Good Nature Brewing & Restaurant — Restaurant in Town of Hamilton

I had visited Good Nature's tasting room on Broad Street and I was anxious to see the new farm brewery further down the road by the Colgate campus...the building is beautiful esthetically and the grounds have a nice outside seating area with adequate parking... Once you enter the building you see a wide open floor plan with the brewing system on your right...a bar straight ahead...plenty of seating and a food window/kitchen on the left back wall... When they made the move to this new facility a new larger brewing system was installed to allow for growth and their recipes were redeveloped for the new brewhouse... The food selection was limited but quite tasty...you can order from the bar or the window in the back and you pick up your food at the table in front of the window...the burger I had was good...the fries fresh and crispy...they also offer pizza...soups...wood fired pizza and they started a supper club which I have not attended... The beers were a mix of older brews from the past and new recipes...I was pleasantly surprised at how the original beers tasted on the new system...the nose was more pronounced and the flavors were brighter...on my second trip there the beer selection was mostly happier beers in in the IPA family and while I enjoy beers from across the spectrum my companion tends to shy away from them...many of these new farm breweries seem to emphasize hop forward characteristics in their recipes..it is like a competition and while they are popular my opinion is they are overdone...pints...flights and growlers are all available... The staff was a mix of college age students when I was there each time...I am not a big fan of making at the bar without a conversation and the attention I received was to fill a glass and not much more...attempting to engage one of the "bartenders" in conversation fell flat for the most part on trip one...trip two while a lack of malt forward beer selection was frustrating we did get to meet co-owner Carrie who more than made up for the brew selection by being engaging...passionate about their establishment...she was warm...upbeat and shared the story of how things moved over the years...she gets five stars for the way she treated two strangers like family...I look forward to Carrie imparting her passion for the business on her staff to get them more engaged with "friends they had yet to meet"... Overall a great space...tasty and eclectic food...good brews...worth a trip to Hamilton to check out what they are doing...I will be...

Heard so many great things about GNB&R so we dined there for our anniversary last night. We hadn't been here for years, and to say things changed would be an understatement. I liked the old place- a lot- but I LOVED the new restaurant. Greeted by the manager, we even got a quick tour of the new space. Beautiful. Artwork that changes every six weeks. Nice touch. Then we sat. I had an Amber Ale (delicious) and my wife enjoyed a specialty vodka cocktail while we looked over the menu. So many interesting options. We enjoyed a couple of small plates that were fantastic. Very thoughtful, seasonal-heavy cuisine and we even had help from staff to steer us towards drinks that would compliment the upcoming dishes. After discussing entree options ( I couldn't choose between two beef plates, the tenderloin and the ribeye), and being asked questions of taste and preference, the tenderloin was recommended. How refreshing that they didn't do the obvious up sale, but listened to my what my preferences were and helped accommodate my palate. It was absolutely delicious. My wife loved the wahoo fish plate recommended by Claire, our server. The entrees were fantastic. I could go on and on. Dessert was just as decadent. With two options and it being our 16th wedding anniversary, we splurged for both. I couldn't tell you if the choc cake or the cheesecake was better. Call it a tie; we loved them both! I like a glass of Cab Sauv to end my night at the dinner table, and that was full-bodied and bold, just the way I like it. When the check came, we felt like we had an experience. I think this place is a hidden gem and I am glad to know about it. Will most definitely be back and hope to have Claire again. Anyone with an appreciation of delicious food and warming atmospheres must give this place a day in court. I was looking at some of these silly reviews on Google, which is not smart on my part anyway, and one really stuck out to me. "They are trying too hard to be classy." Really? Really? After last night's 5-star experience, they are not...

Unfortunately our bad review started with being seated outside with the guys putting the table together as they acted like we were a nuisance. There was zero organization as to who would be waiting on us. We started with one guy who was very pleasant, took our drink orders and did his best to hear all of us. The girl who came out next was nice, but didn’t crack a smile the whole time. As the food began to come out (30-45 mins later with salads taking the longest to appear) the ordered medium well burgers were delivered medium rare and when returned the excuse was “we’re busy” with maybe 10 other people inside. Our ticket came out as a whole table and again felt like a nuisance when asked to split the bill. There are better places in town with better service and better food. If they are a “brewery” they should stick with just alcohol. By the way, as soon as we walked out the “chef” (short order cook) ripped out of the parking lot. Don’t waste your time.

Dear Owner, Thank you for your response. Your comment regarding calling ahead for large parties, I have to wonder why this is not an issue at other restaurants in the area. Your “peak dinner hours” included one table of 6 and one table of 2 inside. This interesting since you have enough tables inside to accommodate 30 plus. Regarding the lady that waited on us, I say again she was kind, but for someone in customer service a smile goes a long way. To act like you enjoy your job shouldn’t be too much to ask for. To make a customer feel like they aren’t a bother would, again,...