Rockwell Beer Company — Restaurant in St. Louis

As far as I’m concerned the sign of a good brewery is that they have a lot of beers you like. The sign of a great brewery is you can pick any beer at random and it will be a great version of that style of beer. This is my favorite brewery in St. Louis. No gimmicks, or weird flavors, just great beers. Don’t like beer? Have a friend or SO that doesn’t share your love for beer? They have a selection of wines and cocktails, and at least in my experience no one judges you for ordering not beer at a brewery. The staff is also incredibly polite and friendly - even when they don’t believe me when I tell them my tab is under the name Rockwell. I should note the name is a coincidence. I have no affiliation, but I can’t promise sharing my name doesn’t give me at least a little bias.

The ambiance is also great. During non Covid times the tap room can get a little crowded, but I figure any bar that isn’t packed on a Friday night is doing something wrong. During the day it is super family/dog friend (on the patio) and it’s not uncommon to see families with babies up through teenager there during the day for lunch. Which brings me to the menu. Food is by the Niche group which anyone in St. Louis knows is a pretty safe bet. The burgers are classic smash burgers - American cheese, onions, pickles, toasted bun. Basically what a burger should be. Fries are great too, but secretly the best menu item is the soft pretzels. Seriously go there just for the pretzels. You won’t regret it.

This is also the only place I’ve felt 100% comfortable with their Covid response all year. They clearly take the health of their staff and customers very seriously. Masks are still mandatory if your not sitting at your table so suit up.

PS they also a pretty good...

SHORT VERSION: One good experience, one bad experience - giving some benefit of the doubt and averaging the two.

LONGER VERSION:

FIVE-STAR EXPERIENCE. Came here on one occasion when they were semi-busy, but all service was friendly and up to snuff. Cool, casual, "hipster" atmosphere and really good food. Great selection of beer. I came with my mom and some family friends. We all enjoyed it. Lots of indoor and outdoor seating.

TWO-STAR EXPERIENCE. On the second occasion, the place was PACKED - warm December night, and with everyone being back for the holidays, a lot of people besides us clearly also thought it would be a great place to hang out with friends. I recommended to my partner and our friend we come for a quick bite before an improv show. My partner, who doesn't drink beer, still found some cocktail and cider selections he liked. The staff was friendly again, but let us know that, since the place was packed, food service was somewhat slow. Fine. I get it. Slow was an understatement. I ordered a half grilled cheese and bowl of chili. It took over 45 minutes to complete my underwhelming grilled cheese, and I only found out after receiving my food that they were out of chili.

(also, for some reason, only half the outdoor patio is well-lit. Feels very creepy at night)

I will go back, because I'm sure this is a fluke and our first experience was really positive, but we were really hungry and had a time limit on being there. If we had known it would take so long, we would have gone...

During my recent trip to Saint Louis, I had the opportunity to visit several breweries, and unfortunately, Rockwell Beer Company ranked quite low on my list. Despite the buzz around it, the experience was underwhelming for several reasons.

First, the food was neither unique nor particularly impressive. I was expecting something that would stand out, but it felt more like standard pub fare. Similarly, the beer selection left much to be desired. Many of the brews had a "store-bought" quality, lacking the fresh, craft feel you'd expect from a brewery. Their citrus-based beers, in particular, were disappointing — not even served with an orange, which could have added at least a touch of excitement.

On top of that, the ambiance was marred by annoyances. Every time someone moved a chair, it created a screeching sound reminiscent of a harpy. It was incredibly distracting and made for a less-than-relaxing experience. To add to the disappointment, the setup requires patrons to pick up their own food and clean off their tables, which made it feel more like a casual visit to your parents' house than a true brewery experience.

In contrast, Bluewood Brewing easily took the top spot on my brewery tour. The food, beer, and atmosphere there were exceptional, making Rockwell’s shortcomings all the more noticeable. If you're in Saint Louis and want a top-notch brewery experience, I highly recommend skipping Rockwell and heading straight to...