Pittsburgh Bottleshop and Brewhouse

Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

1597 Washington Pike
Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, 15017-2894
United States

(412) 279-8170 | map
bottleshopcafe.com
BEER STATS
Average:
3.87
Beers:
8
Ratings:
4
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.69
Reviews:
17
Ratings:
23
pDev:
17.62%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
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Ratings by Kolsch:
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Reviewed by Kolsch from Pennsylvania

1.55/5  rDev -58%
vibe: 1 | quality: 1 | service: 1 | selection: 3
Stopped by on the way to Pens game Saturday afternoon. First time at this place and not very crowded for a late Saturday afternoon.

Atmosphere: Large open U-shaped bar that probably seats around 30. Hightop tables surround bar with approximately half dozen or so cold doors for beer take out on right of bar.

Service: Non-existent. So my wife and I pull up a seat at the bar. There was one other person at the bar, so with 3 bartenders (all nice looking women), you would think we could get a beer? Bartender comes over and asks what will we have. I ask to see Beer menu so she hands beer menu to us and walks away. We look over menu and decide what we want. Selection of beer is not bad and I liked that they order the beer by style.

After five minutes, she does not return. After 10 minutes, I guy sits down next to me. Same bartender immediately serves him a Miller Lite and again, ignores us. It turns out the guy is her father. 15 minutes later, another bartender has come on shift (again nice looking girl). All four bartenders are socializing in corner while completely ignoring customers. After 15 minutes of being completely ignored, we walk out and never to return. I could understand if they were busy but there were only 2 other customers at the bar at the time.

Overall: this place really is just a Hooters in disguise with some decent beer but that is probably doing a dis-service to Hooters because you would get better service there. Beer nerds would be wise to avoid this place as there are much better options. Sharp Edge Brasserie is about 10 miles down the road. Based on previous reviews, this seems to be the norm here so really not sure how you are supposed to get a beer unless you’re a father of one of the Hooters girls.
Oct 23, 2011
More User Ratings:
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Rated by CMG-PSU from Pennsylvania

4.4/5  rDev +19.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.75 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Amazing um let's say... scenery.
Jun 13, 2015
 
Rated: 3.9 by misternebbie from Pennsylvania

Dec 28, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by vwbus7 from North Carolina

Jun 26, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by csmit942 from Ohio

Jun 05, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Steve_Trick from Ohio

May 04, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by ejimhof from Pennsylvania

Oct 09, 2013
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Reviewed by kuche from Pennsylvania

2.53/5  rDev -31.4%
vibe: 2 | quality: 3 | service: 1 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
The owners should be able to improve this place easily, but it has not happened. They seem to hire pretty women, not people who wait on customers or know anything about beer or their beer drinking customers.
The tap selection is usually decent, but I am not so impressed with their overall bottle selection. It loos OK, but I rarely find things that make me happy. I can get a better selection from Giant eagle now, oddly enough.
Im always hoping for a big change, but it hasn't happened yet with the Bottleshop.
Aug 10, 2011
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Reviewed by dudasaj from California

3.73/5  rDev +1.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4
First time visit, not from the area. Passing thru and thought I would check out the bottle shop selection. Disappointed with the 12 door selection. All 11.2 or 12 oz bottles for 6-pack matching at $18 per 6-pack, $15 6-packs for domestics, Belgian bottles push it over $18. Very few 22oz or 750ml specialities and probably overpriced. Only 3-4 doors of actual craft beers.

Most of the location in dedicated to tables and bar seating. Very attractive waitresses, not sure about their beer knowledge. Was happy to see Green Flash West Coast, lagunitas IPA, Stone IPA, and Boulder Hazed & Infused.

My 1st beer was an excellent GF West Coast. 2nd was the Lagunitas IPA that was not correct, tasted like a blend of Chimay and a light pale ale. After 10 minutes of waiting she replaced it with a Blue Point Hoptical Illusion. She didn't inform a manager to insure it was the correct beer.
Like many other previous reviews, the service was slow at first, and parking at this location was challenging. The bar counter seats approximately 30 but there were only 20 people there and she didn't even mix and pour everyone else's drinks.

