Eastlake Craft Brewery

I tried two different beers which I found above average. The service and music were both 5 stars, the beer closer to 3.5 maybe 3.75. Now please don’t get me wrong, the beer was pretty damn good. But was it as good as one of the top 10 or 5 breweries in Minneapolis? And these are all breweries you have heard of. But saying that the beer was THAT good brings down the value of these other 10 or 5. Okay, maybe taste is a bit subjective? So is sommelier and ciceron nonsense. You know what isn’t subjective? A lot of stuff. I will review two more breweries soon and report back to this website, which is subjectively a bunch of shark jumping click-​bait anyway. Where is my internet money for making your content better Unilocal?Where are my royalties for Chocolate Rain?

They take a possibly awkward experience — smack dab in Global Market with literally no 4^th wall — into pure gold. Of the 10 beers we tried one was meh, two ok, and the rest crazy good badass insane yes please more please.

The atmosphere at East Lake is probably my favorite of any tap room I’ve been to in the metro. I’m not sure why — maybe it felt cozy without being cramped? And it was nice that it was open to Midtown Market (closed after hours, though you can still order from Tacocat and and I think Manny’s Tortas.)
I thought the beers were good — I’m more a fan of malty stuff and there were only a couple options I was interested in, but they were good. I liked some of the barware (glasses shaped like cans) and it seemed like they had some other interesting flavors on tap (a Vietnamese spice inspired beer, if I rememeber correctly). They also had snacks and a selection of ‘craft’ sodas.
Prices seemed really reasonable as well. They have some kind of sports deal — $ 3 pints of a certain brew while a game is on? Not sure on the details.
If I make it back I’ll definitely check out food from Taco Cat though.

I had a fairly pleasant experience at Eastlake. The environment was cozy and seemed fairly spacious. Great location as you have access to all sorts of tasty food in the market. I had the saison and while it was good, I wasn’t overly impressed with it. I can’t comment on the other beer as I only had the one. I’d certainly go back and try out the others! The service was a little slower than I would have liked, but the bartenders were very helpful and friendly and kind of crazy (in an oddly charming way). Maybe try someplace else if you have a tight schedule to adhere to that day. I’d go back to try this place again!

This probably shouldn’t be your first choice. The service was less than sub par and the place had a certain smell. The beer is also not that great although the slop stout had a nitro pour. The staff picked a fight with a customer while I was there. They have Mexican in house food but it was $ 10 for three tiny tacos. You’re in a neighborhood with a Mexican restaurant every block so why stop here? Not worth your time.

I didn’t think I needed any additional reasons to frequent the Midtown Global Market, but it appears as if I was wrong, because now that Eastlake is anchoring one corner of the MGM I have noticed myself meandering its corridors much more frequently.
The taproom itself is on the East side of the market on Lake street (hence the really creative name) and is accessible from the market during normal hours and from Lake St when the MGM is closed. The ambiance fits that of the market, save for the mounted animal heads and disco ball adorning the walls. Other than during the occasional taco/​burrito/​beer battle finding a seat is not a problem.
Eastlake has a good-​sized stable of year-​round beers, with the Blueliner Pale and Mud in Your Eye topping the list of those I’d happily sip on at any time. The seasonals can run the gamut, but if you happen to come across the Kirby Pucker, Stick Style IPA or Increasingly Lost Saison you can be sure they are safe bets. Should you be feeling a bit peckish, the MGM offers plenty of choices to procure a nosh while sipping on your beverage. Should you be hungry and incredibly lazy, you can order Taco Cat directly from the taproom.
Service, while occasionally derailed by the holier-​than-​thou-​hipster beertender, is generally quite friendly and amiable.

Eastlake is the most slept on brewery in the Twin Cities. Their beers are interesting spins on staple styles, but not fussy or highfalutin. The Blueliner Pale Ale is my favorite ale in the Cities, and their winter beers (Sweet Sassy Molassy in particular) are malty treasures.
It’s also pretty much mandatory that you get Taco Cat next door. Trust me.
Eastlake also earns points with their glassware, stylish branding, and décor. It’s Midtown Global Market’s hidden gem.

