V's Restaurant & Brewpub

This place is trying hard in a small town, and seemed to be pretty popular with the locals of all ages. The bar was mostly empty and the tables were mostly full, in a large building that looked like a former Wendy’s. Tile floors, rounded glass window in front, a long bar where the counter used to be. A loud regular at one corner of the bar chattered incessantly to himself, while a lady nearby, old enough to be his mother, slurred “I luff yhouu man”. One server had a tightly braided, waist-length rat tail. It was an odd scene, we stuck out as outsiders i’m sure. It was a pretty lively place, and more of a “family restaurant” outside of the bar area.

The house beers were ok, I was about to hang it up after a flight of six, and the Helles lager beckoned. It turned out to be the best beer of the night, hoppy and crisp. Really nice. The Mango Saison was pretty good too, but the IPA’s were kind of mediocre with an oxidized character. They had 14 beers on tap which was impressive. Ironically the bartender said “14 beers is too many for anyone to have”, which I thought was funny. Apparently they had 6 more taps in back, I thought it was weird when the bartender took my glass in the kitchen and returned with a full beer, as they had 14 house taps up front.

The food was ok, pretty standard. The hot beef plate was pretty good, and so was the homemade pie. Service was also standard, not outwardly friendly but knowledgeable. It was pretty busy, though the bartender stopped long enough to answer a couple of beer questions. I’m not sure i’d pass through town again, the vibe had a certain malaise about it, but V's is the only brewery in town if you’re spending time here. I think i'm starting to get what BA Mynie says about small towns along the Mississippi River in this area. Kind of insular and strange.