Now I'm just ranting. Guess I'm just accustomed to great service with better selection after living in San Diego.
Dec 22, 2010
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Reviewed by motherofalldogs from Pennsylvania

3.23/5  rDev -12.5%
vibe: 2 | quality: 4 | service: 1 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
I drive by this establishment daily, and I wish it could be my "neighborhood bar"...but it can't in its current iteration.

Each time I've been there, I've been largely ignored (along with whoever I'm with) by the wait staff. I arrive prepared to eat, drink, and spend money. I wait many minutes (minimum: 15 maximum: 25) for the server to acknowledge the humans who are seated at the table, so we can order some beers and grub. By the time I'm asked, "What can I get for you?", I'm usually so annoyed that I order a single beer and something small to munch.

Unfortunately, getting a second beer is just as difficult. Most times I end up NOT ordering another beer, because I really would have preferred ordering that beer 20 or 30 minutes ago. Once I wanted another beer, but was simply handed the check, as if it was up to the server whether I was finished with just my single beer and pub fries.

I've heard that if you're a dude with money or a dude with looks, you'll get good service here. Unfortunately, I'm a chick who likes interesting beer, which apparently doesn't get me good service.

I truly wish I could recommend this place, because the beer is terrific (selection and price), and the food is good. However, the service is horrific.
Oct 24, 2010
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Reviewed by mgbickel from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev +3.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5
This place has taken a few forms since its inception. The latest construction has opened up the floor plan nicely. Large "U" shaped bar in the middle of the establishment. Booths line one side and high top tables line the other. Coolers line the entire right wall.

Everything is clean and new. Lots of flat panel TVs around so you always have a view of what is playing. Good place to catch a game.

Service is good, but a little slow when the place is busy.

Great selection...they have rotating local and craft brews on draft and in the coolers. You can mix and match a six pack for one low price.

Good food...I haven't eaten here often, but when I have, it was good...not wonderful, but good.

Great place to stop by for a sixer. Can get really crowded on Friday and Saturday nights...but that is a good thing right?!
Nov 30, 2009
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Reviewed by sonicdescent from Pennsylvania

3.29/5  rDev -10.8%
vibe: 2 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5
Atmosphere- I'm torn here because the place looks really nice, but that's the end of the positives. This is setup to be constantly packed, even though they are currently doing construction. Music was way too loud and this bar seems to be trying to have it both ways. It reminds me more of a trendy hangout with craft beer as a bonus rather than the other way around.

Quality was about average, the beer that I had showed the tap lines to be clean and well kept, although it was a little on the warm side for the style.

Selection is above average, but in the near company of the Sharp Edge Brassiere, McGrogans, and Fatheads all within a short radius, there really isn't a reason to go here for something you can't find elsewhere. Probably the least varied selection in the area that still qualifies as a selection at all.
May 19, 2009
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Reviewed by Cylinsier from Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +6.5%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3
The setup of the place is a little weird. Seems like it used to be more of a fast food joint once upon a time and they moved in and did what they could. Gets pretty smokey at times. The quality is pretty good but nothing fantastic. The service is fine. The bartenders are pretty friendly and will chat with you. The selection is above average although not stellar. Lots of decent micros and couple imports but its mostly bottles. The taps are more of your run of the mill choices. The food is okay, not fantastic but the price is affordable. All in all not the best but I'll probably go back again.
Sep 28, 2008
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Reviewed by ecardwell1 from Pennsylvania

3.41/5  rDev -7.6%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5
Was very unhappy with setup of bar/restaurant. There is no order to the place. To get a table I was told by a bartender to "move quick before someone else gets it". There is no waiting list or hostess. There is no clear division between the bar/restaurant. On a good note, the draft selection was very good. Nothing special on draft to put it into the higher tier of beer bars. Bottles wise, the selection was varied and copious. I personally will not go back. There are many more establishments in and around Pittsburgh that are pleasing in atmosphere, setup, food, and Beer.
Mar 31, 2008
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Reviewed by JamesS from Indiana

3.35/5  rDev -9.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | food: 4
Stopped by yesterday on my way into Pitt. The place was fairly busy, but at the time they only had one server/bartender. She did her best, but it did hurt the service a bit. Even after another girl came on to the floor, they were still behind and I had to wait a bit longer than usual for anything I needed. Still, when she did make it by, she was attentive and friendly.