I came here on a Friday night to try Eastlake’s beer and also for some Taco Cat. The bartenders were friendly and gave suggestions for beer. They had two IPAs on tap, but the bartender suggested the Shoot from the Hip, which was very tasty. I also tried the Blueliner Pale Ale, but I have to say that the Shoot from the Hip was my favorite. The bartenders also let us order Taco Cat from them, so we just had to pay one tab, which made it extremely convenient. The taproom itself is smaller than I expected. However, there is a lot of seating and it was not insanely busy like some of the other breweries in Minneapolis. I would definitely come back here for the beer, the convenience of ordering food from Midtown Global Market, and the friendliness of the staff.

A brewery that’s open on Mondays! Eastlake certainly knows how to capture market share for those of us chaps that get thirsty everyday of the week.
As any decent brewery, they offer flights so that you can taste their eclectic variety. I’ve settled for the Blueliner, oh what a treat for my liver…
The atmosphere gravitates towards hipstery, and you can almost always expect a bearded guy to pour your beer. They have some pretty cool glasses with an inward-​leaning lip, and for some reason this makes the beer taste even better. If you do get the Blueliner, do make sure to have it poured in this glass, even if the guy looks at you funny and says «really?» Yeah man, really. I take my beer seriously and so should you, This guy really bugged me, but I had such a good buzz going I was willing to overlook his attitude… On a separate occassion I commended the owner for these glasses and he was happy to hear it, as he shared my enthusiasm for glasses that improve your beer tasting experience.
If you do get hungry, there are plenty of options in the market just a few steps away, so you never run the risk of drinking on an empty stomach (unless of course that’s your thing). They also have some (limited) board games if you’re feeling competitive.
Definitely one of my favorite spots around town with beer that stands out. Highly recommended.

*3.5 stars* (I know Unilocal is against it, but I just really like my .5s!)
Location and ambiance ~ No question, this is a great addition to MGB, it’s wonderful to have brewery inside and a place to relax with food and a beer. I like the wrap around bar and the wall of windows, even if it just looks out onto the street. This aspect is definitely a plus!
Beer ~ Unfortunately I was unimpressed by the beer. It’s not bad, just not anything too special in my mind. Maybe it’s because the list is heavy on IPAs, which admittedly are not my favorite.
Overall ~ I will very likely be back on trips to MGB, but wouldn’t go out of my way to go to this brewery when there are others with better beer, in my opinion.

Today I stumbled upon this trendy establishment while searching for strange and exotic foods. It was to my delight after finish my meal I see a sign for East Lake Brewery and the distance was only steps away. Once I bellied up to the bar I spoke to the friendly lady about their ales and what she liked. She gave me a pint of mud in your eye or something which tasted great. She also gave me some stickers and another sample of beer for free. While I relaxed drinking my pint I enjoyed the music of Rodriguez and many other artist I like to hear when in chill mode. Make sure to wash your hands before leaving as they have fun signs in the bathroom and cool led lights while you clean your hands.

I really wanted to like this place. We went to breweries in Colorado for a year, which is basically the Napa Valley of beer. Even Texas breweries know how important warm atmosphere is to cold beer.
The reason that people go to breweries is not to just drink great beer — I can do that at home. It’s for the scene. The bartenders were very rude, and unwelcoming — unless you were one of the regulars. To the bartender, I’m so sorry that I interrupted your conversation about mustache wax — or whatever you were talking about — to get my parking ticket stamped. And we asked about your advertised happy hour specials, and then you jumped to defensive stating, «I’m not giving you a refund.» You definitely earned that tip that we left you with your arrogance. Maybe you will use your hardly earned tip money to get a piercing through both of your lips, so then you’ll have an actual reason to not acknowledge people with words.
We have been to breweries all over the place, and this was the first time I ever felt compelled to write a bad review. This business really needs to reevaluate their atmosphere, and the customer service failure.
I will definitely go to midtown global market again, but I will skip the brewery.

