Angry Minnow Brewpub

Angry Minnow BrewpubAngry Minnow Brewpub
Angry Minnow BrewpubAngry Minnow Brewpub
Brewery, Bar, Eatery

10440 Florida Ave.
Hayward, Wisconsin, 54843
United States

(715) 934-3055 | map
angryminnow.com
BEER STATS
Average:
3.68
Beers:
13
Ratings:
124
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.77
Reviews:
10
Ratings:
19
pDev:
18.04%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
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Rated: 4.26 by enelson from Illinois

Sep 02, 2017
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Reviewed by Cfred371 from Minnesota

4.21/5  rDev +11.7%
vibe: 4.75 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4 | food: 4
One of the cooler buildings I've been in, Angry Minnow has a beautiful interior/exterior, and a relaxed feel. When inside, the bar looks somewhat rustic, but also very neat, and antiquated (in a good way). The tap list available ranges from their flagship beers, to about four or five seasonal/taproom only releases. I haven't noticed any off flavors in beverage, but nothing that blows me away, and i'm fine with that. Angry Minnow is one of the older breweries in the craft beer world, and considering they're located in Hayward, I wouldn't expect them to make hazy juice bomb IPA, or double barrel aged chocolate coffee maple syrup imperial stouts. What Angry Minnow offers is a great respite for the locals of Northern Wisconsin, a great spot for tourists to get food and drink, and consistent, quality beers. As mentioned, the beer doesn't change much with the hype beer community, but Angry Minnow offers plenty of quality, classic styles. Worth checking out!
Feb 02, 2017
 
Rated: 3.81 by iRun2Beer from Minnesota

Jun 20, 2016
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Rated by DependablePete from Illinois

5/5  rDev +32.6%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5
Best brewpub I've ever visited. All the beers I tried were A+. This place is a must visit.
Jun 09, 2015
 
Rated: 3.78 by XmnwildX12 from Minnesota

Feb 23, 2015
 
Rated: 3.35 by italianstallion from Wisconsin

Dec 25, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by slavall from Wisconsin

Sep 17, 2014
 
Rated: 3.15 by DarthGuitarHero from Minnesota

Jul 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Sconi_tom from Wisconsin

Mar 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by vikinghorn from Minnesota

Oct 24, 2013
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Reviewed by joe1510 from Illinois

3.59/5  rDev -4.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.75 | service: 3.75 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
Re-review: 8/24/13

The last few years have been tough on The Angry Minnow. The menu has been drastically reduced. The beer has never been great but it's always been good and in a great area. The food was the star but has now turned into run of the mill pub grub. Appetizers, pizza,burgers and wraps are all that's now on the menu.

Original review: 11/4/07

3.95

My last trip up to Hayward brought me to the Angry Minnow. Nice decor with a round dark wooden bar in the middle of the high ceilinged dining area. Floor to ceiling slightly tinted windows bring in a good amount of light. Comfortable atmosphere.

Everything in the place was immaculately kept up and clean. You could tell the owners took pride in the atmosphere and appearence of the building, bar, and seating areas.

Service was average but our waitress was doing the best she could. The day I was in it was lunchtime and they were slam packed and (it appeared) understaffed. She was friendly and helpful though when she had time to make it to our table.

Six taps were going when I was there unfortunately there was nothing big on tap. I enjoy a nice sipper after eating. Four of the beers are regulars and there were two seasonals (Octoberfest and a hefe). Had a pint of Octoberfest that was a little underwhelming, a pint of the River Pig Pale that was quite good, and an Oaky's Oatmeal Stout that was enjoyable.

The food is where this place shines. I was very impressed with my meal and the menu. There's some standard pub fair but bumped up a notch. There's also some higher end offerings (ribeye, tuna steak, duck, pork medalions). The pub grub consists of sandwiches mostly with unique little twists. I had a prime rib sandwich with pepperjack, jalapenos, grilled peppers and onions. This was served with a very good sweet potato fries.