The food was good, I had an order of nachos (excellent) and some carribean jerk chicken wings (also excellent).

They have a nice selection of beers on tap, around a dozen or so I think, along with a very nice selection of bottles you can pick from. The singles selection is not the best for the Pittsburgh area, but it's still very nice.

The atmosphere was good, the servers nice to look at, and you could try several different beers each time you go in. It's a nice place.
Feb 17, 2008
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Reviewed by PittBeerGirl from Ohio

3.58/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
This is located in the newer strip mall directly behind a free standing Damon's along the main drag of Bridgeville just after the road that goes to Chartiers Valley High School and Traitor Jack's flea market.

The inside is small and has the atmosphere of a typical sports bar with several big-screen TVs throughout. There is a small open room with a few tables to the left.

The food menu has a variety of offerings that you would find at most Pittsburgh sports bars with foods that are great to snack on as well as sandwiches and the like. I found this food to be satisfying while drinking.

Our server was friendly-but didn't know a thing about any of the beer they offered. Luckily the place is small enough for you to see what they have on your own.

The bar is located to your right when you walk in and runs most of the way to the back. They have somewhere from 10-15 taps that range from plain BMC to BMC crafts, to imports that everyone knows like new castle, stella, guiness, and hoegaarden. SA and SN also. They also carry one East End tap. Not much different than your average bar (except for the East End). Their bottle selection is in the back of the store and they do have a decent bottle selection. Most of the craft beers that can be obtained in the area can be found here. They have decent pricing (for a Pitt. bar) also. Most 12 oz. bottles are from $3-5 for dine-in.

Overall I found this bar to be an excellent mix of BMC and craft selections. It would be a perfect place to take a friend that you are just introducing to craft beers. It's also one of the most affordable places to sit down and enjoy a bottle of craft beer in the area.
Jan 12, 2008
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Reviewed by Alkey from Pennsylvania

4.14/5  rDev +12.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5
I have read some reviews on this place and decided to give it a go. I must say it wasn't what I expected. My friend and I walked in and there was a bar to the right and lots of seating to the left so we grabbed a table. Our first waitress was there in a minute to take our drink and food orders. I asked for a draft menu and she told me they change up the drafts to often to keep a currant menu but instead began to tell me everything they had on tap from memory and there was a decent selection of good brews which I ordered an Arrogant Bastard from. They also have a number of self serve coolers for bottle take out that had plenty of great micros but I wasn't impressed with the $18 six packs take out charge but thats PA for you. I also ordered some wings and they were good but I don't see wings as enough to rate there food. Maybe next time I go I will try some of their other menu items. After a couple of beers and some wings it was off to the next place but I could see myself returning here because it was an all around good experience.
Jan 26, 2007
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Reviewed by powerpop from Pennsylvania

3.55/5  rDev -3.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 2 | selection: 4 | food: 4
This place has some good things going for it. The food is quite good, lots of plasma screen TV's tuned to sporting events, great bottle selection, nice ambiance of earthtones, coppers, etc. Not the best selection of taps in town, but better than most in the area. But who cares with a great bottle selection! However, the best thing going for the place are the staff. You have never seen attractive babes like these in any proper beer establishment anywhere! They may not know as much about beer as a beer geek bartender, but do you really want to look at a beer geek bartender all night long? Plus, the Belgian bottles are the most reasonably priced anywhere in the 'Burgh!
Sep 08, 2005
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Reviewed by aaronh from Pennsylvania

