Side Project Brewing — Restaurant in Maplewood

I'll start with the good: -The beers I tried were pretty decent, I tried the stout and wheat beer and enjoyed them both. -The location and atmosphere are nice, it's very clean, and well kept.

Unfortunately the bad well outweighs the good: -Ordered the spicy chicken sandwich, which I assumed was an average level of spicy since there was no indication on the menu that the sandwich was bordering on ghost pepper hot. I'm glad they warned my friend who was with me against it, but I received no such warning. When asked how it was I responded that it was too spicy (literally so spicy it drowned out what would have been a great sandwich otherwise I think) to which I received a snide comment of "well it says spicy on the menu". So if you like overly spicy food, maybe it's for you, but it just made the sandwich a waste of money. -The location doesn't have much in the way of seating so be prepared to stand if it's busy. -The staff were pretentious and kept trying to upsell us on the more expensive drinks, like $6/oz pours and $35/bottle. I didn't get a friendly, local brewery vibe like I do in many other places in this area. -The hours of operation are pretty limited, they closed at 8:00 PM when we were there meaning we pretty much just used them to start our Saturday night.

Overall I won't be going back. It has potential but I would also be surprised if there is any improvement from the staff. Both my friends came away with a similar feeling that there are better places with beer that is just as...

Surprisingly a lot of STLiens don't know that one of the three best breweries in the world is at their footsteps. You will pay a nominal premium for drinking the best beers in the world but it is worth it. Cory & Karen have always been wonderful hosts but the seriousness of some of other staff led to what I've heard called a stuffy / cold feel pre-pandemic. Over the last couple years though, an influx of new, knowledgeable, warm, and inviting faces have graced both taprooms and I think whatever pretentiousness may have existed in the eyes of some has been washed away. I even saw someone receive a tasting sample recently, surprisingly unheard of in years prior.

You don't become the best by being a one-trick pony. Side Project brews lagers, all iterations of IPAs, stouts, barleywines, saisons, and other wild ales ALL at the TOP levels of execution. It's amazing really. And then they serve the beers to you in beautiful style-appropriate glassware, served at style-appropriate temperatures from taps with 3 different temp settings lol.

And now, there's amazing pizza across the...

Nice, eclectic selection of craft brews. That being said, stinginess with your craft never looks favorable. On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, the place should have been packed. Instead you could have shot a cannon off in the place and not hit anyone. There are no samples, so you are paying 7 to 8 dollars for the privilege to explore their offerings. There are no "flights "(something most wineries and brew hoises offer nor is there a "stock" pils, ale or lager. Every offering is available in 8 oz and their solution for the lack of a flight is to offer a 4 oz sample at 1/2 the 8 oz rate plus an additional .50 cents (for their trouble, I guess ). That being said, I was not disappointed. The two dark selections I made were well crafted and very tasty. They actually know to use a sour yeast to make a farmhouse ale. Sadly I love the beer, but will probably not be going here again. Hence...