Brewery Vivant

The burger and bone marrow are awesome. The beer is also awesome. Definitely come here, or maybe don't, so I can have it all to myself.

I visited Brewery Vivant on the recommendation of a friend a couple weeks ago when I was visiting Grand Rapids. They had 16 beers on tap when I was there, plus a cider and some cocktails. They seem to focus on sour, farmhouse, and fruit beers, and had a really good selection within that wheelhouse.

Fennel Countdown peach fennel sour is the standout for me; I also tried the rooibos tea farmhouse and the straw barb fruited sour. The IPA was the weakest link for me, but that's not a surprise given the brewery's focus. Overall, I quite enjoyed the beers.

Taproom is a former funeral parlor and has a real church vibe; stained glass accentuates the old-world feel of the place. Service up at the bar was super friendly, nice and knowledgeable. They have a kitchen as well, and as I visited toward the end of my day, I had an order of fries which really hit the spot.

Visited on a Sunday afternoon. Plenty of parking streetside and behind the establishment. Housed in a former funeral home it is very nice. Plenty of tables and booths and a nice outside area. Good selection of beers. The usual year round group with a number of seasonal pours as well as two experimentation taps and four selections from their "cousin" brewery across town. Staff is very friendly and helpful. We tried the pretzels and beer cheese, which was good. All four beers in my flight were excellent. This was on my list of locations that I had been wanting to visit and I'm looking forward to going back someday.

Brewery Vivant is located inside an old church, which instantly lends some impressive character to the place. I came on a Monday night, so it wasn’t too busy, and I didn’t eat. Service at the bar was impeccable, with a server offering tasters of a few beers.

Second visit (last 2 years ago) - long way from northern Alberta. Saturday around noon - busy though not packed - cool location - old funeral home - stained glass and church like. Booths and communal tables (we sat at a communal table - chatted with 3 fellows from Philadelphia).
Server was very friendly and attentive - offering good tips.
Excellent selection of beers with a farmhouse bent - I had the Vivant Flight - giving the sour to my daughter (24 year old daughter to be clear), loving the other three ($10 for flight of 4 5 oz beers). These are great beers.
Had duck nachos which are delicious and chocolate plate between 3 of us - great.
Excellent merchandise area and selection. Must visit in Beer City.

 

 

Everything is killer here. Cheese board is top 3 in GR.

 

 

 

 

 

Stopped by on a weekend trip to Grand Rapids. Almost missed the entrance in dark, as it's covered by a black-tent entrance, I assume for the winter. Upon arrival, you're greeted at the door by a hostess at a lecturn, behind whom is a wall of merchandise. Upon entering the main room, there's a floor full of tables, and the eye is immediately drawn to the bar at the back of the room, which is illuminated by a stain glass window. The building is reminiscent of Salt Springs Brewery, also a converted church; but where Salt Springs is light and airy, Vivant is dark and intimate. Beer selection is quite nice, as long as you like sours and Belgian style ales. Food's on the expensive side.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excellent beer. Excellent food. Excellent atmosphere. Excellent service. The Duck Confit Nachos are extraordinary. My favorite brewery in all of Beer City.

One of my most anticipated stops in Grand Rapids. The building is beautiful and the selection is pretty nice. Everything else ended up pretty short of my expectations. Something was off about everything. The service, the beer quality. I was pretty clearly not enjoying my beer and the server basically told me I didn't understand the beer. That was nice.

Really enjoyed my visit to the GR brewery

Cool multi room place with a couple pleasant out door dining options

Loved the Belgian inspired beer and super tasty food. Very friendly and professional service.

As a bonus there is a gift shop, stocking all sorts of brewery related items, including a load of cans and bottles of Vivant's high quality brew

Well worth a visit if you are a local or like me, visiting the area...

 

 

I don't know what the fuss is about this place or how they got so many awards but I wasn't impressed with a single beer. I love sours and IPA's and had 4 of each yet each drink was a chore to finish.

 

 

 

Vivant has a diverse selection of quality beers including an experimental beer or two on tap. Their food is also phenomenal although expensive ($17 bacon cheeseburger?!?). The service, however, has been sub-par the last couple times I've been here. They also recently added a strict 4 beer limit per customer.

 

The besf part of this visit was the young dude up front that was highly knowledgeable abou the beer. Great hospitality in which hebthrew in an extra beer with my flight. Had an amazing burger. Beer selection was very good in which BA BARLEYWINE WAS THE HIGHLIGHT. Easy to get to.

 

 

 

 

 

The vibe is cool, being in a chapel of an old funeral home, and it was the first LEED certified brewery. It is a bit loud though, just the acoustics, it can be hard to hear people at your table when it's busy. There's no TV, it's not a sportsbar. The Service by the waitstaff has always been great, front of house is usually okay, they sometimes seem distracted. Selection, well, they do have their mission, they are a Belgian Style brewery. You aren't really going to get a knock your socks off Imperial Stout or Double IPA or Lager here, but they know what they are, they have a vision, and they are doing a good job at making Belgians.

The food though.. That's where this place shines. The Burger is the one of the few burgers that they charge over $10 for, and it's actually worth it. Most of the menu does rotate around, seasonally, so don't be afraid to branch out, but what you love on one visit might not be there on your next visit. I had a beef shortrib sandwich there a few years ago that was amazing, but sadly, I haven't seen it back on the menu. Be aware though, they do tend to cook things on the cooler side of the doneness that you request. Outside of the high end steakhouses more towards downtown, I think this is probably the best restaurant in Grand Rapids.