4.22/5  rDev +14.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
The Bottleshop is fast becoming a favorite of mine. They have a great selection of bottles, including some more uncommon offerings in the area, with a good emphasis on local beers. The tap selection is rather limited, about 12 or so, but the bottle selection is about 400-450. They also have The Burgh's newest craft brewer on tap, East End Brewing. Decent prices, good beer selection, decent food, a friendly and charming staff, and a location south of Pittsburgh. I think their only competition is Burgh's. Hopefully they do well. I'll continue to stop in occasionally. Worth a stop if your south of the city. Otherwise, hit D's, Sharp Edge, or the South Side.
Mar 28, 2005
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Reviewed by beergeek279 from Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +20.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Atmosphere: Pittsburgh Bottleshop Cafe is in a strip mall in Collier Township, behind a Damon's and Krispy Kreme. At the moment, there's not yet a lot of business in the strip, so there's plenty of parking always available. Inside, there's roughly about 10-12 bar seats and 6 or 7 tables and booths. The walls are painted a sort of pinkish-purple (I'm a beer drinker, not an interior decorator!) and though they have a few knick-knacks on the walls (beer mirrors and a few neons), the place is a bit sparse on the decorations. There is certainly absolutely no shortage of people there at almost any given time, though! Despite being obscured from Rt. 50 by Damon's, PBC usually has several people sitting at the bar and 3 or 4 tables full, and at night can certainly be standing room only!!! The crowd generally tends to be quite young, though there's also the middle-agers mixing in there quite nicely as well. Most of the people drink macros, but you can find several people in there drinking craft beer as well.

Quality/Selection: As far as beer goes, I certainly have no complaints when it comes to PBC. With 8 full coolers of beer, there's a selection for just about everyone. Yes, 2 of them are dedicated to macros, Heinken, etc, and I don't have a problem with that since it pays the bills! The remaining 6 are filled with quality imports as well as a very nice selection of craft brews; all of which are beyond reasonably priced! Though the stock tends to rotate a bit and its still finding an equlibrium, some of the more constant beers have been Stone, Victory, Troegs, Dogfish, Penn, alongside some more experimental beers for the area (at the moment, things like Smuttynose, Left Hand and Prohibition). Craft imports include a nice collection of Belgians that are more than fairly priced, several German lagers and the like; this isn't a place to find that out-of-the-way country beer, but a very solid craft import selection seems to be a better way to go.

Service: At first, the main complaint about PBC was about the servers and their lack of beer knowledge, and I can't say I would disagree. However, with a good bit of time and a bit of weeding out, the staff has grown to a decent knowledge of beers (though of course there's still mistakes...is there any place where every last employee knows everything about every last beer?).
That said, the main reason I go to PBC is because of the one-of-a-kind owner, Mark Davis, former brewmaster at Pittsburgh Brewing Company. To put into words just what Mark Davis brings to the Bottleshop Cafe is difficult; in addition to a knowledge of brewing beer as a Seibel grad, Mark has learned an exceptional amount about craft beer in the past 8 months, takes a true pleasure in cooking there, and when he's not at the oven takes time to sit down with EVERYONE who comes in and have 5-10 minute conversations with them. If I rated Mark Davis individually for service, I would give him a 5, since he sets such a superlative standard that a lot of other bar/restaurant owners could certainly learn a few things from!

Food: One of the maxims in the PA bar business is "come for the food, stay for the beer", and this is one of the reasons that PBC has flourished. As I said earlier, Mark Davis takes a true pride in making food, and it shows in the quality. The main things I've had are the sandwiches, including a Reuben and a simply fantastic pulled pork sandwich made with his own secret Chimay barbeque sauce (all the times I've been in there, he's never told me how to make it, and to be honest I don't want to know....some secrets should remain so!). A couple months ago, Mark brought in a new chef (mostly because he couldn't work 7 12-hour days a week, much as he tried), and Seth has definitely brought some unique ideas to the table, and will only improve the food!

