Happy Thirsty Thursday!

There is a new brewery South of the River!

It’s about time. Around these parts, we’ve only had Badger Hill Brewing to keep those of us in the South Metro company.

Nutmeg Brewhouse had their soft opening on January 2nd. The next day, Rob read a bunch of critical comments on Facebook. How could it be so bad? How can you judge so soon? Generally, we like to visit a new restaurant after they’ve had all of their kinks ironed out. But all of this ridicule had us intrigued to stop in on Day 2.

First, let’s get things straight. This is a brewhouse, not a taproom. It is a restaurant with its own beer on tap.

Many of the online complaints were about about the beer descriptions. I will agree that “hop-flavored” beer is a strange and very generalized description; however, I’ll give them a break here. I can’t even imagine how exhausted one has to be putting a place together like this.

The other big complaint was about the beer. Uh-oh.

I had the Mild Porter, which was quite fine for a porter, if anything, just a little light. But, then, it was accurately named Mild Porter. Still, I enjoyed it. Rob liked the Shipmate’s IPA much more than I did. The biggest online complaint seemed to be about the unfiltered Wheat Weiss {which Rob pointed out is redundant}. It didn’t look just a little cloudy, but completely opaque.

I honestly had no complaints about my beer; it just wasn’t anything special. And as you know, these days, that’s what I usually go for. I could enjoy the Mild Porter any day; it’s just a little difficult after savoring a porter as wonderful as Death by Coconut by Oskar Blues the day prior.

Seriously, when it comes to beer, though, let’s give these guys a chance.

~

The menu says that all of the beers are “brewed in house using traditional colonial influences.” I’m not quite sure what that means. Then, from Nutmeg’s Facebook page:

Nutmeg Brewhouse will feature British Colonial influenced cuisine and traditionally crafted beer.

Truly, I’d just like more info. It seems that you may find beer that is more particularly British in style and foods that are stereotypically English {read: fish and chips} or incorporate flavors from lands the Brits colonized {read: Indian}. But why the name Nutmeg? That’s something I should have asked.

Note: Nutmeg was built as an addition to the India Palace building. Rumor has it that the addition is owned by the owner of India Palace. But Nutmeg has its own kitchen and does not seem to be physically connected {by a doorway} to India Palace.

I also find it interesting that all of their wines are Australian, presuming that they are going with the colonization theme. Actually, I like that. British beer, Indian-influenced food, Australian wine…

Truthfully, I’ve never found a sparkling shiraz on a restaurant menu before. But there is a huge discrepancy with wine prices here. The reds are almost double the price of the whites! If you are running a business in Burnsville, the only way you are going to get away with a $13 glass of red wine  is at Chianti Grill, not a brewhouse.

Now it was time to try the food. The menu is currently very basic, but is supposed to be expanded. I’d like to see some descriptions.

Rob opted out on the food since the only dish he could have was the Scotch Eggs, which didn’t interest him at the time. I wanted everything, but couldn’t make up my mind without descriptions.

Since we were on the end of the bar, we could see all of the people seated around it. Several people ordered the Canterbury Cod and Chips. To me, the fish looked a bit dark, overcooked and greasy. However, the guy next to us told the bartender that he liked how the batter was really light. So I guess it really needs to be tasted.

I asked our bartender for a recommendation.

 

I love Chicken Tikka Masala, so I agreed it would be a good choice. The meat was very good, but I do like the extra sauciness of a traditional masala dish.

Please Note: This dish does not come with the mint chutney on the side. The bartender merely suggested it. I wasn’t sure if I’d like it; but it was really want the dish needed! The vegetables were way too boring without it. The mint chutney wasn’t overly minty, just more fresh-tasting. I’d order that sauce again and again. The rice was just way too much. Overall, the way the dish was served to me, it was pretty good. But for $15? I’ll try something else next time.

I had to ask what they did serve that chutney alongside and it turns out it is with {or on?} the flatbread. See what wonders a description would do? I can only assume that they are working on all of that.

Don’t quote me on this, but we overheard that the Grand Opening is on January 27th. That is not too far away! Until then, they are open daily from 3pm to 10pm.

We’ll definitely be back to see how Nutmeg Brewhouse adapts to little ol’ Burnsville. Maybe in a few months, we’ll give you an update.

Have you ever gone to a restaurant right when it debuted?

If so, what were your impressions?

Did you go back?

Cheers~
Carrie