Appalachian Brewing Company

Appalachian Brewing CompanyAppalachian Brewing Company
Appalachian Brewing CompanyAppalachian Brewing Company
Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

50 West 3rd Ave
Collegeville Station - 2nd Floor
Collegeville, Pennsylvania, 19426
United States

// CLOSED //
BEER STATS
Average:
3.6
Beers:
94
Ratings:
2,711
Linked Beer Listing
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.65
Reviews:
9
Ratings:
25
pDev:
12.88%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by rfgetz:
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Reviewed by rfgetz from New Jersey

3.84/5  rDev +5.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4
A little hard to find as the complex it is in is set back from the main road. The brew pub is located on the top floor of the complex and brings a blend of industrial and agricultural feel to the vast space. Floor to ceiling wood for the building itself and all of the furniture and fixtures. Flags of brewing nations hang from the ceiling and large format prints for each of the beers adorn the walls. Quite a few TVs at the bar and vast dining space. Brewing equipment is being installed in a small area adjacent to a fairly long bar. Small unused nooks and crannies throughout the floor hold room for future use.

At my count 15 beers, a hand pump and 2 sodas were on tap along with some empty taps and pumps. Nice selection. All beer brewed off-site until the brewhouse is installed and running. Good selection covers all the major styles with enough for macro, import and craft fans. Service was good and I did not have food.

A nice relaxed vibe and decent selection give this place promise. Will revisit for sure when the brewhouse is up and running.
Aug 28, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.05 by Rubezahl from Pennsylvania

Jul 30, 2018
 
Rated: 3.19 by Yellolab2010 from Pennsylvania

Dec 01, 2015
Photo of KTCamm
Reviewed by KTCamm from New Jersey

3.84/5  rDev +5.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4 | selection: 3.75 | food: 3.75
Easy to find, large parking lot in PA suburbs. Large open space that spills into a long bar area with comfortable seating. I arrived just as the place was opening for lunch so hard to judge the overall vibe. There were about 10 beers on tap (plus sodas) which I could sample - range in styles, for the most part good to very good. Broad menu with lots of options, perfect stop for a lunch and some sampling. The staff was friendly and knew enough about the beer to keep me informed. Good selection of bottles to take home as well.
Nov 12, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by Sdw64 from Pennsylvania

Mar 12, 2015
 
Rated: 3.96 by misternebbie from Pennsylvania

Feb 09, 2015
 
Rated: 3.64 by BeerForMuscle from New Jersey

Nov 11, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by Zetcha7x from Pennsylvania

Nov 07, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Furley80 from Pennsylvania

Oct 03, 2014
 
Rated: 3.52 by Bikeboy1 from Pennsylvania

Sep 29, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by malprep from Pennsylvania

Aug 23, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by wilmerkatie from Pennsylvania

Aug 22, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by GiantMidget from Pennsylvania

Jun 13, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by EFR94 from Pennsylvania

Mar 30, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by ColForbinBC from New Jersey

Mar 29, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by snipes1216 from Pennsylvania

Mar 16, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Jenna from Pennsylvania

Dec 10, 2013
 
Rated: 3.61 by rydev24 from Pennsylvania

Oct 09, 2013
Photo of mpcrump
Reviewed by mpcrump from Indiana

3.54/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 3.25 | food: 3.75
I was in the Valley Forge area for business and picked ABC through BA and some other sites.

Interesting place to enter but easy enough to navigate. You enter into what is essentially a very small mall like building and ABC is in the upstairs area. Lots of space in this place. Very well lit. It has a very open and accepting atmosphere.

The service was a little bit spotty. Took too long for our server to check in with us the first time. After that things were generally better.

Good menu selection of food. Nice variety of their own beers. I had the Cuban Panini which was good. This will sound trivial but their french fries were excellent. Hopefully any place can do fries, but these were cooked perfectly.

I had the Hoppy Trails IPA which was pretty good. I'd probably give it an 80 or so.

All in all not a bad place. I will consider it again the next time I'm in the area.
May 16, 2013
Photo of George2744
Reviewed by George2744 from Pennsylvania

3.04/5  rDev -16.7%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 3.25 | food: 2.75
Been here 3 times now...this place is the ultimate in average.

Overall quality of the beers is good (not very good or excellent). No complaints here.

Had the Fish n Chips last nite, along with the spouse...she spent all nite in the bathroom, I spent all morning there. Generous portion served swimming in oil that taste like it hadnt been changed in awhile.

Service was spotty (this wasnt the first time!)

We've not tried the full menu....but our first two visits, food was very average, nothing memorable. But since menu is reasonably priced, I cannot complain.

