Surly Abrasive Release Info

So, am I understanding this correctly, Surly is or is not serving menu items at this time? I've seen pictures on the Book Face that would lead me to believe so. I read elsewhere dining wouldn't open up until January.

 

They are serving their regular menu items in the beer hall. There will be a very small restaurant upstairs (you can walk around in there) but I was told it won't open until summer and their menu will be "very high end".

 

Interesting pictures...and article.

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/286371981.html

 

On the menu in the back, does that say $12 for a brat?

 

What does the tap beer list look like besides Surly? Anywhere to see it online? I've scoped out the website and found the food menu but no tap list. In the star trib piece it shows some Mikkeller glasses so I assume they have at least a few guest taps but it would be nice to know what they are before making the trek.

 

I think someone said in the other thread about the new facility that they can only server beer and their beer due to MN liquor laws.

 

Hard to see but the board shows 4 hands as beer 28 and Mikkeller as beer 29.

Photo is from the Star Trib piece.

 

You know what, I think they pulled that picture from a random persons twitter and it's not from the brewery. False alarm.

 

Agreed. Nothing in the new brewery looks like the photo. And I tried going everywhere.

 

This is not at the new Surly Brewery.

 

Per MN law they can only serve their beer...no wine, no mixed drinks, no guest taps.

 

I think your feelings are valid. Opening weekend and all but these fans/customers are the ones who paid for the brewery in the first place. Start alienating customers and that could change quick. There shouldn't be a sense that they are doing us a favor by letting us through the doors.

 

Easy dudes. Let's not overvalue our importance, now. This nit-pickiness reminds me of my ever single homies waiting around for a 10. Hey brother, you can't snag a 10 if you're a 4. Let 'em work out the kinks, take a few deep breaths, and have a beer (maybe at home for now).

 

That pic above is from Mikkeller in Copenhagen. Surly does tap takeovers there sometimes, especially for the CBC.

If not for the restrictive laws here, we could see guest taps at Surly including Mikkeller, 3 Floyds, etc, etc...

 

This taproom/brewpub legal separation (in which a taproom can't serve any alcohol but that which it produces itself and a brewpub can't distribute offsite) is exactly what forced Barley John's to build its production brewery in New Richmond, Wisconsin instead of in Minnesota. Hopefully that's exactly the sort of anecdotal evidence of the unfortunate consequences of the law that will encourage state legislators to modernize it.

Schram near Waconia does operate a combined winery and brewery, albeit on a winery license, and it serves both on site, so Surly may have some leeway to serve wine in the unlikely event that it decides to make its own. I know that a brewery and distillery combined under the same or overlapping ownership cannot by Minnesota law have both a taproom and a cocktail room.

I do wonder if Surly could have, say, put the restaurant under the name of Linda Haug (brewer Todd's wife, the director of restaurant operations at the new brewery, and former owner of Cafe Twenty Eight), divested her of any direct ownership interest she may have in Surly, charged her rent, and then perhaps the restaurant could have qualified for a liquor license. Presumably Surly explored this sort of option but rejected it for legal or practical reasons.

 

Agreed- I just left and have to say we had a very nice experience! The place is beautiful, food is great (a little pricey) and the beer is as good as it has always been! So far, only one out of four "areas" open and I think they are doing a great job!

 

Yep, that's kind of the conclusion I came to after my initial knee jerk, alcohol lubed post. It was the lack of gratitude that really irked me for the most part, but they were slammed. This is new water they are swimming in, I get that.

 

I had the opposite impression. All of the staff I interacted with were smiling and friendly, despite getting their asses kicked for 2 days. Food was great, wait for a table was 20-30 mins less than quoted, service was fast. No complaints from me.

 

Also, the name of the place is "Surly", I for one expect some shtick.

 

Last dozen posts might belong in another thread about the new brewery (not Abrasive)....