This place surprised me. Especially the food. Very enjoyable. They also sell growlers and if you bring in an empty growler from your area and trade it in you get a free growler and fill. They decorate above the bar with the growlers people traded in. A definate must stop if in the Hayward area.
Aug 24, 2013
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Reviewed by mjryan from Minnesota

4.05/5  rDev +7.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
Angry Minnow Brewpub. Neat old building that looks great both inside and out with; tin ceilings, exposed brick walls, large bar, nice beer garden out back and a cool dining room with a large fire place and couches. The brewhouse is in the basement but can be viewed from the dining area above. Of the eight of their house brewed beers I tried four. They had four seasonals and four year rounders. Started with the year round River Pig pale ale. A nice, moderately hoppy pale ale that I very much enjoyed. Next I had an imperial ipa which was great. The third pint I had was a rye ipa that knocked my socks off, it was exceptional. Tried a sample of their year round stout and that was good as well. For food I had a roast beef sandwich and fries. The sandwich was alright, the fries were phenominal. Everyone of them was crispy, with nice big bits of sea salt and not overly greasy. It may sound odd to rave about frech fries but when so many resturants fuck them up, its nice to get good ones. I got a growler of the rye ipa to go and a four pack of their River Pig in 16oz cans as well. The cans say brewed and canned by Angry Minnow so Im assuming they are canned on premise and not contract brewed. Overall, I really liked the Angry Minnow. Beers were great, food was good and the building, both inside and out pleased me. To bad its not closer St Paul. If it was Id be there frequently.
Jun 29, 2011
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Reviewed by arboristfish from Wisconsin

2.7/5  rDev -28.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | food: 2
Discovered this place while up north visiting my girlfriends side of the family. The pub itself is pretty interesting. I tried a sampler of all the beers that they had, and I wasnt impressed with any of them. They were all good drinkable beers, but nothing really stood out with exceptional character. The food was ok, nothing impressive. I think if they tried to put more character in their beers, and make them more distinctive I think they would be better off. The biggest thing for a brewpub though is to have awesome food to keep bringing customers back.
Nov 14, 2010
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Reviewed by syrupjoe from Florida

1.7/5  rDev -54.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 1.5 | service: 1 | selection: 2 | food: 2
The beer here always kept me and my cabin-bound friends and family quite satisfied. The food was never anything special, but the atmosphere was great! A cool old restored building in a great location.

Had been coming up here with family and friends for years, would always stop in and pick up some growlers, and pick up bottles in nearby liquor stores. This time, however, one of our growlers went sour. We stopped by on our way out of town and whoever was in charge (a bald male) refused to refill our growler, stating that he wouldn't give out any "free beer" (even though the returned growler was over 2/3 full...). Unfortunate that the ego of the manager and cost of a growler refill were worth more than the patronage of 12+ customers. We used to love you guys, but now we don't.

Overall - decent local beer, sub-par food, and terrible service.
Aug 13, 2010
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Reviewed by blackdog1101 from Minnesota

4.22/5  rDev +11.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
I'm not sure who pissed in the guy below's beer, but I've been to the Angry Minnow on a few occasions and have only had very nice experiences. Thia past weekend a friend and I stopped in for a beer, and ended up having a flight of short pours and a few food items off the menu. Of the 8 beers I sampled, the oatmeal stout was best, followed by the smoked porter, pale ale, and imperial IPA. The pils, octoberfest, wheat ale, and Minnow Lite (really?) were good, but not memorable. I'd go out of my way the next time I am in the area for a growler of the oatmeal stout. Great beer that.

The food was also very good. We had fish tacos, spinach artichoke dip, and onion strings. All were very good, especially the fish tacos. We told the barmaid how much we enjoyed the fish tacos, and the chef, Randy, came out to thank us.

The highlight of our visit, though, was the barmaid Wendie. Personable, attentive, and chatty, she made a good visit great.
Dec 01, 2009
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Reviewed by slyke from Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev +8.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
We made the trip into town from our friends' cabin for lunch on 4/3/2007.

Angry Minnow is in a beautiful brick building dating from the late 19th century. There is lots of exposed brick and hardwood in the place. It was rather quiet as you might expect on a snowy Tuesday outside of tourist season.

The service from our waitress was very good. She was knowledgeable about the beers; able to give descriptions of the seasonals and alcohol content levels of the beers.

Selection was good with six beers of distinctive styles on traditional CO2 taps, each done well. In addition, a barrel aged version of their oatmeal stout was on cask. The barrel aged stout was the best of the bunch, but not by much. I would have been happy with any of the beers except their light beer. The light was done well for the style, but it's not a style I like.

