Tangled Roots Brewing Company - The Lone Buffalo

The beer is good, but the reason to frequent this place is the food. The regular menu is a crowd pleaser, and look out for the chef specials because they generally knock it out of the park. The overall vibe is pleasant, and the overall commitment to quality is obvious.

 

Visited here on 2019-04-21 after a long hike at Starved Rock State Park

There was easy parking on the street on this Sunday afternoon. The interior is modern, bright and 2 stories tall with good visibility to the brewing equipment. There were about 15 beers on-tap. I had a well-labeled flight and bought a 4-pack to go. The beers were adequate-to-good although not world class. I had a simple quiona salad with chicken, which was quite good. The other menu items looked interesting. The service was friendly. Definitely worth a stop.

Atmosphere is a clean, generic rustic-trendy style. In the restaurant, brew tanks are out in the open, behind the bar. Bright and sunny, with two, open stories. The bar is suitably dimmer with a similar aesthetic. Food was good, as was service. They had a couple dozen beers available. We had four in two visits, all of which were good.

A very nice place with great live music. Probably the Highlight is the service and knowledge of the bartender. I got a nice flight and he threw into extra one-offs for free. Good beer and atmosphere I would come again

 

 

Nice place, they put lots of money into restoring the building and putting in a shiny new brewery. Two story space, high open ceiling on the first floor, with a second story balcony dining area overlooking everything. Fancy white marble bar with a brass lamp fixture thingy at the end. Brewery was visible beyond the bar in the corner, ten gleaming fermenters stretched skyward. Decor was really nice, exposed wooden beams high above, and a mural of bison on the building facade. Restrooms were single occupancy, odd considering how huge the place was.

The beers were fairly average, the one standout was the seasonal Forty1-Eighty8. Their regular lineup was fairly boring, the IPA was all sweet caramel malt. Lager was ok but not assertive, APA was similarly bland. Barleywine was ok but didn't have much toffee or dried fruit esters, just sort of boozy and one note. Everything seemed to be very middle of the road in an attempt to somehow appeal to everyone.

Service at the bar was timely, but the guy never lingered longer than a few seconds to interact with us. Granted it was Saturday night, the place was somewhat busy yet manageable, only a couple of others at the bar. Overall it was okay, i'd like to return to try something off the dinner menu. Prices seemed a tad high for the area, most entrees were 20 and up. The crowd seemed like half were there on dates.

Kind of made me wish Radium City had a tap room.

In for an afternoon brew. Pleasant sized lunch gathering. My sister says weekend nights are basically by reservation. Very modern feel with higher end quality seating esp at the bar area. Server was very upbeat and attentive. Offered a brew not on the menu yet. Just tapped a curry coconut milk stout. Adequate selection of brews. Extensive wine and spirits list. Comprehensive menu. Did not eat but will definitely go back for the bison burger. Food looked real good coming out. I just don't have enough time to stay today. Overall I really dig it and will be going back.

Was there on a Sunday afternoon after a visit to Starved Rock, and there wasn't much of a crowd at the place so not much of a vibe to speak of. The people there were a mix of young and old, and the place reminded me of many commercial type breweries with a descent food menu. Quality of the place was good: very clean, plenty of space and you can see all the stainless steel vessels from the restaurant. Service was friendly, albeit a bit slow despite there not being many people. Food was very good with a wide variety of American cuisine options. There were healthier options as well which was nice. Beer menu wasn't enormous (maybe 8 beers at the time) but the two I had (Double IPA and West Coast IPA) were both quite well done for the style (citrusy with plenty of floral notes balanced by sweet malts).

I would recommend going to this brewery if in or near Ottawa, IL, and especially after a day of walking at Starved Rock.