House of 1000 Beers New Kensington — Restaurant in New Kensington

House of 1000 Beers: Now Just House of 5 Meatballs and Regret

HO1KB rebranded 11 years ago, and the results make the Cracker Barrel “New Logo” fiasco look like a Michelin-starred rollout.

Keep in mind this was once the greatest beer haven east of the Ohio border.

Burgers are $16. Reubens: $17. A thin, 12-cut pizza clocks in at $20. Bold pricing for food that tastes like it was catered by Sheetz— Sheetz is good, and (minor detail) affordable.

The salads used to be full works-of-art: eggs, cucumbers, tomatoes chunks, enough garnish to distract you from your life choices. Now? A fistful of iceberg, a confetti sprinkle of cheese, and a limp wrist toss of fries.

But nothing—nothing—captures the collapse like the infamous $18 Mancini “Meatball Hoagie.” This wasn’t just bad value. This was culinary sodomy.

Yeah, colossal BUN…But…Five. Very. Very. Tiny. Meatballs.

Each barely larger than a marble, floating in a bourbon sauce that tastes like Jack Daniels wept into Aunt Jemima. No marinara. The Mancini bun looked ashamed, like it was auditioning for a better sandwich. For $18 you expect a meaty torpedo. Instead you get a sad after-school snack: $3.60 per frozen meatball. IKEA will sell you ten with mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam for less. HO1KB will sell you shame on a bun.

And the beer? Once a Mecca. Now? House of a Dusty Cooler and Whatever’s Left on Tap. Bottles look like they’ve been aging since the Bush administration. Drafts? A few worth drinking, the rest you could get fresher down the street—without the “import markup” for beer brewed three blocks away. Back in the day, Dave Sagrati brought in Belgians and rare imports. Now, Art thinks Leaning Cask at $7 is “exotic.” And HOW did the local Giant Eagle become the best import & craft beer game in town?! HO1KB has 30+ taps, you’d expect 100% crisp drafts every time. Instead, you roll the dice - occasionally getting good pours, but also sometimes flat drafts that taste like the tap lines were rinsed with Pine-Sol.

The beer club wall? Once a shrine. Now, a tombstone for regulars who fled to places that still care.

But the mortal sin remains THAT $18 Meatball Hoagie. Eighteen. United States. Dollars. It wasn’t food. It was a stick-up. This was highway robbery — minus the highway. Wallet PTSD in sandwich form. We need a congressional hearing as to who signed off on this crime against both Mancini’s and humanity? Whoever it was needs to been banished from the premises. Is it living rent-free in my head? Consider this review a therapy session to heal that trauma.

Verdict: HO1KB isn’t a beer haven anymore. It’s a parody of itself. Rename it “Applebee’s with Forgotten Coolers.” If you want overpriced mediocrity with a side of dust, welcome home. If you want value, go to Conny Creek or Allusion.

This place was once an underground gem. Now it vibes like a chain restaurant that lost its franchise paperwork.

Cranberry closed. This one is circling the drain. Grade: ⭐⭐⭐ reduced to ⭐⭐ for the Meatball Hoagie Apocalypse of 2025. Next...

Good for beer... bad for a dining/food experience.

The beer was great. But "House of 1000 Beers" also appears to be "House of Waiting 1000 Minutes for Food to Arrive."

We went there around 7 yesterday for the first time. We sat in the bar area at a table. Eventually the server took drink orders. After quite a long time, the drinks were finally delivered. The beer was actually great.

Then we waited for something like an hour and a half with zero input from the server or anyone else. The server even clocked out and left work and we had zero idea when the food would be arriving. Nobody came to take any other drink orders. We were just sitting there waiting the entire time. Eventually, we went to the counter to pay for the 2 beers (5 dollars each) and left. At that point, they told us that there was a 20+ top outside that resulted in our food getting delayed.

So we might have stayed if there was any communication with us about the food taking so long to be delivered and an ETA. But we were just sitting and sitting and sitting with zero feedback from staff. We ended up just going somewhere else down the road to get food... and between the travel time to the new place and waiting for food at the new place, pretty sure that we got food at an earlier time than we would have gotten at House of Waiting 1000 Minutes for Food.

Anyway, I liked the menu and had high hopes. Maybe it was a terrible night for them, the staff did look a bit frantic. But still, if it was going to be that long of a wait to eat, I wish that they warned us ahead of time or communicated...

I recently had the pleasure of visiting the House of 1000 Beers, and let me tell you, it's a beer lover's paradise. Picture this: a wall of coolers so massive it could double as a modern art installation - they've got more brews than you can shake a hop at!

As I perused the menu, I was greeted with a selection of local and national brews on tap that would make any beer snob shed a tear of joy. They've clearly mastered the art of pouring a cold one, and it's nothing short of an ale-ligarchy (pun intended).

But it's not just about the suds at this joint; the House of 1000 Beers boasts an excellent outdoor section that's the perfect place to sip and savor. I mean, who doesn't want to enjoy their beer al fresco while pretending to be a beer connoisseur, am I right?

And let's not forget the food. The flavors here are as bold as the IPAs they serve. I couldn't help but indulge in their tasty dishes while I embarked on my beer adventure. It's a culinary journey that pairs perfectly with their impressive beer selection.

In conclusion, the House of 1000 Beers is more than just a place to quench your thirst; it's a temple of hops, a shrine of suds, and a haven for those who appreciate a cold one. So if you find yourself in the neighborhood, raise your glass high and say cheers to a...