Lake Bluff Brewing Company

What I like about a bunch of the breweries located not too far from the lakeshore in Lake County is that they tend to be located pretty damn close to the train station, allowing tramps like me to sample their wares relatively easily utilizing only public transit. Dig it. Lake Bluff Brewing is one of these places, located in an upscale-feeling strip in downtown-adjacent Lake Bluff, just across the street from the Station. A nice place inside, if a bit on the small-ish side regarding seating (admittedly, more could potentially be in the rear of the place, but I did not venture beyond the bar in my brief visit, save to pet a cute little bulldog friend), there's plenty of darker woods and earth tones, reminding me of a British pub of yore or somesuch. A couple screens allowed me to catch part of the Cubs/Cards game, even though I have no skin in that matchup whatsoever outside of my disastrous fantasy team. Not the broadest range around on offer, but there was a blonde, a brown, a kolsch, a hef, and a few IPAs at least, along with some guest macro/import lagers to balance things out a bit, I guess. Not gonna lie, the beer leaves plenty to be desired, as none of them really tasted all that great to me (I think the brown came the closest, and that might have been the nitro tap smoothing out some of the raunchier edges). Bartender was attentive and helpful, good bloke all-around. No idea about food being offered, wouldn't have had any if I did know, so nothing to report there. Overall, I feel like the craft world has mostly lapped this place a few times, leaving it a vestige of the old, when-craft-was-still-kinda-new days. It's clearly a nice hangout spot for locals, and I could understand digging the ambience, but the beers certainly would not keep me coming back by themselves.

 

Nice spot with a few tables outside facing the square in downtown Lake Bluff.
Inside is a small shotgun shaped space boasting a clean spare design with booths to the right and a bar seating about 8 on the left. The walls are covered with a variety of art for sale and the vinyl records available for play make for a fun vibe.

A full range of well brewed beer includes the classics, not chasing hazies. Kolsch, red, brown, IPA, stout, hefe, and a nice blonde.

Service is knowledgeable, friendly, and not pushy.

Food is from the neighbor pub and is well done.

A great local stop on a walk with the dog, or home from the train, or a start to a more exciting evening.

Nice micro brewery. Great vibe. Wonderful friendly service. Love the vinyl aspect - fun music selection. Definitely a nice place to stop in if anywhere nearby. Would gladly go back.

Great place, classy and tasteful bar with helpful staff. They have a large vinyl record collection and I believe you can bring records to play as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In tiny downtown Lake Bluff.

Inside it is really small but nice. I went there at 1ish on a Saturday and it was moderately full. Probably 20 or so people, which fills this place pretty nicely because it is so small. The bar was full so I sat at a table. There is some modern folk music playing and only 1 tv which is nice.

I ordered a sampler of some of the higher gravity beers as well as a pretzel. The beers were for the most part solid, one of them was a bit of a dud but in general pretty good above-average brewpub stuff. You can tell the brewers are probably younger and more inexperienced though.

The service was pretty good, the pretzel took a bit but not too long.

Overall a pleasant little place. They also sell growlers.

Sharp little spot in Lake Bluff, an area i've never visited before today. Tiny little bar room, square layout with booth tables on either side, and a bar for 8-10 patrons in the back. Grey and slate blue walls, with modern framed photography on the walls. 9/10 taps pouring, 7 beers listed on the board above the bar, with a "brew schedule" board to the left, listing upcoming seasonals and their brew dates. Down the back hallway is the small kitchen, a small room with two brite tanks, and immaculate restrooms in the back. Out the back door, there was an ample parking lot, though there was plenty of street parking outside on a Sunday afternoon.

The thrust of the beers here is small batch, fresh and local, in a variety of styles. The Hard Tail DIPA was the highlight, and the Bohemian Blonde was 2nd. Beers were all of good quality, nothing was extract, everything was fresh and clean tasting. There were a few people stopping in, also seemingly trying the beer for the first time. They offer 4x4 oz. samplers for $9, which seemed a touch high. Growler fills were $15-23, plus the cost of a new growler.

Food was limited to a few appetizers and sandwiches. We tried the hot pretzel and hummus, which were pretty good beer snacks, but not much hearty fare was available. They do work with Wisma and the local butcher for their sandwiches.

Service was pretty good, one guy was a definite beer geek, and the other bartender was prompt and chatty with us. Mike the brewmaster was leading a tour, and we also chatted with some of his relatives at the bar. Overall a welcome local brewer in this sleepy, upscale suburb.

This is an awesome addition to Lake County. The guys there put so much into this little store-front brewpub--beautiful furniture and bar, not to mention their beers. Unfortunately when I went was just after their grand opening, during which they almost sold out of all their beers. They did have two of their own on tap and they were amazing. Hopefully they've figured out how to keep up with the demand!
Their hours are conducive for weekend tasting. They had at least two days a week not opened (Monday and Tuesday), though I know they had some issues with the local government, so they may have more hours in the future.

I really enjoyed the look and feel of this new place. It's brand new and I can't hold the limited selection against them. The design is beautiful and the wait staff is amazing. Both times I was there it was packed with people ecstatic to have a local brewpub (literally standing in a short line at opening). They have a handful of house beers and two guests taps that could be more inspired. They might not have grown the balls to offer something like Alpha King alongside their own beers quite yet - but I'm hoping they step up their game.

In the end I will look forward to being back every time I'm in town. While there are a few other microbrews within 20-30 minutes of LBBC, I doubt any come close to the commitment to the beer like these guys do.

A great addition to the "downtown" Lake Bluff scene. Three weeks old I am told, and the place was bustling. Nice small tasting room - very aesthetically pleasing. Good buzz in the room, and the patrons seemed genuinely excited to be trying the beers.

On the brew front, the product is fantastic. Clearly not looking to hit just a single - the menu featured a nice selection of 4 different brews - a Saison, a Pale Ale, a Belgian Dark, and a Bourbon Infused stout. Available for purchase in pints or growlers. Each one was quite good, and the staff knew a lot of the beers and were ready willing and able to talk them up with you.

There's a very small menu we didn't try - about 4 apps, 4 sandwiches and a few deserts. They sounded good to me, but I can't speak to how good they are. Good concept though - seems like they don't want to get bogged down in food, and the beer is the focus.

Great place to stop in you are in the area, perhaps visiting Lake Michigan. And if you live in the neighborhood, who can beat walking access to a high quality microbrew???

2012 update - selection of beers is quite hearty. Lots of hop bombs. Enjoy it greatly, but wouldn't mind something a little milder toi build up to the heavy hitters.