Rockbottom Brewpub

Still a great place i love to come back to in downtown.
I had the chipotle chicken penne, it was SO good. A little too spicy for me, but still delish.
Also had the red sangria, it was missing something fizzy (sprite perhaps?) but still good, and a great size for $ 8.
Be back soon!

I don’t come here often but when I do, I’m usually quite satisfied. The price point of the food is okay, not great. The food itself is good with some a few great things (their onion rings come to mind).
The beer is good when I’ve had it. They know how to serve beer right.
Location is the big selling point here; right on Spring Garden Road but not in as noisy or crowded a venue as some other places. The space itself is great; a few different seating options that work well for small or large groups.
Staff are very good. On my most recent trip, my vegetarian stir fry came back loaded with chicken. I was fine with just picking out the chicken but the server insisted (politely) and she brought out the correct order. We got to keep the chicken stir fry so a spare meal for someone! She was very apologetic the whole time but also managed to be playful with my two-​year-​old niece.

Probably the best pub food I’ve ever had. The peanut butter burger is the most delicious thing I’ve ever had the pleasure of devouring. You also want to try their fries as they are hand cut and it really shows. Deep fried cheese curds are amazing but a tad overpriced for the portion you get. I’ve also tried the calamari which has a delectable sweet sauce drizzled over them. Highly recommend this place if you want to try something new and dont want to be disappointed.

Typical brew pub with some interesting on the premise brewed beers ranging from stout to Ipa and fruit style beers. Food was pub style but a little more refined — great burgers and salads. A cosy downstairs space, all told a nice dinner and drinks evening.

Wondering around Halifax in the rain I picked Rockbottom for a drink and maybe some dinner. In went down the stairs and took a seat at the bar. It was pretty slow and quiet inside and even though I was only one of a few at the bar the service was pretty lackluster. I had a glass of their Dead Wood Wheat, which was ok/​pretty good and took a look at the menu. Nothing really appealed to me and since it was so dead and boring I decided to leave after the one beer. Maybe this could be a fun place when more is going on but it wasn’t very exciting while I was there.

Never feel full with just one order. And it’s getting more expensive. Never suggest it if you are starving. I won’t come back again. NEVER

ugh. the food is overpriced like it’s gourmet but it’s stuff that comes from bags and boxes. And not even good frozen food, think less M&M meats and more No Frills. bland. the beer was okay but nothing to write home about. Their trivia is a joyless dirge. No jokes. No humour. A real sombre affair and everyone else was focused into it like it’s a midterm exam. it was a waste of an evening. if, against your better judgement, some crappy friend manages to drag you there, avoid the food, it’s a waste of money.

What could be better than good craft ales and fresh lobster? The $ 19.95 1 ¼ lb lobster was meaty & juicy. Excellent potato salad & Cole slaw. Very good ESB that is much more complex than most British ESB’S. Followed up with their West coast style Fathom IPA. Right up there with the WA State IPA’s. Thanks for a great night in Halifax.

Great food, great drinks, great service. I’ve always enjoyed myself every time I’ve dined or had drinks at rock bottom.
Can get a little packed and noisy but definitely recommend if you’re okay with that.

One-​time visit: friendly place, especially the bartender Daniel. Excellent raisin stout & beef nachos.

I don’t do restaurants but I do drink beer. For years, I lived next to this place and didn’t even know I basically had a beer store in my backyard.
I can’t review the food or anything like that but it seems nice and dark, I guess I’d go there to eat but I only go to restaurants if I’m trying to impress someone. People eating and talking and using «like» and «you know» as interjections incessantly isn’t really my thing. Like, oh my god, whatever, you know?
I digress a bit but what I can tell you is that you can walk right up to the bar with your growler and get some pretty fine beer for 13 or 14 bucks. Service is excellent, friendly staff. You pay 7 bucks for the growler as a deposit which you get back when you return it. Especially useful for alcoholics who live nearby who need some hair of the dog on a Saturday morning and don’t feel like walking an extra few hundred meters to the NSLC.
If I ever eat there I’ll update my review but for the beer to go, 5 stars. Fathom IPA is what I usually get but they got a bunch of other kinds, which they let you sample.

I have to say, Mike and I had a really good experience here. I have to give it five stars. :-)
We decided to give Rockbottom a try after checking some Unilocal reviews. I was a bit doubtful since it’s basically in the basement of the Moustache. However, it’s a beautiful pub with comfortable seating, lots of booths and an eye-​catching bar. It is a warm and inviting space.
Mike tried one of their brewed-​on-​site beers and loved it. We were both leaning towards healthier fare until I saw a gigantic, delicious-​looking burger go by. We quickly changed our orders. :-D We had the habanero burger and the beef, pork & bacon burger. The server warned me the habanero mayo was very hot, but fortunately it was just right, hot with lots of flavour but didn’t burn my mouth off. I loved it. Mike loooved his mountain o’meat. I had roasted potatoes with my burger and they were perfect.
Service was great, the music was great (warning: I’m an 80s girl), the food was fabulous and prices were very reasonable. Unfortunately no room for dessert this time around, but next time!

