Saturday 3rd of July 2010 03:28:44 PM

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Finally made it to Two Brothers. Yep, difficult to find -- no signage that I could see, but I saw a beer truck and what looked like a fermentation tank outside an industrial space and pulled in.

The beer is really nice, and the food is great. 10 Two Brothers brews on tap, plus an extensive bottle list -- basically, a huge chunk of Windy City offerings. Atmosphere is nothing special -- it's part of a converted warehouse/industrial space, so cement and drywall. Window seats mean a parking lot. I sat at the bar, where sports on tv did gentle battle with the music, which was eclectic and enjoyable... but which ranged from barely audible to painfully loud. Good crowd for a Saturday lunch. Good conversation with folks at the bar. Friendly staff if you engaged them, otherwise they'd leave you alone.

You can get growlers and I think bottled beer to go. They have proper glassware for their many offerings; they have some liquor options if you'd rather not have beer. There's outdoor seating with little or no view and lots of concrete. Family friendly in the afternoons at any rate.

I'll definitely go back, but doubt I'll become a regular. The food would bring me back.

Tap prices are average/mildly high for the burbs; bottle prices are a little high. Food prices are outstanding, and again, it's really good.

Wednesday 23rd of June 2010 02:36:18 PM

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I visited in August of 2008. I took a friend with to go see the facility and take a tour. The staff said we could wait and have a beer in the bar area and when the tour was ready to start they said they would save our table so we could come back after the tour! I've NEVER had a place offer to do that before, so I have nothing but good things to say for the service.

The best way to describe the beer is by talking about the carbonation. The bubbles in the beer are more reflective of the style you see in Guinness (tiny, foaming head). Their beers are high quality and I'm seeing them more often in Chicago bars.

It's a nice place to go visit. The bar area offers food, so even though it's a small facility and short tour you can still get your money's worth by trying a few beers in the bar.

Thursday 25th of June 2009 03:12:07 AM

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The Two Brothers Draft House was opened after the brewery moved into its present digs. The large open space can make for a noisy environment when busy.

The beer lineup features 5 of the Two Brothers portfolio: Domaine DuPage, Bitter End, Ebel's Weiss, Prairie Path, and Cane & Ebel. Additionally, seasonal/high-gravity and cask selections are available. In addition to the Two Brothers beers, a fairly extensive lineup of guest draft and bottled beers are available.

The food menu features a variety of sandwiches, entrees and pizzas. These and a children's menu should provide something to satisfy most people.

Wifi is available but may require a password. Check with the staff for details.

Tuesday 2nd of September 2008 02:23:51 PM

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Tucked back in an industrial area this can be difficult to locate if one does not have good directions on hand. The interior of the pub area is a little sterile and industrial feeling but the place has increased in character since its opening and based on the friendliness and effort of the management and staff I'm sure this place will only gain in atmosphere and ambiance. Of course I come for the beer, and they do not disappoint in that regard, with a solid lineup of their 5 primary beers, some seasonals/specialties and usually a cask offering. They also have a well thought out selection of bottles. Food is good pub fare with a focus on quality fresh ingredient with okay prices. I would not call this a destination place yet but it is a great place to have nearby!

Saturday 12th of July 2008 10:31:37 AM

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I heard about this place from a friend. To be honest I had never tried Two Brothers beer before the Taphouse opened. There are just so many bottles out there and it is hard to know which might be good.

My first visit was on March 29, 2008 and to spoil the ending of this review it was NOT the last! I just wish this place was closer to my house. (Why are there no good brewpubs around Bartlett?) The Taphouse is tucked away in a mixed commercial/residential neighborhood, northwest of the Butterfield/59 intersection. It can be a little confusing to find it the first time, but I learned quickly. The most confusing part is that they do not have a sign out in front of the building. It looks like a warehouse and I passed right on by it the first time despite the fact that my GPS system was telling me to stop.

The business hours of the Taphouse are a little limited. You can only enjoy their beer from 3PM until 10 or 11 depending on the day. This has frustrated us when we tried to stop by after being out somewhere else first. Arriving at 9:30PM and being told "last call" is unusual for a bar. But, hey, I am not running the business, so there are probably a lot of factors that I am ignorant of.

Beer
So getting to the important point. The beer is excellent! The usual lineup consists of their "Fab Five":
Domaine DuPage French Country Ale
Bitter End American Pale Ale
Ebel's Weiss German Style Weiss
Prairie Path Golden Ale
Cane & Ebel Red Rye Ale

The flavor on these is good all around. Some of them I like more than others, but all are very drinkable. This is unusual coming from me, as I am usually pretty picky. In particular, I love the Bitter End and Cane & Ebel.

