The Dog House

EDIT: This place is closed!
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The beer at this place rocks. They have something for everyone. Except for the unoriginal people who drink the mass produced swill that most restaurants call «domestic» beers. The owner has sworn that all beers will always cost $ 2.50 and ciders $ 3.
The food is damn good too. Someone else’s Unilocal review mentioned the menus printed off a PC printer as a negative aspect– but they told me that it’s because their menu changes daily depending on what’s fresh and in stock that day. My favorites are the chicken and rice soup, the Chris-​wich (buffalo chicken sandwich), and the chicken portabella.
Perhaps the coolest thing to a closet gamer like me are all the console gaming systems in the back room. They have so many old school games! And people will *bring you beer* while you sit on comfy couches– So much cooler than gaming at home!

37 beers on tap. They consist of imported and craft beers. Also, he has cider on tap. All the beers are $ 2.50 and the cider is $ 3.00. I don’t know how long he will be able to keep these prices considering he makes about fifty cents on every pint. The enterior seems a little messy. I thinks it is due to the limited staff. There isn’t a traditional bar setup, so he pulls all the pints from the kitchen. He has the beer vendors clean the beer lines twice a month, so the beer if very fresh tasting. I didn’t eat so i can’t comment on the food. Well worth another visit.
The reason for three star is a esthetics reason. I like to see the taps of beer that i might want. Also, the gameroom could be better used a bar considering the kegs were on the other side of the wall. The gameroom was dingy with old couches. It just gave off
that «flophouse» vibe.

I got a chance to check out The Dog House last night with one of my favorite people in the world, new Unilocaler Liz C. It is a diamond in the rough, but that does not take away from it being a diamond.
Owner Eric, whom we met and who chatted with us several times throughout the evening, has built a business plan around great, hearty food and drink at amazing prices. His profit margin is very small, which means that he needs a lot of business to make it work. Others have raved about the incredible beer list, which is indeed impressive — a huge selection of unusual and wonderful beers on tap, all priced at a showstopping $ 2.50/pint. The food is similarly a great bargain. I got chicken spaetzle (a VERY large breaded and fried piece of chicken breast with a delicious lemony cream sauce, served with mashed potatoes and rice) and Liz got beer battered cod (served with rice and a choice of sides). Liz picked fried mushrooms as her side, and the plate of mushrooms she got was ginormous — easily enough to serve as an appetizer for 2 – 3. We also ordered their homemade potato chips which ring in at a mere 99 cents, and they were sooooo good — crunchy and salty and served with a side of ranch dressing. As others have mentioned, the entrees all come with a soup AND a salad, as well. Soups the night we were there were tomato bisque and chicken w/​rice. Both of us got the tomato bisque, which was yummy. Salads come with your choice of four cheeses (cheddar, feta, parmesan, and another one that’s escaping me right now — Liz?) and either croutons or pine nuts. Wow. It was a lot of food. And the total for both of us, INCLUDING three beers, tax, and 20% gratuity, came to — get this — $ 35. Crazy cheap!
Our only beef, and it might have been a big one had Liz and I not been engrossed in lively conversation, is that the service was really, really bad (at least, it was until Eric started waiting on our table, as he was simultaneously acting as chef and doing who knows what else behind the scenes). After placing our orders, it took a really long time to get our salads — a table that arrived quite a while after us got theirs and had finished them before ours arrived. And although Liz and I ordered the exact same salads, they came out completely different — mine had croutons, hers had pine nuts, she didn’t have tomatoes, I didn’t have dressing… you get the idea. The server also forgot Liz’s side of mushrooms and our order of chips. In fairness to her, she was the only waitperson working that night. I’m not sure that’s quite enough to explain just how bad the service was, but it surely didn’t help. We mentioned this to Eric, and he explained that this was the busiest night they’d had yet, and they just weren’t prepared for the onslaught.
The décor is very casual — I’d describe it as «guy décor.» The space is large and very nice, although a bit sparse feeling — tall ceilings, a beautiful old (or at least old-​looking) metal ceiling, and lots of tall, dark wood 4 and 4+ top tables. In the back, there is a video gaming room furnished with lots of big, cushy couches and three TV’s that serve as video game stations.
If you don’t mind putting up with a few mishaps while they’re ironing out the kinks, I say go, go, go to The Dog House. Show Eric that his business is going to fly so he feels confident enough to hire some more waitstaff. It’s a great deal for a nice meal, and you’ll be helping a cool, young guy make his dreams come true. I will definitely be back.
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EDIT 9÷6÷07: A second visit to The Dog House this week revealed that my first impression was spot on, and hasn’t changed much, yet. Service still needs work… it was our waitress’ first day and our order was messed up again… but the food was still excellent and Eric spent a bunch of time visiting with us, which was cool. The décor feels like hanging out at the home of some single dude, albeit a single dude who’s a damn fine cook and can magically produce any one of 37 beers on tap for $ 2.50 a pint. If you can overlook the service woes and don’t mind the casual atmosphere, I still think this place offers a ton of bang for your buck.

