass before I politely stopped him. My friend's Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, labeled as such on the tap, was actually the Doppelbock with the wrong handle.

Aside from the kinks of opening a new beer bar and staffing it appropriately, This place definitely has potential. The beers are almost always delicious and fresh, and I had the BEST 90-minute IPA in the world here last month. Local brews from Ramstein, Heavyweight, Flying Fish, Victory, and Brooklyn almost always have their place on tap. The digital jukebox is awesome, and on Fridays there is usually some sort of free buffet for Happy Hour. This place gets pretty crowded late in the week at night, especially towards the back where you will find a separate bar that focuses more on martinis and mixed drinks. The crowd is not quite craft-brew savvy... but hopefully with the right exposure, that will change.

I enjoy FireWaters very much, and I know that the issues I mentioned before will be overcome soon. I hope that you visit and make your BA affiliation known, as this will only help in the success of this soon-to-be great establishment.

The location is fantastic, right off Route 4, and people like A.D. at the helm will steer this place right, I know it. Believe me, I'm rooting for them.
Jun 07, 2005
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Reviewed by vladtheimpaler from New Jersey

3.74/5  rDev +9.4%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4
The location of this new outfit is where all before have failed, so I am not going to hold out hope until they have been there a while. The Hooters next door may keep them afloat for a while, so this may be a much needed new addition to the beer scene in the area. The problem is the atmosphere in this place just does not seem conducive to good beer. It was more like an upscale club atmosphere where you would only find mixed drinks and Heineken. The place has a marbel bar, with 50 taps behind it, and lots of mirrors, and a Vodka bar as well on the other side. And the bar stools were as uncomfortable as possible.

Beer quality was good, but the place just opened. I will not pass judgement until I can confirm that they properly care for all those taps. And there are over 200 bottles available, so that could be an alternative if the taps get dirty.

My only complaint about service is the lack of a true beer guy behind the bar. The bartenders were novices, that were sampling most of the beers on tap for the first and perhaps the last time. Not to brag, but there was not one beer on tap that I had not consumed an entire bottle or pint of at one time or another, except maybe Miller Light.

Selection was OK, or maybe good. Many Macros take up half the taps, but there being 50 taps, that still leaves a whole lot of good slots. I had a Perkunos (which was ungracefully served in a shaker glass), a pint of Smoked Ur-bock (a very pleasant and rare find), and a Pint of John Courage (unfortunately served on Nitro). No infections as of yet....and no Ramstein or Cricket Hill to this point. There was also DFH 90 min on tap, among several other good taps. The Brooklyn Abbey had not arrived, but had a tap handle. I think it may be worth the occasional visit just to see what they have on tap, but only time will tell how this place works out.

And if you want food, Hooters is connected and next door.They may be the same owners....
Feb 22, 2005
Firewaters in Hackensack, NJ
Place rating: 3.42 out of 5 with 17 ratings