Old Mill Brewpub & Grill

Old Mill Brewpub & GrillOld Mill Brewpub & Grill
Old Mill Brewpub & GrillOld Mill Brewpub & Grill
Brewery, Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

717 E Bridge St
Plainwell, Michigan, 49080-1801
United States

(269) 204-6601 | map
oldmillbrew.com
BEER STATS
Average:
3.68
Beers:
12
Ratings:
46
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.03
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
16
pDev:
8.93%
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by BlackBeerPirate:
Photo of BlackBeerPirate
Reviewed by BlackBeerPirate from Illinois

4.64/5  rDev +15.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.75 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Nice decor and very nice folks working there. We felt very comfortable there and ordered a nice lunch.
See the Pez Dispenser collection down the hall and a take a look at the banquet hall. I can this friendly rustic brewpub that I would visit several more times.
Sep 05, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of flagmantho
Reviewed by flagmantho from Washington

4.14/5  rDev +2.7%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 3.75 | service: 5 | selection: 3.75 | food: 4
I visited the Old Mill in Plainwell for some lunch and beer while passing through town a few weeks ago. When I was there, they had 10 beers on tap; generally representing a very traditional selection of American styles. I had the porter and the IPA; between them I definitely hav to give it to the porter, which at 3.9% I could drink all day. The stout was also quite decent.

The building itself is on the NRHP, and is a great old wooden mill building (as you might guess from the name). The brewhouse is on display, which I love. There's a cool big communal space upstairs and a rather remarkable collection of Pez dispensers, if that's your thing. Service at the bar is downright excellent: super friendly, knowledgeable about the building's history, etc.; some of the best I've had anywhere.
May 19, 2022
Photo of whitetale
Reviewed by whitetale from West Virginia

4.66/5  rDev +15.6%
vibe: 4.75 | quality: 4.75 | service: 5 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.5
Stopped in over Memorial Day weekend. Cool vibe. I like the way they took advantage of the old beams and character of the building. The wood added a lot of character. The selection of beers was very good. I had the hefeweizen - very tasty on a hot day. I tasted the cream ale - also very good. The Belgian Golden Strong was very good - took a growler of it. We had the potato skins and the whitefish sandwich served with fries, very satisfying pub food. I have to add that the service was excellent and very attentive. This is definitely a place for a return visit.
May 30, 2018
 
Rated: 4.33 by cards22 from Michigan

Sep 20, 2015
Photo of maumeefootball
Rated by maumeefootball

4.29/5  rDev +6.5%
vibe: 4.75 | quality: 4 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4 | food: 4.25
Very cool especially when the train stops and the engineer runs in and picks up lunch
Apr 07, 2015
 
Rated: 3.78 by Wingsman from Michigan

Mar 31, 2015
Photo of shivtim
Reviewed by shivtim from Georgia

3.6/5  rDev -10.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3 | food: 2
Old Mill is located in a neat renovated flour mill in Plainwell. Our group of 6 stopped in for lunch on a Saturday, and snagged the last available table. The building is pretty cool. They've put a lot of wood inside, so it looks kind of like a cabin. It's almost a bit too much of a hokey Cracker Barrel style "country cabin." We took a peek at the upstairs, and it's an amazing looking event space with the huge ceiling high overhead.

Service was super friendly, and a big-wig (owner? manager?) checked in on us. Beers were OK. Nothing wrong with them, just kind of middling. IPAs a bit weak. The big downside was the food. It's mostly sub-par bar food. The six of us all ate different things, and nobody was impressed. I don't know if the burgers are frozen, but it sure seemed like it. The dishes *looked* fine, but everything just tasted so-so, as if we were eating at some dive bar where the menu is mostly pre-made fried stuff and OK burgers. They need to step-up their menu a bit and add some more unique options, or at least stray from the lazy route of burgers and fried stuff at lunch. Maybe the dinner menu is better?
Dec 31, 2014
Photo of jbierling
Rated by jbierling from Michigan

4/5  rDev -0.7%
The staff was extremely welcoming and inviting.
Sep 07, 2014
 
Rated: 3.84 by kenny400m from Michigan

Aug 14, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by Robdiesel21 from Michigan

Aug 06, 2014
Photo of centurian62
Reviewed by centurian62 from Michigan

4.19/5  rDev +4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4 | food: 4.75
Old Mill is fast becoming my favorite local restaurant! While I'm not a fan of all the beers they brew, I know one person who is a fan of each so they are obviously doing something right! The owner will greet you at your table and thank you for your patronage, a nice and refreshing touch! I had a problem with my meal and it was promptly taken care of and I felt appreciated as a customer! I highly recommend you stop in. If I had my way I would drink their stout all day long as it is their gem!
Jul 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Lynn from Ohio

Jul 17, 2014
Photo of Jackofallbrews
Reviewed by Jackofallbrews from Minnesota

3.64/5  rDev -9.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.25 | food: 3.75
Our first stop on this trip to Michigan was the Old Mill Brewpub & Grill is located in the historic 1870 Sunshine Flour Mill building, at one point the second largest supplier of buckwheat nationally. This is a newer brewery, located between Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids. I love the use of an old building that is full of character! The owner, Scott, was an incredibly energetic and dynamic tour guide. He would often jump up on chairs, tables, and ladders giving his talk in a rousing voice from such precarious positions! Honestly this guy reminded me a lot of my friend Tim Roets, who is opening his own brewery in Minnesota soon. The brewer, Phil was there as well, but was much more reserved. The day we were there, they were just upgrading from a tiny 1/2 barrel brew system and installing their larger 3 barrel system. They have a large banquet hall on the second floor that I'm guessing does well for events. They cater and have a full kitchen as well--we did try a nice bowl of chili and a salad while there. They had four house beers on tap during our visit including the humorously named Crazy Beaver Cream Ale, and a wonderful oatmeal stout. We even got to tour the creepy old basement which apparently was featured on a ghost hunting TV show in the past!
Jun 30, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Bung from Michigan

Jun 17, 2014
Photo of PapaGoose03
Reviewed by PapaGoose03 from Michigan

3.68/5  rDev -8.7%
vibe: 4.25 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 3.75
Our family group stopped here today for dinner and to try the pub's beers. The place is located inside a cool, old building with silver, corrugated metal siding that has been completely remodeled inside with plenty of wooden boards everywhere to keep the rustic feel to the place with all of the exposed barn beams, etc. There is a small bar with some seating and a TV, and table seating for probably 70-80 people. A covered patio is at the front of the building but I did not look to see how big it was.

There were 5 of the pub's beers listed on the board, but only 4 were available. The pub has a license to sell liquor and wine, as well as beers from other breweries, so there were 5 other beers on tap from other Michigan microbreweries. (Good ones too.) We liked three out of the four Old Mill beers, and gave them a grade of B- to B+. However, the Wooden Shoe Wheat tasted like some of my homebrew efforts, thus a D rating for it.

The food menu is typical for brewpubs, plus they had a couple of food items that were a little out of the ordinary. The quality was rated very good by everyone in our group.

The pub has only been open less than a year, but they have their beers dialed in (except one) like a well established brewery. I'd go back here again.
Jun 02, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by trginter from Michigan

Apr 28, 2014
Old Mill Brewpub & Grill in Plainwell, MI
Brewery rating: 3.68 out of 5 with 46 ratings