The Brewtorium Brewery & Kitchen — Restaurant in Austin

A brewery, pretty hip, 'bier garten' vibes. It's on a back street off of Airport just north of 51st Street. Very near the train stop.

Food: The pizza looked good but ended up choosing the Buffalo schnitzel sandwich. About $13. It was very tasty. Quite small though, almost like a large slider more than a proper entree. Got the fries and the aioli. Both good but also a small number of fries. Loss of one star for that size thing. The menu does seem to be German inspired and so does the atmosphere.

Parking: Parking is kind of a punk but not terrible, the parking lot was very full and the spots were small, so be aware of this if you have a medium to large vehicle. There's also some free street parking, but seems less than ideal.

Beer: The first time I went to this place I got a beer flight, you can't see anywhere the pricing for the flight except online, and they only have 10 draught beers and you pick 5. Four of them are IPAs, and one of them is the same IPA with lime, so really just nine draft beers. That said, all their beers were good except I thought one of the IPAs was a little too fruity. Even though it was just labeled hazy. There was one labeled fruited hazy IPA that I did not try. Probably glad for that. Because I am an acutely aware human, as I was ordering the flights, I noticed that two of the beers were small 9 oz pours normally. I asked how they did that because if all the pours are 5 oz in the flight then that's a good deal. Only after I ask the question was it revealed they were going to charge it extra $3 per 5 oz flight glass (that would have been a 9 oz pour in a regular glass). The flight was normally $15 but ended up being more because of the $3 extras, but I really did want a proper selection and sample of their beers. I felt that $3 extra should have been told up front as soon as we picked one of those beers, but I think he was just going to let us order it and charge us for it which would have been pretty annoying. Also it's annoying that they charge extra for it anyway. That said...

Service: The service is one line, you order everything from the one line, so if you want another beer you have to wait in line again. The line varies a lot and moves pretty quickly so it wasn't a big deal, and didn't get a second beer anyway, but if one wanted one... Both of the people at the registers were seemingly well informed and courteous. No complaints there. It also appeared like you were supposed to leave your plates/ glasses on the table as I did not see anywhere...

One of my favorite places in the area. Beers rotate frequently and have a wide variety of styles, from super light day drinker beers to complex barrel aged stouts, you'll find something you like. All beers are offered in half or full pours as well, something I wish more places would do. They also offer ciders, wine, and draft sake, and some bottled non-alcoholic soft drinks. Water jugs and cups are scattered around the area for self service, and dog bowls outside. I'd heard since they recently started serving lunch (Fridays only for now), they are going to expand the non-alcoholic drink selection. They have events, shows, trivia, ect occasionally during the week, and these can sometimes get quite crowded despite the large area, probably a good idea to come early if you want to secure a table.

Food is also scratch made and very good. It's not the cheapest place to have dinner, but the quality is definitely above average. Not freezer-to-fryer typical bar fare. It would be nice if the pizza's maybe offered in a smaller/individual size at a lower price point, otherwise, one is good to share for two people.

It's in a large converted industrial building. The dining area is large with lots of open space. There's an outdoor patio in the back which allows dogs (Texas law does not allow dogs inside food serving establishments, that's not the staff "being mean" to you). There's lots of free games left out, and it's not a 21-up venue so families are welcome.

Thing is, something about this place makes it a magnet for entitled parents with small children who treat it like a daycare center. I guess big space+games= free daycare that serves booze? During the week it's generally fine, but weekends you sometimes can mistake this place for a Chuck E Cheese. Screaming kids running around everywhere, crashing into other patrons and servers, throwing toys around, crawling under tables, even playing in the restrooms making a mess. I've seen staff (very politely) confront parents now and then, asking them to please keep their kids nearby and to use their "indoor voices" for respect of other patrons. This usually is received as well as a fart in a crowded elevator. What? You want me to supervise my children and be respectful of others? How rude! They're just being kids! I thought this place was "kid friendly"! ONE STAR!

Great spot for date night or some weekend...

Beers are just OK but not great. With each pour I kept wanting one of them to excite me, none did. Food isn't that good especially for the price. My burger was the absolute saltiest thing I've probably eaten. Like someone was playing a prank kind of salty. Give up the pseudo gourmet deal and just offer legit good food. The mac and cheese was a watery mess that even my daughter who is 6 didn't enjoy. Not sure how you can mess up such a simple dish honestly. Felt like eating slightly higher end kraft mac and cheese from a box. The pizza was actually decent, I'll give you a b+ grade there. The problem is I really like this facility visually. The space is just plain cool. I was left with the impression however that the beer and food have played second fiddle to the design of the place. Sort of like an average homebrewer decided to go big time. Now ultimately I couldn't care any less what a brewery looks like if the beer is outstanding. Same for the food. Give me a filthy food truck in the parking lot serving great food at a fair price and I'm beyond happy. My advice to the owners, improve your beer and definitely improve your food. Everyone I know who has gone there feels the same. Take these critiques as thoughtful encouragement and step up your game. There are too many great breweries here now to be just so, so. Get those things fixed and you'll be one of the best places in...