With the wooden floors and the music glaring (it was only 7:45pm) it was hard to carry on a conversation.
Mar 16, 2013
Photo of Rifugium
Reviewed by Rifugium from North Dakota

2.94/5  rDev -19.5%
vibe: 2.5 | quality: 3 | service: 2 | selection: 4
First things first: if you're using a GPS to find this place, make sure you double-check the website for the correct address, because apparently the primary address listed is not correct and will take you to some random house 3 miles away. Anyway.

This is a pretty basic place, located in a small mini-mall of shops. It's got a college/hipster/family vibe to it. Lots of open space, TVs, flags hanging from the ceiling IHOP-style, a fairly large bar, and lots of tables and separate dining areas. Pretty much reminded me of a typical chain like Rock Bottom or BJ's, but not quite as nice or refined as Iron Hill.

On the whole, the beer is not that great, again, appealing to the college crowd and less discriminate beer drinkers. However, they do offer a very good selection and quite a good variety of styles. With a capacity for about 20 beers on tap (though less than 15 of these being used, it seemed), a nitro line, and 2 hand pumps. They also offer bottle options of their own brews (for take-out I assume), as well as a few others, Rochefort, etc.

We had eaten beforehand and didn't get food here, so I can't comment on that. Looked like people were chowing down on burgers and similar pub grub.

Service was pretty lousy. I tend to find that often when places have a huge staff, the service is disproportionally adequate. Our bartender was a total drag. She approached us and gave us our initial order promptly enough, but it was all downhill after that. It was a Saturday night, but not at all busy at the bar, and she spent most of her time in a conversation with a patron than with actually doing her job, and when she was tending the bar, she looked and acted so morose, even I almost wanted to kill myself. She never offered us water, and it took an extremely long time for her to even look in our direction so we could flag her down for the check.

This is a moderately decent place overall, and even though the beer is not great, they offer enough diversity to make things interesting. But all things considered, I'm pretty much 100% sure I'd never go back here again.
Aug 26, 2012
Photo of jmdrpi
Reviewed by jmdrpi from Pennsylvania

3.4/5  rDev -6.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Have eaten dinner and had beers here a couple of times.

The atmosphere is fine, it's located in a weird indoor stripmall building, would be hard to find if you didn't know it was there. The location has undergone a number of different name changes over the years. Hopefully they are successful.

They have a good wide selection of beers available, I think probably a dozen or so. So you can certainly find a style you like. The quality of the beer is just okay though.

Food is good, I recommend the fresh baked soft preztel appetizer with beer mustard. Prices are fine.
Jun 26, 2012
Photo of slander
Reviewed by slander from New York

4.25/5  rDev +16.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXY&Z. Every time I think I know my ABC’s, they do something something, like opening up shop on this side of the state. I’ll go, I’ll check it out. You’ll bitch about it, but you’ll go too, probably ‘cause I’m driving and you’re my car hostage. Whatever, you should know how this goes by now...

Absurdly easily located in its ridiculously obvious & prominent location not in the least. We entered from what looks like it ought to be the backside of something and found ourselves in the lobby of a series of businessings, with signage pointing ABC upwards of stairs. And yes, we did enter in a far corner, oddly enough; surely this is the back way in but no, it is not so. Just a strange goddamn set up and we ain’t even inside yet. So, yeah, it’s a decently sized wood plank A-frame room with rafters, phat I-beam uprights & crossbeams. White walls over slat wood lowers (except for to the rear over the seating), sectioned & framed brick exposed, and foldy corrugatedness, the walls adorned with ABC beer logo pieces.

On the inside wall, an “L” shaped dark wood bar with a lip, wood base & brass foot rail, seating 15 on backed chairs. The bar back is a large ornate wood unit with a center logo mirror, cupboard space to both sides with booze & growlers, flatscreens above more booze or glassware over mirrored panels, and shwag and growlers in coozies on the ends. 3 towers holding 20 handles (8 in the middle and 6 to each side. Don’t get crazy, many are dupes or empty, only 9 unique beers in all) fronting that center mirror, and I spy a handpump at the end of the bar.

Silvery shimmery spray painted hightop tables run adjacent and around past the bar to the corner near the arched windows, each with stained glassiness and ‘hops’, ‘malt’, ‘yeast’ & ‘water’ printed atop, another baker’s dozen down near the windows overlooking a parking lot something not this, and a dozen+ more shorty tables in varying lengths penned along the far wall, some sharing common benching. Spinny fans & cluster spots from above, exposed ductwork, and flaggings international from the ceiling, 10 of them. I don’t know if they’re going for a NATO thing or what. Martini glass drop lamps over the bar and in a row over the adjacent seating. A few more flats about, and a beer board hanging from a beam above (hey the cask IPA is up, note to self, you’ll want to sample that).

