Took a trip down to Puyallup to check out the Powerhouse and had a great afternoon. Nice place that used to be part of the local elctric company now turned into a brewery. I guess it's brother brewery Engine #9 is in an old converted building too in Tacoma so it must be something the ownwers like to do. They did a great job creating a nice cozy brewpub. As for the beer they had a nice selection and we started out with the sampler which had a 4 alarm stout, Dopplebock, IPA, Belgian white, and a Powerhouse Scottish Ale. Then I went with a pint of the seasonal Brass Monk and tried the Aperage Amber. Most were very middle of the road to me with 2 exceptions. The Brass Monk was a very good Belgian that I would definitely order again until it's out of season. The 4 Alarm Stout I didn't care for at all it had a really bad after taste and was a little heavy on the oats. The food we had was great I had a Cuban sandwich and it was executed very well. Parking was easy and service was great. Keep in mind this was a Sunday afternoon this place is small so on a Friday or Saturday night you might have to wait awhile.

reviewed on: 2009-03-22 11:02:08

Had a great time we just signed for our home decided to stop by. The beers where great. Over the top with the brews and there trying to make something great. The food and services was also very good. The server tried to talk beer did a good job and was trying with all her heart. The place was an old Electric company so it was to style and cool looking. Watch for the trains they will make noise and add to your experience. This was a great time and I will be back for sure the beers are just that good. I will take a medicine bottle next time home full of 32oz of sweet beer.

reviewed on: 2008-09-09 18:45:18

Dusty Trails...sounds like a professional wrestler, doesn't it? But he happens to be an architect by trade, a lover of beer by design & that love has provided Puget Sound with two fine brewpubs...Engine House #9 in Tacoma & the Powerhouse in Puyallup.
Pronounced Pew-AL-up, it is a fairly typical bedroom community southeast of Seattle off the Interstate 405 and produces some excellent brews that bring back the customers who give the highest marks.
Built in 1907, the place supplied power for the southern leg of those wonderful, commuter-friendly, inexpensive, put-out-of-business-by-huge-conglomerates trolleys that so many American cities relied on for half of the twentieth century. Of course, after the highway system took control, the building fell into oblivion until Dusty bought it in 1994 & turned it into the family pub it is today.
Filled with old electric meters, blueprints, switches - even a neon Mr. Redi-Watt character watches over the mash tuns & fermenters. For those of you not old enough to remember, Mr. Redi-Watt was the symbol of electric companies with red lighting bolts for arms & legs & a light-blub yellow nose...as recognizable in his time as Mickey Mouse.
The usual pub fare exists alongside a Cuban sandwich, crab cakes, black bean salad w/corn dressing & a crab & artichoke dip. Both Meat-eaters & vegetarians will be happy here.
And then there's the beer: IPA, Pale Ale, Hefe sure but also a golden, clean, crisp Rauch with a smokey taste & hearty feel, a 50-shilling & a Scottish Ale, both smokier than any I've tasted but not offensive...very smooooooooth and therefore, dangerous! And to me, their winner, their 4-alarm Stout with its creamy, caramel head, chocolate & coffee front, middle & back. Proof positive that beer can be for breakfast!
My only complaint was / is that their growlers are clear bottles so should you take one home, don't linger. After 8 days, out Scottish had lost its head, taste and turned syrupy...but then we all know that draught is best.
The restaurant is not large so the noise level can rise to just below the level of pain, especially if children are allowed to be unruly like the screamer that occupied the booth next to the bar on our visit. Still, the service is excellent, the bartenders friendly and ready to converse, the food - beer - and prices reasonable. Puyallup is growing & judging by our forays there, townsfolk (Puyallupians? Puyallupee-ites?) have found the Powerhouse.

reviewed on: 2007-11-26 17:21:46