In addition to those, as the seasons change, so do the other tap handles. I cannot remember all the varieties I have tried, but I have generally been pleased.
In particular, the Northwind Imperial Stout is delicious and I have been missing it as we moved into summer. It has been pushed out of the way by some other excellent beers, but I am the kind of guy who loves stouts all year round.

They have one guest tap that adds a bit of variety to the Two Brothers lineup as well. I have not been disappointed with their selections over the past few months. One of my favorites was the Allagash Trippel.

The beer is served at a good temperature. It is not too cold like you find at some of the chain brewpubs. The glassware seems appropriate to the style of the beers, but I must admit that I am no expert on this.

If you like portable, they do have growlers so you can take some of their beer with you. I don't tend to do this because the beer must be consumed soon for best quality. The growler is a good option when you are on the way to a party and you don't want to be stuck drinking the Corona and Miller that the cooler is usually stocked with.

The Taphouse also stocks a pretty wide selection of bottled microbrews. I prefer my beer from the tap if I can get it, so I have never tried any of their bottles.

Everything is listed on the beer menu, so check it each time you go to watch for the changes.

Food
The food menu is limited, but it contains the pub grub basics. They have made an effort to serve organic ingredients in several items. You can get an organic beef hamburger! I did and it was very tasty. I also love that they have sweet potato fries. There is pizza on the menu, but I have never tried it. The few things that I have tried have been good, but I tend to think of this place for beer rather than food.

We like to sit at the bar at this place because the rest of restaurant feels a little sterile and industrial. It is a brand new space and they went with a very spartan decorating scheme. Don't get me wrong, I am not suggesting that it should be filled with neon signs and TV screens, because I hate those places. I just think it needs a little more coziness.

The bartenders at the Taphouse tend to be a little surly. They are helpful, but their personalities are an acquired taste. At first I was a little put off, but after a few visits, I can deal with them. The last time I was in, they actually guessed which beer I was going to order. Not because I always order the same thing, but because they recognized that I like the strong, flavorful beers and there was a new one on tap.


Overall, I like the Two Brothers Taphouse. The beer is very good. There is enough rotation to keep me interested in coming back to try new things and even if I don't like the new, the old favorites are there to keep me happy. Hopefully the atmosphere will mature with time and this place can be even better.

I have been to this place several times and I will continue to do so.

[2010-05-02] I have been to this place many times, but my visit today inspired me to write a little update. There are a few changes to the regular lineup that are worth mentioning.
Resistance IPA
Long Haul Ale
Both of these are from the foudre (french oak vat) that Two Brothers obtained last year. These are very unique beers and I cannot wait until I can make it back for more.

Monday 28th of April 2008 06:45:14 PM

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Two brothers...well pretty difficult to find and don't bother calling ahead for directions as that gets pretty confusing. The location is actually 5 right turns off Butterfield road or just take the frontage road to save your sanity on your first visit(like suggested by the other reviewers of this location). I have been to this location 3 times but only sat down for a beer once. The first time I attempted to get to the tap house, I got some bad directions from a bartender, the second time I visited this location I went to their updated website for directions which helped me get there. The third time I visited, they were closed...take it from me, don't bother stopping in on Monday nights as they are closed on Monday, or just call ahead, which I really should have done in the first place.

On my second visit (where I did manage to find the location and arrive on a night they were open) I was happy to see that the brewpub serves 8 taps and also uses a cask ale. I tried some staple Two Brothers brews like Prairie Path, Dupage Dumaine and other fine selections. The menu is chocked full of fair to above average pub grub with large helpings which filled me up well.

The bar help seemed a little "not so cool" on the beer geekdom and if I remember correctly actually admitted to not knowing a lot about serving and the art of brewing beers. I plugged him with a few questions about the beers and he didn't seem to open to knowing much about the brewing process or terms. Personally I prefer a bar server who knows at least a little about brewing or beer and is somewhat "down" with the process. Don't get me wrong the food came fast and the beers were served well.

For sure this place is family friendly and seemed pretty empty when I came by on a Tuesday evening. No smoking in IL so step outside for a smoke and the do not have wifi either! Damn! Outside of the 8 Two Brothers' taps, the selection of beer was low to moderate and the atmosphere was quite for a brewpub.