Considering I've gone to PBC since it opened in April, a lot of people asked me when I'd do my BeerFly. Well, I wanted to wait until I could do justice, and now I feel I have. Since that first night I went down there, I've considered Mark Davis a true friend and someone that I'm honored to know, and after only a couple trips did I not have the dread of worrying about PBC closing shop (he's already paid off his business loans in full!!!). Though I'm in Morgantown right now, every weekend I go home I head up here, and it's a true treat to visit and still get awed at the beer and the service. Other places in Pittsburgh might edge PBC out on taps, bottles, etc, but this is easily my favorite place in Pittsburgh, and if it's become Pubcrawler's home bar then it's mine as well, and a place I'll visit many times in the future.
Dec 02, 2004
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Reviewed by crookedhalo from Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +11.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
Conveniently located off the Kirwan Heights/Heidelberg exit off I-79 in a newly constructed plaza, this place had offerings for every kind of beer drinker. Draught offerings ranged from low-carb I.C. Light, to Erdinger's Hefe, to Bell's Two-Hearted, to high-carb Corsendonk Brown Ale, with other styles of beer thrown in for good measure. Lots of bottles, hence the chosen name for the establishment, and lots of different styled glassware to appreciate all the different styles of beer offered. Food was good, I had a Guinness slow-roasted pot roast sandwich with sautéed onions and red peppers. Very tasty. Check it out if you're in the southern suburbs of Pittsburgh. I, most-of-the-time, take a 6er home with me. Very reasonable prices.
Jul 28, 2004
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Reviewed by cupbeerman from Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +24.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Pittsburgh Bottleshop Cafe is located off the Heidlberg exit of I-79. The bar is located in a shopping plaza located about a mile from the highway.

The bar itself has about a dozen taps, half of which are craft - Hop Devil, Bastard and Southern Tier porter, to name a few regulars. The bar however has about five coolers full of craft and import beers. As of this writing the number of beers available were about 250, with more coming in each week. The beers are usually fresh and they seem to turn beers over at a very good pace.

The bar staff gives you a choice of glassware and they have all the necessary types (pint, triple, wheat, etc.) They are still learning about the beers that they serve, so I would say that patience is necessary, but they are friendly people.

The bar is located on the right side of the building, with about a dozen stools and tables scattered around the place. While place has been getting very busy as of late, usually with a the business type crowd, I would say that place is usually quiet.

The food is prepared by former Pittsburgh Brewing Company brewer Mark Davis, and it is very good, with some of the recipes using beer in them (such as the Chimay bbq sauce).

This place is worth a stop, and soon Mr. Davis will start brewing his own beers.
Jul 19, 2004
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Reviewed by WVbeergeek from West Virginia

4.13/5  rDev +11.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
Brand spankin' new shopping district almost right off of I-79, big Miller LIte banner flying on the outside but don't let that stop you. You walk in to a spacious bar on the right with a slew of coolers containing almost predominantly craft beers and micros to the left. Tall tables line the center of the room with some booth seating running along the side of the wall not bad new place nice decor can't complain. The guy that really ties this place together is Mark Davis former head brewer at Pittsburgh Brewing Co., his side project all hands on supposed to be getting a small brewing system approved in the near future. Quality was excellent store just opened a few weeks ago great selection of go to crafts and semi rare imports and hit or miss rarities for micros like the Heavy Seas Saison. Either way I will be frequenting this locale as for the prices are great. No food on this visit but everything served up looked damn good. A side story that must be told after a free round of Hop Devils we were offered a mix of Iron City and Hop Devil when he was switching up a couple of the lines...needless to say it wasn't bad and it has a name "The Rusty Devil"

*Edit*

Each visit gets better to this place small menu very well done a lot of care has been put into all aspects of this business. Mark Davis and crew are looking at a win win business move here with the quality of the selection and hardwork and hands on approach they have made this place very warm and inviting. They have taken input from us local BAs and expanded the bottle list with our recommendations, now how cool is that?
May 28, 2004
Pittsburgh Bottleshop and Brewhouse in Bridgeville, PA
Brewery rating: 3.87 out of 5 with 4 ratings