Food was very good. The cheese curds and pizza appetizers were very flavorful. I had the Minnow Burger which was excellent and the fries had a great flavor. Another person from our group had the chicken sandwich and reported it to be very good as well.

Overall, this was a great brewpub experience. Great atmosphere, beer, and food. What more could you want. This place is definitely worth a visit.
Apr 05, 2007
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Reviewed by FightingEntropy from Minnesota

3.56/5  rDev -5.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5
The Angry Minnow was a quick stop on our bus tour of Wisconsin, so no time to eat. But the minnow is in a beautiful old brick building that was just screaming to put in a brewpub. Dark wood inside and a old comfortable feeling to the place. We sat on an outside patio surrounded by brick arches. Extremely pleasant on a fall evening. I've tasted their beers at various festivals, and the draft versions didn't change my mind much--all good but not great beers. My favorite has consistently been the River Pig Pale Ale, which is quite enjoyable to drink. It was quiet with all locals when we stopped.
Oct 12, 2006
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Reviewed by edbeered from Minnesota

4.05/5  rDev +7.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Hayward is a small town(pop.2000) located in a prime vacationing area in northern Wisconsin. This fine brewpub and restaurant is located just off a major highway on the eastern edge of town, and is housed in a former lumber company office, built in 1889. The finely restored interior features lots of exposed brick and hardwood floors. There is a u-shaped bar, surrounded by tables. The large windows in front let in plenty of light. The brewing equipment, while not visible from the bar, can be seen in a glassed-off partition in the back of the restaurant. The clever name comes from the bait used on the many surrounding lakes for fishing.

For food, as well as the usual pub grub, they feature such offerings as shrimp or beef kabob and grilled duck. I had the beef kabobs which were quite tasty. They have a full bar and feature some single malts, as well as six of their own beers. I had a beer sampler(oatmeal stout, octoberfest, American pale ale, honey wheat, lite ale, and hefeweizen). The sampler tray is a board carved in the shape of a fish with holes for the sample glasses. All of the beers were clean and well made. There will be separate reviews of one or more of the beers. P.S. As previous reviewers have noted, The beers here are served in imperial pints!

All in all, I was pleased and satisfied after my visit to The Angry Minnow. I recommend it to anyone visiting Hayward.
Oct 16, 2005
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Reviewed by Redrover from Wisconsin

4.18/5  rDev +10.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Edit from the Week of 7/21/09

The bar continues to prosper and attract a good crowd. The menu has expanded and one change is now you can get the full menu while sitting at the bar.

Note that they have done away with the 20 oz imperial pints and now use a 16 oz Guinness style glass. That is a bit of a bummer.

EDIT From visit week of 5/22/06
I was able to revisit the Angry Minnow and am happy to report that they seem to be doing well. I sampled the food this time and found the menu to be innovative and the food tasty.

They are now smoke free, which I think is huge in this area. They have not had a drop in business and it actually seems to be helping draw in more people.

They are also offering $2.00 pints during happy hour (they call it Angry hour, get it?). Growlers to go.

***
The Angry Minnow is located in an awesome old building. I love to see this type of building renewed and reused instead of torn down. High tin ceilings, a unique center bar and a cool color scheme add to the vibe.

I was there for happy hour and was disappointed to see only about a dozen other people. However in talking to the staff, they mentioned that they are doing well and the crowds are continuing to grow. They celebrate their one year anniversary in September.

The staff is very friendly. I had a few questions about the beer and the brewer came out for a chat. It seems he learned his craft at the Great Dane. Now I know why their beers are so good.

I did not try the food, but I wish I had. Nice looking choices on the menu.

I see they have entertainment most nights. They have a small stage set-up in the south side of the bar. I also saw a nice looking garden.

They had a bout 8 or 9 of their own beers on tap. The two I tried were both very good. The prices were cheap (maybe due to it being happy hour?) and the beer was served in 20 oz Imperial pints. Extra points there.

I sampled both brewpubs in Hayward. While the Old Hayward was packed, I would recommend the Angry Minnow if you could only go to one. A very nice find in the North Woods!
Aug 01, 2005
Angry Minnow Brewpub in Hayward, WI
Brewery rating: 3.68 out of 5 with 124 ratings