Wednesday 11th of May 2016 06:42:14 PM

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Stopped in on a Thursday afternoon for some beers. We had two flights of beer; 4 beers per flight. They had 7 beers on tap plus 20 guest taps that focus on other Texas breweries. Besides samples they had tasters and bottles, growlers, and kegs to go. They have a nice restaurant area with food service but we chose to sit at the bar. They also have outside seating. There’s a 10 barrel system that’s in a pretty small space but they make it work. There’s limited, timed, but free parking right outside the brewery and the metro rail has a stop right by the brewery.

Monday 17th of September 2012 06:33:55 AM

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Black Star Co-op Pub and Brewery is the world's first cooperatively owned brewpub. They have 6 house brews on tap, 16 guest taps of carefully chosen national craft brews, and about 18 bottled beers. Wonderfully, you can create your own 4-beer sampler flight from amongst any of their draft beers. Most of their house brews are crisp and tend to be lighter in abv (about 4.5%), but are well crafted with enough ingredient flavor to be interestingly satisfying. Their Cul Sec Spiced Ale, Elba Wheat Ale with Lemongrass, High Esteem Pale Ale, and Nemesis Gluten Free fall into this category. I also tried their heavier Vulcan Rye Ale (6.7%) and their tart Waterloo Sour Beer with Peaches (3.5%). Their stainless steel brewing vessels are visible through windows from the street. I caught a glimpse of their bright tank and kegs in a refrigerated room behind the bar. Their wooden bar has 18 uncomfortable stools, and only half the bar is actually serviced. Otherwise, service in the restaurant is from a walk up counter where you place your order. As such, the service is curt but effective. The Texas pub fare menu consists of snacks, sandwiches and a few entrees. The architecture has too many sharp angles to be considered cozy, and the hipster crowd gets a little loud. There are also outdoor picnic tables for patio seating. I couldn't quite figure out the parking situation, as I found no lot next to this place, and ended up parking across the street.

Thursday 20th of January 2011 07:59:59 PM

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This is the first cooperatively owned brew pub (and probably the only one anywhere!). The atmosphere is a little urban (= loud when the place is packed) but very clean and fresh. The outside area is great/
The beer is excellent - they have a good selection, including house beers but they also have the finest in Texas and a good sampling of other beers.
The service model is simple - step up to the counter and order. The lines can get a little long on Th/F/S when seating can be tough to find but that is a rarity.
The menu tends to be on the urban (vegan friendly) side rather than pub fare and food comes to your table. The fried veggies are awesome.
Plenty of parking and also on Austin's light rail (so when Austin gets its act together on the rail, they are in a great spot).
You *gotta* try this place.