EDITED:
I hate that I am doing this because Rockbottom was, before this moment our favourite go to pub in the city. But our experience last night was so disappointing we are both feeling like we might have to move on from there.
We literally felt forgotten in the middle of the pub and it wasn’t even that busy. We sat down and got our menus right away but that was when the impromptu service quickly ended. We waited over 20 minutes to get asked what drinks we wanted and another 10 to get them served. Another 35 minutes to have our food served. I got the panini club in a wrap, which I have had a number of times and this time I was surprised by the presence of one roasted potato mixed in with my wrap. This was a turn off… why is it in my wrap and where did it come from? When we finally got the server back to our table I told him this was in my wrap and I don’t think it should be, he seemed equally as confused but surprisingly didn’t do anything about it (another disappointment).
My drink was completely empty for over 30 minutes before anyone asked me if I wanted something else to drink. I went for a water but I should have ordered another beer because it took another 20 minutes for someone to ask us if we wanted our bills AND if you can believe it another 15 – 20 to get our bill to the table. Disappointed is literally the only word that comes to my head.
We were watching the room and we felt bad for the guy who was in charge of us because we don’t even think it was his fault. We don’t even think he is a server, I think he is a bartender who was helping out. Either way, he was clearly over his head. I was seeing him running his ass off all over the place. But there was another 3 – 4 servers that were clearly not paying attention to his struggle. They were literally watching the TV and chatting with their couple of tables as the rest of us stared at our empty glasses for over 20 minutes. That was the part that bothered us the most.
We did not leave a tip, which as normally 20%+ tippers we felt bad about but it was just so poorly executed the entire experience left us with a sour taste in our mouth.
This use to be our FAVOURITE place. We would recommended it to everyone we discussed Halifax pubs with. But as I said above, this experience has really changed our perspective and I am sad to say that might have been my last meals there.

I really enjoy Rockbottom. Their peanut butter burger is really tasty, but be prepared: because it’s a mess to eat. (I just consider that part of the fun. :D)

We came here for a bachelorette party, although we had initially planned for the mustache it was too busy. So we went downstairs where they helped accommodate our large group.
The space was nice, especially for a Saturday night jump off point! The service was good, serving a group of more than 10 can be difficult so I appreciate the effort made, there were a few long waits between but we were having too much fun to let it get us down!
The food and drinks were good but slightly over priced. The nice thing about the space is the in house brewery which you can see!
I’m sure the next time I go it will be with a more reasonably sized group and I will see even more reasons to love it here!

I always enjoy visiting rockbottom with friends. The food always taste superb and the drink is everlasting. I’m not a huge fan of their self brewed beer but that may just be my taste. I do like the alternative selection of beer they carry. If you’re looking for a great place to have a great time with friends, then this is the place. The service is spot on!

I discovered this place a couple of weeks earlier and had a quick drink before leaving, but I was impressed with the atmosphere and made a mental note to come back and try the menu once I had more time.
Since the World Cup Final was on a Sunday, I decided to avoid the craziness that would take place at Bubba Ray’s, Oasis, or Niche and head to Rockbottom with a couple of good friends.
We made the decision to arrive a few minutes before the pub opened just to see if they would open early and they did. In the end, we decided to sit in the corner booth that housed 1 of the 3 televisions the pub had installed, so this gave us a great view of the game.
As other posters have mentioned on this page, the pub makes its own beer, so we decided to try the Fathom IPA and it was immaculate. There was a 120% difference in the taste of this ‘homemade’ brew compared to some of the average draught you get in other establishments.
I ordered the chicken parmesan and garlic bread while my friends each had the Rockbottom burger. The food was good, but I think my meal was slightly overpriced at $ 16.25; however, I didn’t mind paying it as the service was quite good and, as stated earlier, the atmosphere is very laid-​back.
Rockbottom has many different events occurring throughout the week. They have a trivia night on Tuesday, an open mic night on Thursday as well as live music on Fridays and Saturdays. The pub’s website also notes that they are very open to reservations as long as you give staff at least 2 hours notice.