Sunday 2nd of March 2008 11:14:58 AM

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Met some friends for dinner on a Saturday night. Had some issues finding the place (you have to get on the access road parallel to Butterfield), but got a table right away.

For young parents such as myself, the place is baby- and kid-friendly, with a nice kid's menu. For parents, the menu is small but solid with typical pub fare. I had a delicious pork sandwich with sweet potato fries, per the waiter's request. As for the beer, they had all the Two Brothers offerings available in stores, as well as a cask-conditioned, gravity-poured Cane and Ebel.

The service was very friendly. The waiter forgot about our daughter's pizza, but was very apologetic and brought us a free dessert to make up for the oversight. The pizza issue aside, the waiter was very attentive and kept our glasses filled. The staff really seemed to take pride in Two Brothers and their beer.

Overall, great food and great beer at a great price. My only disappointment is I wish they would offer a beer or two not available in stores to really make the trip out to Warrenville worthwhile. Nonetheless, definitely a place to visit if you're in the area.

Monday 11th of February 2008 12:00:04 PM

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Dropped in here for lunch over the weekend, to check out the new taphouse and homebrew shop. As others have said, the restaurant area is roomy, there was a party of 10-12 while we were there, and the place was maybe 1/3 full.

The bar area is sectioned off, and right near the kitchen. Beer prices were in the $3.50-5.00 range, which was reasonable. I was hoping to see more of their artisan series available, but i'm sure they will expand the selection in the weeks to come. The food I tried was good...giardinere-drizzled chicken wings, that tasted grilled to perfection. Also tasty was the "live" Hop Juice on cask. It looked to be a 10 oz. pour in a 12 oz. snifter, but I can't complain.

Decor was a little stark, but I expect it to become more worn-in as time goes on. There were accents of corrugated metal that formed a roof-like structure above the bar. The bar itself was a nicely finished lighter wood. Large windows created a vista of the rural solitude outside, beyond the parking lot...

Sunday 10th of February 2008 03:04:03 PM

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On weekend 1 of lunch service being available we dropped by for a pint or two and a burger.

The food portions were big and tasty. The beers were really good as could be expected. They had 8 Two Brothers Beers on tap and one "Live" cask conditioned beer (Hop Juice was the live selection).

Behind the bar there is a very large cold room with glass doors where they are displaying quite a few bottles of other beers from other breweries that could be ordered.

The bar area had about 5 or 6 high top tables and 15 to 20 stools around an "L" shaped bar. The rest of the restaurant is filled with smaller tables for dining.

There is one minor issue if you are getting directions to Two Brothers. There is a stretch of Barkley Avenue that is now a one way road, so you will have to take a left at Younghal and then a quick right at Talbot if you are coming down Barkley. There is plenty of parking available.

Sunday 3rd of February 2008 12:06:29 AM

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two brothers brewing company... and two brothers brewpub, and windy city distro, and the homebrew shop known as the brewers coop... all one in the same building.

Going into the brewpub... it's nice. The room itself is large, lots of highchair seating near the bar and shorter tables out and about, the bar itself looks to be about 15 stools long. The main room looks large enough to seat about 60ish people plus the bar. The open kitchen, is to the left of the bar, and you can see the pizza oven and prep tables as the 4-5 kitchen staff prepare meals... I had one of the pizzas, the crust is the most gourmet thing about this pizza, okay sauce, and meh cheeze with uninspired sausage...

10 taps seem to be available, 8 were beer and 2 soda, with a cask. Guest taps don't seem likely, but the bottle selection is where the guest action'll be... nice bottle selection, but they haven't put anything fun or exclusive on it just yet... we'll see. I had a cane and ebel and a northwind stout... Looking forward to trying the soda there... almond creme soda sounds good. and a sampler here looks like work... I didn't catch the price on the sampler, but if it's under $10 it's worth the price.

service was decent. a large bartender was working the bar and the surrounding tables and another server was doing the larger area out in the dining room... as I table hopped three times, I was able to determine which servers were in which sections.

my scoring deviates from this being their place and out of the box I sorta expect to see something new and fun and exciting from 2 brothers... the artisan series should have been more well represented, guest taps as they can prolly get some pretty sweet kegs. I expected more, but my standards were high... As far as the feel of the place, by look it reminded me of three floyds, but where the floyds felt like it outgrew itself on the first day, this place felt too big for it's britches... worth a visit, but don't go out of your way...

plenty of parking is going to be challenged once this place hits it's stride.