Revolution Brewpub

As most of my friends would say, I love going to brewpubs as well as any number of restaurants.  I like going to breweries to try the beers that they make.  If they also serve food, all the better.  Revolution Brewing, one of the veterans of the Chicago craft brewery scene (opened in 2010), has been a favorite for years.  I realized recently though that while I have been here many times, I had never had a regular meal.  I have gone to a few popups and special dinners at Revolution's Brewpub, but those generally do not reflect the menu.  There beer reputation is well established and I had read many good things about their pub menu (which puts a seasonal focus on relatively standard bar food), so I decided to actually try it out myself.  Located in a very hot section of Logan Square, it is located in a vintage building with some very nice lines.  For the first few years of its existence, it had pillars in front of the entrance that were topped with fists.  The fists are a big part of the visual imagery for the brewery and are still on cans and coasters, but I was a little disappointed when they removed them from the building.  Entering the building, there is a large bar in the center with seating on 3 sides.  There are booths on the walls as well as some table seating on the main floor and an elevated seating area to one side.  The kitchen is open and in the back of the dining room with a window next to it that shows the brewery.  The brewpub is very popular and there is frequently a wait for seating.  A stairway leads upstairs where there is a second bar as well as overflow seating or a space for private dining.  I sat at the bar on the main floor and started with the beer list.  The beer list at the brewpub features the brewery's flagship beers, as well as what they happen to brew there.  They also have a commercial brewery close by with a taproom that actually has a longer beer list, but does not serve food.  As I was at a brewery with a long list, I obviously had to go with a flight.  For my flight, I went with a variety of styles, none of which was a standard bearer that I  had had many times.  I started with Freedom of Speach Peach Sour, Sun Crusher Hoppy Wheat Ale, A Little Crazy Belgo-American Pale Ale, and Rise Hoppy American Stout (which won gold at the World Beer Cup in 2012).  All were very different and with the variation of hops used, even the hoppy ones had different flavors.  The Freedom of Speach was not exceptionally sour and the sour went well with the peach flavor.  Sun Crusher is a good and light summer beer even with the hop flavor.  A Little Crazy had the body of a Belgian Single with the flavor of a pilsener.  And Rise is a very good and hoppy stout with flavors of chocolate and coffee.  They were all good, but I think I liked Sun Crusher best.

Between the beer and the bar food that I would be eating, I thought I should at least try to have something a little healthy, so I started out with some Brussels Sprouts.  I will grant that they were Pan-fried, but at least I tried a little.  The Brussels Sprouts came with Roasted Cauliflower, Butternut Squash, Maple-Chipotle Sauce, and Toasted Pepitas.  This was really good.  The Brussels Sprouts and Squash were crispy, and the Maple-Chipotle sauce added a sweet and spicy flavor.  The toasted pepitas added a finishing crunch.  While it wasn't necessarily the most healthy way to eat brussels sprouts, they were good and at least better than the bacon fat popcorn that was also on the menu.

The healthiness went out the window for my main course.  I had a burger.  This burger, the Galaxy Burger was topped with Chipotle Cheddar, Pimento Cheese, Pickled Pineapple, Cucumber, Red Onions, and Bottom Up Wit Aioli.  As with most places, my burger was served with a large serving of fries.  Galaxy hops have a flavor profile with a lot of fruit, and Bottom Up Wit, has a lot of fruit flavor as well.  I imagine that the fruit was used to pair with the aioli.  It was all very good and filling.

 

When I go out, I order dessert, so I looked at the dessert menu and saw a S'Mores Pie.  Local pie masters, Bang Bang Pie and Biscuits, have a S'Mores Pie on their menu and their main shop is located very close to Revolution's brewpub, so I thought that the pie came from Bang Bang.  I have no issue with a bar outsourcing their dessert if it brings in something  this good.  When I found that Revolution made their own S'More's Pie, I had to order it to compare, if for nothing else.  The pie was very good, but I could tell immediately that it was not a Bang Bang pie.  The flavor was very good.  The chocolate was rich, the Marshmallow Cream Topping had a nice brulee to it, but the crust was a little tough.  While it wasn't perfect, it was still very good and a nice ending to my dinner here.  I will undoubtedly return, I know know that the food is of a high standard to match with their beers.