Kettlehead Brewing Company — Restaurant in Tilton

Following a day’s excursion my wife and I stopped in at Kettlehead Brewing Company. The small place looked brand new, in fact we quickly discovered we were there on just the fourth day they were open. A guy with a beard greeted us and said we could sit anywhere. We ordered a flight of beers, my wife the pretzel bites and I had the burger. The gentleman who served our beer, served our food, swept the floor, and bussed the table we soon found out was Nate, one of the owners. He chatted with us at length telling the story of how they built the bar as he beamed with pride. Awesome place we found, delicious beer and food, what a gem!

Fast forward to last month, when we stopped in again. Immediately noticed they built a front porch and added a game room. They were at maybe 90% capacity when we entered. We sat at the bar, ordered two beers, no food. Very slow service, appeared only one girl working the bar. I had the Rock Out IPA and my wife had a sour fruity beer.

Then we got the bill, I was charged for a more expensive beer, and in fact what was printed on the receipt was not what I had ordered. I let it slide. I paid with cash and then was shorted my change. Interesting, a bartender who can’t keep take orders correctly and obviously can’t count… I decided to forgo the tip but wanted to bring this up with management. I asked for an owner and was told they weren’t here. I was directed to a girl who was very busy and had no time to listen to me. After I explained what happened I was expecting, at the very least, “I’m sorry” nope…

I was asked why I didn’t bring this to the attention of the bartender (see above). The manager was quick to point out the comment my wife left on our receipt (while it was certainly fitting, I regret she wrote it), she then couldn’t figure out how to recalculate the bill. Alternating between pen and paper and the computer, she finally comes back after five minutes and provides me the incorrect change yet again. And… still no apology.

Her last comment to me, “We’re very busy here today”… The best way to tick me off, say something that’s NOT my problem! It’s not my problem Kettlehead personnel can't do their jobs.

Goodbye and good luck Kettlehead...

I went to Kettlehead for the first time last Tuesday and had a fantastic experience! We had a reservation, and were running a few minutes late.. we called and the person who answered the phone let us know that we were still good to go to come in, which was a relief because we had a semi long drive to get there. We sat outside and Natalie was our waitress. She was fun, cheerful, and answered all of my questions (and I had a lot since this was my first trip to a brewery)! We ordered the warm pretzels with beer cheese as an app, and the mac and cheese as an entrée to share (both were beyond delicious)!! It was getting close to closing time and Natalie reassured us that we didn't have to rush and could relax and enjoy the rest of our flights/beers even though we felt bad that they were basically closed by then. I personally am not a huge beer drinker and only really like sours .. Bombin' Still Poppin' was AMAZING! My only complaint is that there were no cans left of Bombin' Still Poppin' to take home.. because I definitely wanted a case...or three, but that just shows how great of a product Kettlehead has! Everything about our experience, from the food, to the beer, and atmosphere was top notch.. but what really is the key to a great experience, is the service and rapport you build with the people you interact with while you are there..and the staff there were what made my experience the enjoyable one that it was. Thank you again, Natalie!! (Told you I'd be writing a review for you, and I hope you see this and realize how great you are at what you do!!) Can't wait to come back...

Kettlehead is definitely one of if not the best breweries in the Lakes Region. Their Quest IPA is one of my favorites that I'd put up against Treehouse or Trillium NEIPAs any day. Other IPA favorites are Agent, MI-6 and Lupulin. They also make a fantastic Scotch Ale. Prices for 4-pk 16oz take home cans are what you would expect and lower than the aforementioned. The only beer I haven't been impressed with was Flow Switch (I know the recipe changes) at the time had no discernable hop aroma or backend to it and no malt backbone either. Hey. no one bats 1.000. I love that they have 1/2 pints so you can enjoy more of something after trying a flight without committing to a whole pint. I wish more places did 8oz pours.

The food is also very good - especially the tallow fries and pretzel bites appetizers. The pizza and burgers are very good as well. Last time we were in we had the brisket reuben and the taco special and both were excellent. Service is always quick and friendly. There is definitely a local following here.

My biggest complaint is the volume of the music. Every time I've come in it's just cranked. It's hard to have a conversation. I get what they're trying to do with the atmosphere but it's too much in that small space. Last summer it was also a swelterfest in there - hopefully that's fixed for this coming summer. It looks like they're planning on some outdoor seating which will be great.

We love Kettlehead and what they are doing. Thanks...