Check it out:
$ 2.50 pints any time all the time and not just Lone Star, but real craft brews both local and around the world. Indeed if you order lone star here you deprive yourself of the beautiful spectrum of beer. These guys know beer like no other and charge half of what the other guys charge.
I came here originally under the advice of the clerk at Spec’s, and I was very glad I did. Had this Jerk chicken dish with Russian soup and a salad with real pine nuts and my choice of dressings. Everything I did was to perfection and to my tastes. Indeed I was a tad overwhelmed with all the options, but the dude taking my order seemed patient and offered guidance at every step.
My favorite part was the Russian beef soup, which was savory, rich and full of real meat (some places really skimp on the meat in their soups and it pisses me off). The jerk chicken was also rich and flavorful with extra cheese.
they also have some pretty awesome bratwurst. I am sure you can go for beer and and a brat.
Much of the menu changes from day to day. You never know what you’re going to get here, but everything i had was delicious and rich and great bang for buck.
The coolest thing about the Dog house right now, however is that you’re getting to participate in the upstart of an incredibly cool restaurant. The folks there are constantly seeking feedback and really care about how you are enjoying the food. They try new dishes that I have not seen in other American restaurants, and with top shelf ingredients.
Also cool is the proximity of The Dog house to the Capital Metro Highland mall transit point. In other words you can drink like a fish here and take the bus home. I think I might ride my bike there next time, order more beer and burn of the calories on my way home
Oh yeah Did I mention they have a video gaming room? I didn’t check it out, but man that is something else! This place has a lot of potential that has not yet been realized. And you can be one of the first if you go in soon.

This restaurant is brand new! Like, they were interviewing cooks in the other room. We also got the scoop on their upcoming wine bar, and lounge-​like Red Room. I’m so excited!
What’s awesome about The Dog House is that every entrée comes with soup AND salad, for about $ 10-​$ 12. The soup today was tomato bisque, which was oh-​my-​god fabulous. The salad was also delicious. My entrée, sundried tomato pasta chicken, ordered sans chicken, was also great. The portion was generous, and after my soup/​salad, I had to get a lot of it boxed. My husband ordered a buffalo chicken salad that was also fabulous. Everything was fresh, crisp, and flavorful. The brothers running this place definitely have it down– really nice guys, great beer prices, and excellent food.
All the tables are four-​tops or more (lots of eatin’ room!) with dark stained wood and sturdy, attractive chairs, and the room is painted a tasteful blue over wooden slats. The rest of the décor is similar, like you’re eating at home in a new classic American dining room.
Guess what else, Unilocalers. I’ve saved the best for last. Are you into beer? Good craft beers, like St. Arnold, Live Oak, Real Ale, Pyramid, Smithwick? They have 36 beers on tap, and every single one is $ 2.50 a pop, all the day long. Nice, huh? I KNOW! I’m so excited this place has opened!
Update: I’ve gone back five or six times. The red-​painted room is open, so we’ve spent some awesome nights playing video games and drinking beer. It was so fun! I hope The Dog House makes it– I love playing Mario 3 on an old school Nintendo next to some people playing Guitar Hero on a projector screen.