And beer; 8 on the sampler, served on a wood carrying rack of 5 ounce glasses for $10, offering everything but the barleywine. 7 full timers (Water Gap Wheat, unfiltered American wheat served with a lemon wedge, light & crisp; Mountain Lager, a clean Dortmundt export, solid; Purist Pale Ale, an EPA, good bitterness, decently hoppy, nicely balanced; Jolly Scot Scottish Ale, malty caramel sweetness; Trail Blazer Organic Brown Ale, hoppy, hoppy; Hoppy Trails IPA, Millenium, Amarillo, Centennial, an EIPA, with good piney citrus bitterness; Susquehanna Stout, very good roastiness, some licorice, and very lightly sour), and this month’s seasonal (Anniversary Maibock, sweet, malty, a bit over the top). I asked for a sampler of the cask Hoppy trails IPA (all the corners off, quite good), and a pinch, just a taste, of the Broad Street Barleywine (showed up in a 5 oz snifter just the same. It was served a little a lot too cold and the first taste of it was of wood, as was the nose. Unpleasantly medicinal, with nowhere, no way to hide that not goodness). Mountain Lager, Jolly Scot Scottish Ale, Hoppy Trails IPA & Susquehanna Stout were the best of ‘em.

Started with the blackened tuna strips app. Good heat and drizzled with chipotle ranch and sliced for my ease of eat. Hey, thanks for the bonus baby tomatoes, too. And then the hog wild pulled pork sandwich with a tasty root beer bbq sauce. As I am a sound and reasonable man, I paid an extra $1 to upgrade from chips to fries. They were good fries. She went with just a regular old side salad (sigh). Delicious homemade croutons, yes, but the balsamic vinaigrette was a bit too oily. Otherwise, it was a good salad; it had a lot of stuff in it. She followed it up with the jerked chicken quesadilla, without the chicken, naturally. She liked that too. All is well on the food front.

Tunes, we came in on Siberian Khatru, I sang for all and none appreciated (I mean, even Siberia goes through the motions…), and we also caught Rock & Roll Woman. Beyond the buffalo, I explained how Stephen is obviously the soul, Neil is the heart, and then there’s Crosby & Nash. Such is CSN&Y. Our server was wonderfully pleasant, attentive, likes beer and scored me samples. But when I revisited with Ed one night, the girl behind the bar was doling out an orange slice with the Hefe and a lemon with the wit. “The fruit complements the beer”. No, not those fruits for those beers or really any ever, but it’s nice of you to take the initiative to play mix & match with my beer. Goddamn kids! Comfortable enough place, a good house for a few something drinking.
Dec 29, 2011
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Reviewed by prg1976 from Pennsylvania

3.08/5  rDev -15.6%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3 | food: 3.5
Just your "typical" family friendly brewery/restaurant. The food was decent, the beers were ok - I haven't had much by ABC, so they were all new to me. The selection wasn't that great, only 1 non-regular brew.

The service was pretty terrible. It took forever for the server to show up, and even longer to get anything we ordered. It wasn't crowded at all, maybe just an off night?

I'd go back, but I'll probably sit at the bar and try a few more of the beers that I didn't get to sample yet.
Dec 29, 2011
Photo of TheDeuce
Reviewed by TheDeuce from New York

4.5/5  rDev +23.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5
Appalachian Brewing Company….Collegeville

The new Appalachian is located on Main St. right near Ursinus College. It can be hard to see at first and needs some new signage but is located in the old Collegeville Station.

Inside and upstairs it looks to recreate the Harrisburg location. Large flags, the warehouse feel. Long bar on the right, and tables all around. Did notice some plush couches by a fireplace that looked pretty great, should appeal to the college coffeehouse crowd, overall I dug the atmosphere, as I did at the other location.

They are importing all of their beer from Harrisburg right now, there is a corner that has a sign proclaiming “location of our future brewery!” but it looked really small scale. I asked a waiter and he said that they would only be brewing one beer here on premises for the time being but are hoping to expand that capability.

All of the normal beers are available on tap, over 11 different varities. I had a hefeweizen and the Watergap Wheat since I was driving and wanted to stay with the lighter beers. Both were served properly and tasty. ABC’s beer is underrated in my opinion.

We all ordered food, I had the Hog Wild Pulled Pork, which was amazing and also the infamous Pretzel Logs which were excellent as always. Root beer float for dessert and I was a happy camper. Wife and grandmother also enjoyed their dishes. They were out of a few things but I’ll forgive it as they are just starting out.

Service was great, our waiter was very nice and knowledgeable. Very helpful with my wife’s allergies.

Overall, a great continuation of ABC in a new location. I think they will be very successful being this close to the college and Collegeville is a nice little town.
Aug 09, 2011
Appalachian Brewing Company in Collegeville, PA
Brewery rating: 3.6 out of 5 with 2711 ratings