Brew Kettle and Hoppin' Frog questions...

FWIW, the last batch of White Rajah is extremely fresh, resiny and delicious. I finished off a 6'er this week...Probably the best I've ever had it.

 

IF you can't for some reason find any WR there in the Cleve area, places in Columbus have it by the case. There were probably 10 cases of it sitting at Savor Growl today when I delivered a keg there.

Only suggested since you said you'd go through Columbus to go home.

 

I've never seen white rajah in any Marc's.

 

Fat Heads Saloon & Brewery in North Olmsted is closer to 15-20 minutes from the turnpike. I work right by Brew Kettle and practically drive by Fat Heads on my way home, so I can tell you for sure how far each place is from the turnpike. For Fat Heads, you'd take 71N to 480W to Clague Rd. Keep in mind they've had White Rajah on tap since Sunday (when I was there last), so it's not a guarantee it'll still be there by Saturday. Same goes for bottles of Wulver but since a lot of places seem to have it, you have pretty good chances of securing some at Fat Heads. You can get it to go too.

Fat Heads really has outstanding food and beer. The service can be a bit off at times. You don't want to go there around 6-8 on a Friday or Saturday.

The Brew Kettle is pretty similar in terms of food, beer, and service. Neither place is great for having a quick bite to eat and hitting the road. If time is much of a concern for you, which I could understand given your trip, I'd suggest Brew Kettle because it's going to save you about an hour altogether. Access-wise, it's MUCH easier to get to Brew Kettle from the turnpike than to go to Fat Heads and back to the turnpike. Plus, traffic on Lorain Rd in North Olmsted (where FH is located) will be a nightmare this time of year. Also, there aren't many good places nearby Fat Heads to pick up six packs.

Don't get me wrong, I'd prefer Fat Heads any day of the week over Brew Kettle, but given the circumstances it might be easier to get to Brew Kettle. BTW, TBK tap list shows they do have White Rajah on tap now.

The Heinens in Strongsville has a great selection of beer, so you have a good chance of getting White Rajah and Wulver there. I might head over there at lunch tomorrow so I'll check to see what they have. There's also a Giant Eagle (grocery store) about half a mile from Heinens that has a decent selection. They will probably have White Rajah if Heinens doesn't.

I would never, for any reason, buy beer at Marc's.

 

You can't go wrong with Hoppin Frog. Their food is out of this world. It's a little pricey, but it's damn good. I can't believe such a young establishment started off with such great food. I was there when they had a silent opening and it's been awesome since day 1. Hoppin Frog doesn't open before 5 on weekdays because there are other businesses across the parking lot as well as 1 on the end. I predict within another 5-10 years, they will buy out all of the remaining business spaces.

Personally, I think Hoppin Frog is leaps and bounds above Brew Kettle in both beer and food. Fat Heads is about on par with Hoppin Frog though. I love White Rajah, but that's about all I love about Brew Kettle. The rest of their beer and their food is average at best.

Also, if you go to Hoppin Frog, then you can visit Thirsty Dog too. They are only 5-10 minutes apart.

You're making a mistake skipping Hoppin Frog, but if you must, at least go to Fat Heads.

 

If you don't buy the white rajah in the strongsville area (where its freshest), they don't put a bottle date on the bottle. They put it on the case box. If you don't see any boxes I'd ask someone to see a case box if they still have it to see the bottle date.

Right now it looks like the brew kettle has both white and black rajah on tap. Even if they don't happen to have 6 packs of white rajah there you can at least get a growler of the black rajah to go. That's a tap only offering and is really good.

If you do decide to go to Heinens the Revolution IPA cans just came in as did the Jackie O's mystic mama. And they had White Rajah on the shelf when I was there yesterday.

 

You aren't going to find a lot of healthy options on fat heads menu. There is a reason it's called fat heads!

 

You're welcome!

I wouldn't listen to Google Maps in that situation. That would take you wayyyy out of the way and 480 is a 60-65 whereas the turnpike is 70, so it's much quicker to take 80 to 71 N to 480 W, then back the same way. You could also take Columbia Rd north, get on 90W then that will meet back up with 80 W. Of you take that route, Lizardville in Rocky River isn't too far out of the way and will have the best selection around. They don't sell six packs of 99% of the beer they have, but it's a great selection. I just picked up BA Siberian Night and Wulver there. They always have White Rajah as well.

 

I went to the Strongsville Heinens at lunch and they had a HUGE display of several cases of white rajah. I didn't check the dates but I'm sure it's pretty fresh. It's kind of on the other side of all the beer. I didn't see it at first.

 

This. This is exactly what I'd do if I were coming from that direction as well.

 

I went to fat heads for happy hour and enjoyed their new holiday cookie stout. If it lasts until tomorrow you should definitely try it! They still have white rajah on tap.