Paradise Creek Brewery - Downtown Restaurant — Restaurant in Pullman

I normally do not post…so that should tell you that this place was HIGHLY memorable.

It was “move in day” and they were jammed until 9:30 close (there were 20 people in the lobby at 8:45pm). We were literally the last table seated and while they did not show it one bit…you could tell the team had been flat worked. Our server was fantastic. Didn’t catch her name but friendly, provided numerous recommendations (as well as options) and honestly, an absolute delight. They were out of a lot of things…but she still managed to pull together not one but TWO sides of Cougar Gold Mac n Cheese. BEST version of Coug Mac & Cheese ever. Many try; they delivered. Crispy…creamy Cougar Goldery…wow. So good.

Beverages were fantastic. Plenty of NA drinks and options for a “brewery” in Pullman, WA no less. No joke (cherries in the Cherry coke…home-brewed ginger ale…homemade Ice tea).

The fully leaded beverage options were aplenty. My cousin was done with his 1st craft beer moments after our waitress brought the 1st and the 2nd looked tastier than the 1st. My other cousin actually had a 2nd round of the cleverly named mix drink (there’s a page full of them) she ordered.

Burgers were fantastic (and yes, Pullman has a ton of burger options). But the sides made this place. Coleslaw, the Mac, my cousin had the salad - looked amazing. Other cousin had the broccoli (to go) …fantastic (what restaurant anywhere serves remarkable broccoli, post delivery?!) We also ordered for her Shrimp Scampi “no butter / oil/ sauce” and they flat delivered. Really awesome.

The way they cooked that lamb burger (btw, they allowed me to order the Black and Blue Burger “sub lamb patty”), I imagine the steaks would be off the chart. Worth every penny of a $25 petite steak!!

I tried my Cousin’s soup, a Shrimp bisque - robust flavor, delicious! (Shrimp?? In Pullman?)

But the BEST part by far…we were the last ones in there (with a to go order on top) and suggested that we might take a few more minutes, they did not kick one bit. More or less closed around us (yes, we were “that” table) and treated us as part of the crew. The whole staff was quite friendly & personable (it’s Pullman after all) but truly a delight.

I wouldn’t generally post. But I came back to Google to see its ratings. And I was really bummed. So I’ve posted with as much detail as possible based on the 4.3 aggregate stars. Now I’ve been to all the others in town over the last 10 years…this is a 4.8-5 MINIMUM compared to those. Sincerely. Food, Ambiance, Staff, Flexibility, Options (I mean cmon people, nobody stacks higher than a $5 burger at the Coug..lol) But for cozy, casual fine dining, at the level of anything you’d find in Fremont, Ballard, Proctor District, any San Francisco, Chicago, NY neighborhood (with a bit more elbow room than the Coug - ha!) this place has gotten a bit of a bad rap. And it honestly looks to be “personal” which sucks!! :( (3 of the 1-star reviewers had 1-2 reviews ever on Google maps. Lame; 1 gave a diner in Spokane 3 stars?!!!)

Hit them up. Tonight. If it’s your last stop on the way out of Pullman. OR when you’re back for a home game. Won’t be...

Overall my experience here was positive. The restaurant itself is a remodeled post office, and has a very nice look/vibe. I love that they take reservations, I wish more places in smaller towns did that. It also has an outdoor seating area with its own entrance, so I was able to bring my dog, which is awesome . The staff was friendly and helpful, but service was pretty slow (an hour to get our dinner). But it was Saturday night and busy, so I'm ok with waiting. The food was mostly good with a few standouts and a few less enjoyed items. The best of the evening was the "Spicy Bleu Burger" (great patty, perfect flavor balance with the different components, seriously, if you like Bleu cheese this is a definite 5/5) and the house salad was also great (flavorful combo of veg/fruit/nuts with a tangy vinaigrette that paired perfectly). The average of the meal was the turkey club. It had way too much mayo for my preference and I just wasn't wowed by it compared to others I've eaten. My least favorite was the "Curried Lentil Burger". The patty was seasoned well and had an ok texture, but it was far too dry and crumbly. The real deal breaker for me was the curry aoli. I'm sure plenty of people love it, but personally I found it really off-putting and drowned it in hot sauce just to mask the taste of it. Another hate was the cheese sauce (ordered it with the pretzel bites). I absolutely adored the mustard accoutrements and the pretzels, but I paid extra for cheese sauce and it was a food travesty to be honest. The sauce was very runny/thin (which is bizarre if it contained any decent amount of cheese) and was just an odd not cheesy flavor/texture. After one dip no one at the table would touch it again and we just stuck with the mustards. I've had many cheese sauces and this one needs major improvement if you are going to charge extra for it. Regardless, the majority of our meals were good enough I will definitely eat here again when I'm in town, especially since I'm dying to try the lentil chili and the hubby wants that Bleu cheese...

So up front I want to tell you that they charge $0.75 just for sitting at a table because of covid 19. It's not posted anywhere and when I saw it on my receipt I asked about it and was told that it's for every seated table. I explained to them that had it been posted at the door I probably would not have come in because I don't agree with the charge. Then she demanded that I positioned my mask properly on my face as I was leaving. I was already leaving what is the matter.

The food was okay we asked for a medium burger It came out medium rare, the cheese sauce was grainy and expected it to be creamy, and the artichoke dip tasted more like hummus than an artichoke dip. The flavor wasn't horrible on either the cheese or the artichoke dip but there was no artichokes chunks in the dip which I expected and it wasn't creamy or cheesy which I expected.

The service was mediocre, they were nice enough but it took them a while to get us actual menus and then in between service was here and there. They weren't that busy so thought service could be in a little better. But they had smiling faces and they did check up on us.

I thought about getting the steak but they wanted $25 for a 6-oz steak, at Birch and barley you can get a 6 oz for 17 something, or a black and blue New York 12 oz for $24. I also guarantee you there that the artichoke spinach dip will be creamy and delicious, the beer cheese sauce will be creamy and not grainy. And so far there we've had four to five-star service and the food tastes just as good. Don't waste your time or money at this place Go to...