BREWHAUS 31 — Restaurant in Algonquin

03/22/25 meet up with a buddy around the area and decided to give Brewhaus a try. We both like pizza and figured its worth a try. The good: pizza is pretty good, staff seems to be pretty good as well (we sat at the bar so didnt really have a dedicated server) a lot of different drink options when it comes to beers.

The bad: ordered a pizza and requested no mushrooms as my buddy and do NOT like them, after about 45mins the pizza came out and mushrooms under the cheese, all over the top of the cheese. So we commented that we ordered without mushrooms, bartender said she can take it back and have a new one made, but we weren’t about to wait another 45mins for another pizza to be made. So we tried to pick off the mushrooms as best as we could. Before ordering food we both got an old fashioned with buffalo trace, bartender gave us our drinks and with ice, fruit the glass was only half full ( rocks glass sized glass so not a very big glass) which doesnt seem like a big deal. But at $18 each, its a pretty big deal, as the value isnt there at all. Next round we ordered was a high noon and a budweiser, the bartender took that off the bill to comp for the pizza mistake, and thats the only resolution to the pizza mistake, which is bogus in my opinion. Waited 45mins for a pizza for it to be wrong and the only resolution is under $10… keep in mind this was prior to the dinner rush. Also, there was another bartender there that was rather unmotivated to do much. We both had our used dishes and silverware pushed to the edge of the bar infront of us, same with our empty drinks, for quite some time and just stood there most of the time leaning on the counter, arms crossed and would go by the couple sitting next to me a couple times for the duration we were there. Never asked if we wanted another round or if he could take our dirty plates away or to even ask if we wanted another round.

I come here to give review on what they can improve on and not to bash on a business. This is my take away and i dont think ill go back nor...

We drove past here and were very excited to try it out (love the self pour concept). We'd already eaten dinner with family, so we stopped in purely for the beers and maybe darts. The facility is top notch, and seems like could easily be a regular hangout for locals.

Unfortunately the main reasons we stopped is what I am rating the review upon as the food we saw coming out of the kitchen did look great quality, and the tables there eating all seemed to be devouring the food happily. I know the place is new, and I'm sure the setup cost a pretty penny to complete, and that is where the first dropped star comes from in my review. Darts were $20 for a 30 minute rental. I could see $10 (maybe at a pinch $15) for 30 mins, especially since nobody was on the 3 lanes for the time we were there. That could also be a business opportunity if the lanes are empty for a period of time and there are plenty of customers, offer a discounted rate to them via their servers. That would both keep customers longer (buying more drinks) plus bring in revenue for the lanes that are sitting idle.

And the second dropped star was for the beer. They had a nice selection available, but there were two main issues with them that we experienced (YMMV). First, the prices are pretty rough. Cheapest beer I think was $0.58 per ounce for a simple pilsner. So a standard 16oz pour will set you back just over $9. The local Hoptopus from Crystal Lake Brewing was $0.78 per ounce, so a 16oz pour was $12.50, for a standard IPA. And this beer also contributed to the dropped star, as it was flat. The More Brewing Triple Dusty (I was looking forward to this one) was $1.10 per ounce, so a 10oz pour (it is a DDH Triple IPA after all) costs $11.00. And this beer was over carbed resulting in half glass of head (not sure how their measurements of pour counted towards that).

We feel this place has great potential, and wish them...

We choose to try the newly opened restaurant but left confused, hungry, and not willing to return.

The good, the bad, the ugly?

The GOOD?: parking is decent for the location. Visual of the beer taps is intriguing.

The BAD: Dining sitting is very uncomfortable, color choices are hard on the eyes, restaurant is trying to do too much, with no idea of a true concept of a brewhouse. With a small takeout pizza area in the rear, slot machines (somewhere), self serve beer, family board games, darts (with no barrier protection - sit near the darts area at your own risk), & a lengthy QR food menu (all selections from a Sysco truck). The service was not terrible but explaining the concept of how to access the menu or how to try the taps would have been helpful.

The UGLY: The floor is black in color with white powdered footprints everywhere (as if construction was rushed); wish they at least attempted to clean up the floors. Menu & ordering concept is extremely confusing via QR code; must have smartphone to access. The bread knots that are complimentary were way over cooked and could knock someone out with how hard they were. The food was extremely basic when the focus should be on the beer with food that pairs well with the taps.

All in all, it was our first and last time there unless some changes are implemented.

Suggestion to the owners is to determine what theme they want to go with and stick to it. The concept now is almost melting every American Bar theme and hoping for the...