Monday 14th of February 2011 12:45:01 PM

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Fantastic little place they've built here. It's been open just a little over a year but has become a local favorite and is, thus, almost always jammed.
And I can see why. This is a place that refuses to concentrate too much on anything and can still maintain all elements necessary in a good brewpub: beer, food and service.
First time I came here was on my first visit to Chattanooga in probably 15 years. I found Terminal, with their big sign, in the emerging Southside community, adjacent to the famous Choo-Choo hotel. Parking is in the back in a gravel lot. There may not be something right next to the place, but there should be something, at least, in the further lot. As the area is getting more restaurants though, that may change.
I was alone, so I sat at the bar. There are about six taps, with five standards and one seasonal. I got a water and food menu and then a sampler which, IIRC, was $6 for the six.
"Clever" is the word here. They have the "Magnum PA" and "Rock Out With Your Bock Out" (a maibock). Then you move on to the food menu, which features a lot of clever names and jokes in the descriptions of the food and the beer. It makes for a really good read if you're sitting there. My favorite was in the pairing suggestions for their beer, under the stout was listed "another stout." I love stuff like this though.
The food here is excellent, and they have an emphasis and local, organic ingredients and, therefore, a lot of their stuff will change out quite often. For instance, they have a "seasonal dessert" that has changed between the two times I've been (about a month between them).
For the beer... Well, first off, it's Tennessee. I'm not totally clear on the specifics, but I was told by a brewer at another place in the state they can only go up to 6%. Sure enough, the highest ABV on their list here was the Magnum PA at 6%. So you're not going to find anything crazy. I liked it, but I wouldn't say it was my favorite beer ever. Certainly in the inoffensive category.
I came here with a companion the second time I visited and the service wasn't quite as good. The servers are characteristically (to the state) very friendly and seem to know enough about the beers. The layout is really interesting and there are two stories. It's also in an old brick building, and that interesting characteristic is stressed throughout the interior. Nice touch! Patio is upstairs for smoking as there's none inside.
The only knock to that layout I would throw out is that they don't have much of a waiting spot when they get full, which seems to happen a lot. The host station is basically at the door, so it gets crowded when it's cold.
I would submit though that this should be a benchmark for how to open and run a brewpub.