This is only my opinion and the story of Spoonwood Brewing Co.

My wife agreed to join me in starting SBC after a full year of serious Beer-cations, which we primarily spent in OR, WA, CO and CA. The concept is that we are first and foremost a brewery that has a large and very nice tasting room, supported by some pretty delicious food.

Within 24 hours of Mary Lou agreeing to "do this", I had the property that we now call SBC. My search for a Head Brewing began and ended with Steve I. answering my add on the Brewers Guild website. The add was short and to the point and it resulted in only 1 reply. He's been on-board since the beginning, and it shows in the layout of the brew house and the product that is coming out of it!

Steve wanted more than to become our Head Brewer, Steve wanted to become an owner, which is fantastic, because not only does he brew terrific beer, he is now our partner and has brought the focus on beer, the edge we were searching for. Think "beer first" when coming here.

The State of Pennsylvania laws require breweries be able to service "meals", which forced us to either do the hot dog wheel, breakfast bar and chili menu or get serious about offering simple, non-heavy tastes that would compliment our beer. To that end, we are offering fresh, made daily wood fired pizzas, sandwiches and aps...No Micro-wave, no fryer, everything is made fresh daily, made for your order. Who else makes dough the day it's baked, fresh mozzarella from curd and sauce daily?

Back to the beer! Most selections will rotate off of our 12 taps, to be replaced by seasonal and other twists on classic brews. Steve has a lengthy list of beers to come and I've asked for a fresh, green chili beer for the summer...The idea is to keep it fresh, just like the food.

The response to our opening has created some ire from visitors that want SBC to be a restaurant. We are doing our best to stay true to the Tasting Room/Beer Garden concept, which requires some patience, some common courtesy and above all else, the attitude that we share this earth with other like minded people.

It is disappointing for the owners of SBC when we read a negative comments about seating. We have added a Greeter to help explain that Beer Garden/Tasting Rooms are communal. Finding some common ground, in that we want people to have a good experience is a working in process. We not a sports bar, this is a brewery. Definitely work to be done here.

We certainly will get better and the warmer weather will allow everyone access to the back patio and lawn areas. We are working on improving the parking, the food, the service, the overall experience. All I can ask is that people understand that this is not a chain that we bought...we grew SBC from the ground up and we built it for the people of Pittsburgh and specifically for our fellow South Hills residents.

Craft Beer is such an exciting culture and we believe our friends and visitors will "get" that this is a special place, a gathering spot for laughs and the occasional tear! SBC is still rolling out the menu of beers and food, so judge us after you really experience the finished concept. Cheers, Grant Co-owner