Tag: portside

On the Tracks

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, BreweryLeave a comment

There are kind of two strategies when it comes to picking the location of your brewery, restaurant or other entertainment spot. You can either try to tap an area with few challengers or you can go to where the foot traffic is. In Cleveland, we saw Portside close at least partly due to their location. Railroad Brewing Company decided to open up in the ever growing suburb of Avon, Ohio. Avon is by no means a brewery hotbed like Ohio City but with a couple of wineries, another brewery and plenty of suburb dwellers that may be looking for a spot not too far from home, it could be a great location for them. It can provide the traffic needed without being lost in the shuffle.

Railroad is a taproom only but you’re welcome to bring your own food in. It is a big open space with a bar and picnic tables that opens up to the outside. They have a large outdoor space surrounding their building which I think could lead to some exciting events in the future. Plus they are dog friendly.

The beer was pretty interesting and provided very unique flavors. The B.O.B., a blood orange Blonde Ale, was very flavorful but not overpowering. It was easy to drink and would be great on a summer day. I also tried the collaboration beer for Cleveland Beer Week and enjoyed that one as well. This tap room is a nice addition to the West Side and to the ever growing Cleveland beer scene. A growing beer scene that never seems to stop.

The Beast Within

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, RestaurantsLeave a comment

Cleveland keeps producing more and more breweries. While Portside did close a few weeks ago, the breweries that produce quality beer I believe will stick around. Saturday night we went out to another.

Noble Beast Brewery is a relatively new brewery having opened up in the late spring of this year. The brewery has that industrial feel as it sits on Cleveland’s Lakeside Avenue not far from the heart of downtown. The location does not get a ton of night foot traffic but is close enough to other areas that it should do fairly well.

They have a good selection of their own beers on tap as well as several guest beers. I’m always a fan of a brewery willing to put guest beers on tap. My favorite beer of theirs that I tried was the Widowmaker. That beer could kill you if you have a few of them or unleash your inner beast. I truly appreciate the name Widowmaker there. I also tried Kolsch and IPA which were both tasty beers as well but the Widowmaker was my favorite by far.

The food was perfect for the place. Simple but with flavor. We had the pretzel and the zesty fries. The kick on those fries was perfect. I was a little worried they may be spicy, or too hot, but they were just right. Well done on those Noble Beast. Overall, everything was really solid. It’s a well run brewery with a very friendly staff that remembered my name quickly. That personal touch is what will enable them to succeed.

Whiskey and Beer in Cle

On By Chris ElliottIn Alcohol, Brewery, Distillery, Restaurants, whiskeyLeave a comment

The Cleveland Brewery Scene is growing rapidly. Cleveland Scene just wrote a large article about it. It’s a well done article you can read here. While there may or may not be a bubble, it is great for the beer lovers of Cleveland that so many places keep popping up. A few weeks ago I visited Portside Distillery and Brewery for the first time. This place has been open since 2015 but I had yet to stop in.

What makes this place unique in Cleveland is that they not only brew beer but they are a distillery. Not many places out there do both. That is a nice addition to the traditional brewery. They have a good variety of beers and the pretzels were pretty good as well. This location near the water is pretty spacious and when I went on a Sunday afternoon provided a good laid back spot to have a Sunday Funday. Once thing I do regret not trying was the whiskey but it does give me a reason to go back and try it again.