Review: Omaha Tap House

Where: 1403 Farnam St, Omaha (former Crane Coffee location)

Upon entering the tap house, I was greeted and shown to my table where Travis (part of our 4-man team) was already sitting.  The first thing I noticed was how upbeat the staff and fellow customers were.  Great service, and willing to help (which is what you expect for a soft-opening).

I quickly checked the tap handles...great selection, even without taking into consideration they were getting the wholesalers’ left-overs.  Until they can put some orders in (months in advance), there probably won’t be any of those great ‘one-offs’ the beer mavens look for.  But, that didn’t matter.  What did matter, was they didn’t have a lot of the pseudo-craft beers on tap (e.g., Shock Top).  That’s a good sign and holds promise for this place.

Our appetizer was stuffed mushrooms...quite a tasty dish.  I got the bacon, BBQ, cheddar burger (you can tell the owners are from Wisconsin).  That was good too.  Actually, the menu looked pretty good and was reasonably priced.

Okay, now to the beer.  I had a St. Bernardus Triple and a New Belgium Lips of Faith Metric (10% ABV Belgian Strong Golden that came out last year).  I wanted a Green Flash Hop Head Red, but the wholesaler didn’t get them that to them in time.

Some construction items were still visible on the way to the restroom.  Also, a few of the tap handles were reversed, since the 3rd party tap tech was rushed before they opened that day.  Otherwise, I think they did surprisingly well for their first day open.

The view from the location was very nice that time of night.  You look northeast toward Gene Leahy Mall.  I can see myself enjoying this place on many different types of occasions.

Towards the end of the event, I was talking with some of the managers and owners.  I got the impression this place should only get better.  We (the craft beer community) need to ensure that too.  We have to be vigilant, and keep this place on their toes.  We should expect great craft beer and knowledgeable staff.

They open to the public today.  Give them a try and report back on your own experience.
 

Review: Beercade

I’m writing this from Beercade on its opening night (Fri, Apr 13).  I arrived a little before 4:30 and place is already busy.  The first thing you see when you walk in is the arcade games.  I would say there are approximately 17 video games and 4 pinball games.

Now, on to the important part, the beer.  They have 25 taps, and according to their site, the only one that will not be rotating is the PBR tap.  Some are common, if you frequent craft beer bars, and some are notable: Boulevard Tank 7, Great Divide 18th Anniversary Wood-Aged Double IPA, Squatters IPA, and Hacker-Pschorr Munich Dark.

When I first arrived, I was greeted by Jenny, the Boulevard representative and their wholesale sales person.  They turned me onto a new creation the wholesale sales guy (sorry, forgot his name) came up with, the “7 and Stout.”  It’s half Boulevard Dry Stout, and half Boulevard Tank 7.  Very tasty, and a nice change from the standard black and tan.

I would say the gamers outnumber the beer drinkers right now, but even the gamers are drinking quality craft beer.  Even as I write this, the diversity of the crowd is changing.  I see different age groups, couples, and professionals that just got done with work.

The custom signage behind the bar is cool.  There are different ones for each category: draft beer, vodkas, bourbons, rums, etc.  Each have their own arcade game artwork.

Overall, I’m liking this place more and more as I sit here.  They make no excuses for what they are…an arcade with a bar.  I think they will do well, and they are a great addition to the fantastic businesses Benson has been serving up the last year.
 

Review: The Hive Lounge, Omaha

 
Where: 1951 St Marys Ave, Omaha
When: Fri > 3:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m., Sat – Sun > 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.

I got wind of this place last week, although I was informed someone had told me months ago (quite possible…mind lately isn’t what it used be).  I decided to give them a try, because their website states they have “Omaha's largest selection of local craft-beer.”  How could a place like this fly under my radar for this long (they have been open since June 2011)?

I arrived last Saturday around 9:00 p.m. or so.  The place is about the size of the Brass Monkey.  For those of you that have not been there, I would say it’s approximately 700-800 square feet.  Not big, but plenty of room, plus a high ceiling.  They have a small stage tucked against the wall towards the back for live music, which it looks like they have at least once a week.

They had 6 beers on tap: Lucky Bucket Lager, Thunderhead Golden Fräu, Hopulia, Modern Monks Orange Wheat, Bud Light, and Coors Light.  The Nebraska beers outnumbered the big guys, so that’s a good sign already.  In bottles, I would say they had an additional 20-25 craft and Nebraska beers.

There are other tap houses that have a bigger selection of Nebraska beers (e.g., Krug Park, Crescent Moon), but it looks like this might get better.  The bartender informed me they were considering modifying each of the single tap towers, so they would end up having three taps a piece.  This would mean they would have 18 beers on tap, instead of just 6.  And, if they don’t allow any more yellow water taps, there would be 16 craft beers on tap.  For a place of this size, that would be great.  I would strongly recommend they do this.  Tap beer is what makes or breaks a place.

The two bartenders working were very helpful and willing to please.  It didn’t matter if you were new to craft beer, or a grizzled veteran like myself, they tailored their approach well.  To me, this is the foundation a great business is built on.  If you are not going to employee good people, I’m not going to patronize you.

Their happy hour is 3:00 to 11:00 p.m. every day.  Yep, that’s right.  I was treated to happy hour pricing on a Saturday night.  I purchased a bottle Lucky Bucket IPA and a bottle New Belgium Trippel.  Both were $4 each.

In closing, I would recommend a visit to The Hive Lounge.  Great service, decent beer selection, nice crowd, and I like the proximately to downtown and midtown.

Website: www.thehiveomaha.com
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/thehivelounge