Notch Brewing - Brighton

 

Stopped at for lunch and a couple beers. Wish could have spent longer. Part of the Speedway building complex, inside there is a serving bar, communal tables and then more communal tables outside in the central courtyard. 12 beers on draft - mostly German and Czech styles served in appropriate half liter or liter glassware. I had glasses of the German Pils and the Tmavy, both excellent. They had German Style snacks available- the Pretzel, Smoked Trout Dip, and Landjager were all good. Server at the bar were helpful and the food came out quick.

 

Notch- where dreams of the truly lager-focused can come true!

The place itself is barely a taproom, but it's excusable as it exists within the framework of a large food court-type courtyard area. There are production and industrial elements here, but they are really stuck in a corner so that this location works both as a food stall and a spacious overflow seating area. On my trip, I had two strange dudes try to sit with or very close to me in an essentially empty room, but that's not the fault of Notch.

The beers were all delicious and served in proper glassware. There was enough of a selection that I enjoyed three different beers without being forced to choose any of them. If you like lagers, you're going to be happy here. I will also shout out the food menu here. While limited, the options all make really good beer snacks, and if you'd rather have pizza or japanese or empanadas, they are available! (through one of the other vendors in the courtyard)

Service was fine. I got attitude from the uber-hip young person working the bar here despite being the only customer. The person working the Notch food kiosk, however, was very nice. It was a little annoying that I could not bundle my food and beer tabs (both ordered from Notch,) but apparently that's only a temporary inconvenience that they're actively working on. The seating options were plentiful and varied, which I appreciated. Also awesome is that this little food court has its own free parking lot!!! I spent a good five minutes trying to figure out where to deposit $$ only to find there was no such place.

This was a 'pilgrimage' type stop for me as a lifelong lagerhead, but I'd recommend it to anyone looking for some refreshment, especially on a nice day where the open-air courtyard could be utilized to the best of your ability (don't worry, they also have indoor seating).. and the beer made me forget how awful that terrible woman was.

Absolutely awesome (though pricey) taproom/bierhall. Some of the best lagers in the country and good vibes plus board games, a tasty although limited food menu, and live music some nights. Not ideal to drive here but it’s a far walk from the closest T station and there’s actually ample parking if you get there early enough. Would be a regular if I lived nearby. Took a 4-pack of their Zwickel home and couldn’t be more impressed with this place. Just need to make it up to Salem now!

 

Hard to find and out of the way unless you are in the western part of Boston (a mile away from Harvard’s football stadium). Still, it was pretty busy on a January Saturday afternoon. Large space but not cavernous. There’s a larger Biergarten outside in the buildings atrium.

There were 14 beers on tap. Walk up service only with large picnic benches for seating. Food is offered but I didn’t see anyone eating. It’s intended to mimic the Biergartens of Munich and it succeeds.