Taps Fish House & Brewery

I visited Taps while in town a little while ago for dinner & drinks with some friends. It's laid out more like a nice restaurant than a brewery, which, I suppose, is what they are going for. Food was very good indeed, as was the service.

There were perhaps a dozen house beers on tap when I visited, of which I had two: the Irish red and the grapefruit IPA. The red was competent but not outstanding, and the grapefruit IPA was pretty good. To me, this feels like it's not really a must-go beer destination, but good medium-high-end food and a decent enough collection of in-house beers.

 

Rather expensive fish house with that old fashioned "high end" feeling; a new place made to look old but nicely done none the less. Much more a restaurant than a brewery. Beers are decent but nothing average/average plus.

 

As a resident nearby, I have made a couple trips to Taps Irvine during its happy hour, and each experience has been more than pleasing. Taps Irvine takes on a different vibe from the Brea chapter, offering a separate bar area from the rest of the restaurant, and a much larger outdoor patio. During happy hour, finding a seat around the bar is difficult, showing how much of a hit Taps already is locally.

25 taps behind the bar, many pouring house beers, some pouring duplicates, and others with guest beers. 14 different house beers pouring, from the classic Irish Red to Poseidon Double IPA. Loakal Red and Two Hearted IPA pouring among the guest beers. An extra 6 bottles are offered, highlighted with Remy's Papy and Allagash Curieux. Pours are fresh and are mainly served in goblets, with smaller pours into stange-like glassware.

Regarding food, seafood is Taps' M.O. I was delighted to see that charcuterie plates were being offered as well, great for snacking while drinking a beer. I find the cheese plates to be the better value for money versus the happy hour composition of meat and cheese. Pizzas are very good too, and during happy hour see a major discount. Beers run for $5 during happy hour (Monday-Friday, 3-7pm), giving the Irvine Marketplace three solid to good places (along with Lazy Dog Cafe and BJ's) for happy hour and good beer.