Tree House Brewing - Saratoga Springs — Restaurant in City of Saratoga Springs

Please do not get me wrong, the atmosphere and layout of the place was gorgeous and the staff that served us were extremely friendly and kind. The line for a drink looks intimidating, but the staff moves through it with no issues and it seems like they’ve got it down to a science to get through quickly!

However, as my first time coming here, I was extremely off-put by my wristband being checked over and over again & asked for age verification multiple times.

At one point, a completely separate manager (who was very kind in helping me find my lost phone earlier this evening), came from inside the bar all the way outside to ask to see my ID again after I had already been carded by staff, wristbanded, and asked repeatedly if I had a wristband by every other staff member 20 minutes before. I gave my ID with no issues and he also asked to see my credit cards to verify the name. I have never had an establishment also ask to see my credit cards, but I don’t go to bars often so maybe it is a norm I’m not accustomed to. He never said why he needed to or explained why to me. He looked at them and went on his way, but I was getting so nervous and so uncomfortable about them verifying my age repeatedly, I even asked my mother to send my a picture of my live birth certificate just in case because it was so unnerving and I was feeling like I did something wrong or was under suspicion of being a minor - I’m just a short lady who is 24. I know I am small, but that was overkill. We left shortly after this happened because it was very weird and even customers sitting near us said something to us about it.

I understand wanting to make sure all those who are drinking of legal age, but for me to feel harassed while I’m watching other adults drink with their newborn to toddler aged children - basically running around the complex unsupervised and majority of those parents spending their time unbothered or without issue or being told to wrangle their children who are genuinely running freely and not being watched at all -but I’m the one being disturbed about my age and ability to be there severely upset me.

I probably won’t be coming back because it was so uncomfortable to feel harassed over my age and legality to be there enjoying myself while I watched the place be overrun by children and their halfway (which is nicely putting it) paying attention parents with a golden doodle dog show on the side. I did not feel welcome really at all and was not sure why I was specifically targeted. My boyfriend was with me and he wasn’t asked nearly as much as I was nor asked to verify his name, age and credit cards when the male manager came outside - he only asked me.

My suggestion is if you’re going to do this with more customers, at least explain why so they don’t feel weird, unwelcome, and unnerved to the point they leave. I still don’t know why they did it so much to me and that’s the part that bothers me the most!!!

Lena Marita is...

I was very excited to see treehouse in Saratoga Springs. I'm a big fan of this Brewery and did not know they had locations outside of Charlton. This facility is stunning! The atmosphere inside was unexpectedly beautiful. And although it was too cold to enjoy the outside area, I assume it is it going to be as vibrant as the main locations outdoor entertaining area. The beer selection is as good as expected and almost everything was a 10/10. Unfortunately I have two negative comments. The most important comment is that their credit card system is not set up to notify the customer of the option to tip. Although I do think tipping has become unbelievably over expected, this is an atmosphere of service where it is expected, and the vibe and atmosphere create the genuine desire to reward the friendly staff for their excellent service. Taking away a prompt to tip is unexpected and awkward. Although the staff is happy to inform you after the surprise that there is a way for them to charge you for a tip if you so choose to let them know in advance the opportunity has already passed. Going back to ring someone up just for a tip is bizarre, and remembering to tip or mention it ahead of time the next time, is hard. Your staff is hard-working and your patrons already expect to be able to tip. Please put the option up front before the sale is finalized, and formatted it in the traditional predetermined percentage, "none" or "other" option. On my third purchase I finally remembered to tell them ahead of time, and the awkward procedure of pressing the button once for every dollar was ridiculous. Between beer and pizza I spent over $80 that night and had to hit the button 16 times in a row to give them the fair tip that I expected to reward them with was silly. My second negative comment was that the pizza needs to be served hotter. You need to be able to reheat the slice upon service like a traditional pizzeria. Your three slices were excellently flavored, but being served a limp, room temperature at best slice was incredibly disappointing. As Dave Portnoy would say, your undercarriage was excellent, but you had 90% flop. I understand this location just opened, but I am super excited for you to work out some of the kinks before this spring and summer season....

My husband and I have been traveling to various Treehouse locations regularly since the original location, so to have this in our backyard is incredible!

I have now been several times to watch the kinks be worked through and feel I have a good handle to leave this review. The staff is incredibly friendly, consistent with all locations. It makes the experience all that more enjoyable. The beer is always good, the variety has become unmatched as far as having something for everyone, and the pizza is great. The space is well thought out for a great spot to hang out and feel welcome.

I do think, when speaking with various team members visiting from Charlton or other locations, there are some growing pains in being a “destination within a destination” versus a destination stop in and of itself. Many staff members have mentioned it’s not a late night spot, and to that I say welcome to Saratoga! I think the company is going to have to “give” on a few things and ways they operate their other locations to fit Saratoga, one big thing being tipping. My friends are constantly complaining about the process, and even knowing I have to ask, I forget and have to go get cash to give it to staff later. People here want to tip and they want it to be easy. It’s turning more people off than on, which may be different than other locations.

Having worked in the service industry in this town, this type of work is a staple of Saratoga, and keeps the town as social as it is. Those that work in this field work very hard, and experience a wide range of customers that can be hard to deal with. That’s only going to increase as we head into track season. I’d like to see staff continue to want to grow and know the product within Treehouse, so I also think to be competitive in the bar market in Saratoga, it would be helpful for it to be made easier for patrons to show their appreciation in a monetary way.

I hope to see this change and look forward to what...