Surly Brewing Co. Beer Hall

Visiting the Surly Beer Hall was my birthday present to myself on a recent to Minneapolis, and what a present it was! Arrived around 6 pm on a warm Thursday evening in July to find at least 300, perhaps more people inside and out, enjoying the great beer, food and atmosphere. There was an hour wait for a table so we went to the bar and enjoyed Furious, Todd the Axeman, Overrated and Xtra Citra while taking in the scene. The bartender was super friendly and efficient. My only wish is that there were flights available; so many great beers to sample! One of my top three brewery experiences - the other two are Jester King & Jack's Abbey.

 

 

 

 

Really nice, huge beer hall with large selection of merchandise, around 20+ taps of Surly beer, decent food. Great place to hang out with friends. Less exciting atmosphere than before the shutdown, but still fun and socially distanced.

 

Came here during a recent work trip to Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

Tried the following:
Surly Heatslayer Kolsch (draft)
Surly Osmotar's Forest Mild (draft)
Surly Space Race - Double Dry-Hopped Hazy IPA (draft)

Beers ranged from above average to outstanding and the tap selection was strong.

Bustling, lively atmosphere at the upstairs bar; place was absolutely packed.

Service was great as the waitress did her best to engage me despite being super busy (much appreciated).

Had a custom pizza with hot peppers, tomato, and basil that really hit the spot. Also bought some schwag and beer to go.

My overall experience was fantastic, and I would definitely come back. A must-visit destination in my books.

I've been here a few times, always in the summer. Very big inside and out. The food is delicious and has a large selection of beers. Outside there is a lot of seating with little fires going and games to be played, mainly bags. Overall awesome atmosphere.

I My favorite spot in Minneapolis for beer. Huge venue with a lot to offer.

 

 

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Surly Brewing is near the University of Minnesota campus. It's a mega craft beer destination, similar to Stone in Escondido, California. You can tell the owners poured tons of money into this place. I think they did a nice job with the design. Near the entrance there's a gift store. Further in, you have a large area with bench tables and seating. I believe there was an outdoor patio area on the other side.

The production area was visible which I always feel is a plus when visiting tasting rooms.

The server was friendly. We ordered a charcuterie board and some other appetizers. The food was tasty. And, we shared a bottle of Darkness.

Very nice visit and met a friend from school I haven't seen in 20 years.

 

 

Food was great, atmosphere was great! Very little to complain about, plenty to praise! Felt much larger than a typical microbrewery as it is pretty large.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I miss Tim Manley

I've been to Surly quite a few times now, I go down every year for the Surlyfest event. They have a large and truly beautiful brewing facility if you take a tour. The beer hall is huge and has a very modern feel, though it does tend to be obnoxiously loud, and somehow manages to feel crowded . They tend to have 25+ beers on tap which is nice, and many are quite good (though they've been declining since Todd left). I've only ate there twice, food was pretty good, but was a tad overpriced. Overall it's a solid beer destination, they often get over-rated, and they've lost their mystique without Todd. But they still make some pretty solid beer, and do have a very nice facility.

This is the largest beer Hall I've been including my time in Munich. The place was "slow" and we still had a half hour wait for a table for food.

The hall spills outside to a large courtyard and tent. There were 27 beers on tap (all made by Surly). Excellent range of flavors.

We (four of us) ordered a Charcuterie board of three meats and two sausages. All of them were superb.

 

 

 

Love Surly...not a better place to spend a sunny afternoon in the Twin Cities.

 

*for out-of-town visitors - there are no cans to-go; it clearly says that on the website about growlers but that includes cans as well. Being from MA and looking to take some cans back to the hotel, I thought this was a pain in the ass. To be clear - this is on MN not Surly*

Swung by with the family (two kids) on a Saturday afternoon and the place was mobbed; that Google bar graph doesn’t lie - 3PM was busy as all hell. Use this as context for the review.

Goddamn huge space. Wow. Industrial vibe. I thought it was open seating like most beer halls I’ve been to but not the case; hostess said it was at least 40 mins for a table. Not happening for us. Pizza upstairs was also at capacity.

Long story short - no food and no chance to get any.

Beer line was long but moved swiftly. Wide range of Surly brews on tap - I opted for a pint of Todd in a branded Belgian tulip (nice touch).

Fires were going outside in 60-degree temps and, again, it was crowded. Wide range of ages with most being in their 20s; mellow Minneapolis crowd (from this Masshole’s POV).

Would’ve gladly posted up for a few pints if I was without the young’ins, but with Surly being on tap throughout the city there are lots of options to think about if you're lugging a family. If not - hit it up and soak up the vibe.

I'm from out of town and had an afternoon to myself. So, I went to the local brewery for some food and drink.
The restaurant is pretty spartan; a field of open tables and a long bar in a modern industrial room.
The beer selection is pretty broad from a single brewery; some heavy hitting hop-forward beers, some specialty belgian/sour beers, and some malt centric beers to top it off. I didn't count, but I'd guess 20 flavors, all over the spectrum, to chose from.
I tried the Bender (oatmeal brown ale), the Misanthrope (listed as a Belgian Saison, but much more sour than a saison), the Xtra Citra (Pale Ale--very hop flavor/aroma), and the Familiar (Belgian ale w fruit/vegetable notes).
All four were really delicious, and I couldn't pick a favorite.
From the kitchen I had their baked trout. It was outstanding. It was all delicious, skin included.

 

One of my favorite breweries. Can get pretty busy at times.

This is an unbelievable popular place to come and drink and eat considering the location is a shit hole and not really easy to get to off the interstate But it is just a short walk off the Green Line. After all it has been a few years since newbies on this site posted with a Surly avatar and people have realized Surly is not the be all, end all of craft beer in the area. Arrived on a weekday right when they open and the parking lot is already half full. The place itself is huge. It has a cold, hard industrial feel that match the surroundings. Not helped by the heavy metal vibe, tattooed, pierced, and black-clad people that work and frequent the place. Certainly do not get a family vibe but I am sure children would not notice the idiocentric staff and atmosphere. I think you need at least a half a sleeve and a piercing other than in an ear to work here. The place screams cliche. But you are here for the beer, and to a lesser extent, the food. Both are top notch and presented as top notch. You will pay higher than ordinary prices as well but I felt it was fair for what I received.

There is a large beer selection that includes what is on the shelf as well as many taproom exclusives. Some of those beers will leave you wondering why they are not releasing those for retail instead of some of the turds they have recently. The pils is light, slightly sweeter than I prefer, but clean lager that I could drink all day and would prefer this over Hell but all that magic would be lost once it is canned. The 60 Below Rye IPA is the IPA that I have been wanting all my life. A proper IPA without all the haze bro drama.