«I’ll take ‘Words that are actually supposed to be two words’, for $ 200, Alex»
Located below the hustle and bustle of its big brother, Rockbottom sits below Your Father’s Moustache, and over the years seems to have settled into its own swing of things and not just survived on the overflow from YFM on their crazy busy wing nights.
The biggest draw for me for this place has always been its atmosphere. Lots of stonework, dark woods and big comfy leather-​ish chairs. Even a fireplace with coffee table and a chess set. Some booths, long bar, and open view of their beer brewing equipment complete a cozy scene. It’s also a good spot to come to watch any big sports event, as it generally slips under the radar when the actual sports bars are packed to the gills.
After a bit of a hiatus, I’ve come to Rockbottom a handful of times in the past couple years to partake in their Tuesday trivia after our usual spot sadly closed, as well as it being a convenient spot for food and a drink before a movie at Park Lane. Trivia-​wise, it’s alright; if you get there a bit early, you won’t have a problem getting a table. The host is the same as it was four or five years ago when we first tried out RB trivia, and let’s just say he still loves the sound of his own voice just as much as he did back then. That being said, it’s a decent time and a good excuse to sample whatever RB’s craft beer offerings are.
The menu is your typical pub menu with a few unique items like their potachos (waffle fries nachos) and scallop pops (panko crusted scallops on a stick). My own experience has been a mixed bag, with overall experiences ranging from ‘meh’ to ‘That was alright’. At the ‘meh’ end of the spectrum — their pork, beef and bacon burger. The patty as you might have guessed is a pork and beef blend, topped with bacon, cheese an onion ring and the usual cursory vegetables. The meat had a hint of pork flavour to it, which was nice for a it of change from your typical burger, but it was on the thin side and seemed disproportionate to the pile of toppings on it. As usual bacon came to the rescue, crispy and and delicious, while the onion ring added some crunch and deep fried goodness. The roasted red pepper mayo had a slightly sweet flavour to it as well, which balanced things out nicely.
The fries that accompanied the burger were disappointing, having spent too little time in the fryer and coming to me not nearly crisp enough.
On another visit I got the open-​faced prime rib melt and fries, with their Jacktar stout onion rings for the table. The onion rings are of the large variety, drizzled in what I assume is a reduction of their Jacktar stout beer. Nonetheless, they seemed like the same sort of stout-​drizzled onion rings available at Bubba Ray’s and the dearly departed Pogue. They have a bit more flavour than your usual onion ring, but I find these larger onion rings are more prone to being soggy, and the onion pulling out after a bite… which was the case for these. It was nice to see that they had an extra large dipping cup of ketchup for the onion rings, which is some quality attention to detail/​someone remembering that old game for toddlers of trying to fit the blocks into the appropriately shaped holes.
The melt was a respectable entry, with juicy meat, a bit of sweetness from sauteed onions and just enough BBQ sauce without it becoming cloying, and a bit of pep from the green onion. A well-​rounded sandwich, through and through. The fries were better this time around, but certainly weren’t game changers or vying for the title of King of Fried Potato Sticks.
Whether it’s trivia, a casual drink, or last ditch location to watch the game Rockbottom is a decent spot to go. Just don’t expect them to spell anything properly.

In the same building as Your Father’s Moustache. Nice layout downstairs, bar and tables are nicer than I was expecting. Service was friendly and fast enough, food was just OK; I went with the fish and chips and it was just OK. Tried a couple different beers but none really jumped out at me.
They have trivia/​quizzo I believe on Tuesday nights I believe, but it isn’t like some places where it is so loud that you have to go elsewhere if you’re not with a team.

At $ 8.34, my affordable lunch was a 5-​star experience. Got 30 minutes? I ordered, ate and took care of my bill in that amount of time at Rockbottom Brewpub with no rush and no wait whatsoever.
Rockbottom offered a classic Rockbottom burger for $ 5 during Burger Week. I popped in at noon on Wednesday to check it out, seated myself at a booth near the bar, was greeted warmly by the barkeep, and ordered from a friendly server a minute or two later.
The burger came with a side of fries, potato or rice. I was told I could choose a side of sweet potato fries, onion rings, or choice of salad instead at an extra cost. I opted for a side salad, and on my server’s enthusiastic recommendation, I ordered the Spinach salad with poppy seed dressing ($ 2.50 extra).
My food arrived in 5 to 7 minutes, and the Rockbottom was exactly what I expect in a classic burger with freshly grilled patty, ketchup, relish, mustard, pickle, onion, tomato, iceberg lettuce, and mayo on a warm, crusty bun.
My side salad was as appetizing to look at as it was nutritious, with fresh baby spinach, egg wedges, shredded mozzarella, sliced strawberries, sliced mushrooms, and sunflower seeds. These were raw (and, yes, healthier that way), but roasted would’ve been tastier.
The efficient service, relaxed ambiance and great value won me over. The fact that my purchase also helped support FEED Nova Scotia during Burger Week, made Wednesday’s Rockbottom Burger memorable.
I’ll be back. :)