I think this was my 4 – 5 time here until tonight I would have given it 4 or 5 stars. However tonight we used a group on and bough a Togo beer. i spent 24.00 (before the hat) and tipped their staff 20.00. My son liked the hats so I asked how much they were. One of the bar tenders said 16.00 I said ok and paid for it and got my Change. A moment later after I paid one of them said no it’s $ 20.00. I said no, no that’s crazy I can’t pay a reasonable price then you demand more money after its already on my sons head. At that point several patrons who were standing by me heard the conversation and were like that’s crazy you can’t treat a customer like that. The man directly to my right was very quite and then finally said «what the hell are you doing man… I am also a small business owner and I would never treat a customer, especially one like her the way you have. You are unprofessional and embarrassing.» He then got up and left.
I will never be back. I used to tell my friends about it and meet up with 10 – 12 of them for a quick drink before we went home. Never again. The bipolar and unapologetic manner isn’t worth my 2 cents or $ 100

This brewery has an awesome location. Even though you are inside, there is so much light coming in from the windows, you feel a part of the city. We took a window seat to start drinking our flight. There were 2 options, so we tried one of each. I personally do not like IPAs so, I preferred the entire 2^nd flight. I drank and would recommend the Arcturan Mega-​Saison beer. If you don’t drink, but want to join your friends, here you can also have rootbeer and kombucha. I plan to try the one-​two punch mix of beer and kombucha next time! Try a sweet tulip size for $ 3 if you are not sure. Also, take a growler home, even on Sundays, if you are sure!
We didn’t realize, but we were there during a MN United soccer game. The place quickly got crowded and rowdy. I also loved that when they were winning pints dropped to $ 3! Thank you!
The style and décor in here is inviting and bright. We brought in some yummy Hot Indian food, but I found out restaurants inside the Midtown Global Market will take orders and deliver it here.

Love this place!
Everybody at the table gets to order whatever food they want from whatever place they want. If you haven’t been to global market there are 20 or 30 different food places right there and most will deliver to you at Eastlake Craft Brew.
I’ve yet to have a bad pint at Ryan’s place. Good staff, owner, location and beer.

It’s a very FUN microbrewery. We went for mid-​afternoon beer flights, but I can’t wait to go back. Good variety on the beer — they know their audience. You can order food from one of a couple restaurants at the global market and can have it delivered directly to the brewery — neat idea!
The owner was sitting at the bar, having a beer and chatting with us about the beers. We thought he was just a regular, interested in our opinion, until he jumped behind the bar. Waitress was happy to provide recommendations. Will definitely return.

Beer, combucha and special soda selection is really good. I tried the mix of beer with combucha and it was tasty. Not for everyone but I would recommend to give it at a try at the bar first. My friends enjoyed ginger beer which had a little kick of spiciness and rose water which had defined rose flavor. You can bring food inside and being located at the midtown global market would make your visit different every time. They also have a really small food menu which includes tacos.

I just think its so brilliant to have this place inside the Global Market! Everything about it is so delightfully community driven. The space, the fact that some of the restaurants in the building stay open late to deliver tasty food to your beer table, the locally made kombucha on tap, so great.
Anyway, I’m very excited about this new addition to my neighborhood. Great beers with good variety and some rotating, seasonal options. They also serve really tasty kombucha on tap, which is great when hangin’ with non beer drinkers (because drinking water is so boring). The space is designed well, is inviting, sunny and also has some outdoor seating!
The only downfall– I didn’t see any games. Silly detail, I know.

A couple days before New Years Day, my brother and I stopped by Eastlake Craft Brewery to support this new biz located in Midtown Global Market. We all know that a taproom there has been long overdue…
MGM is huge, so if you don’t want to spend a good five to ten minutes walking errwhere, just journey to the southeast corner of the building.
The atmosphere there is chill, and I dig the if-​a-​dive-​bar-​merged-​with-​a-​retro-​cabin décor. They also have a gigantic elk head hanging on one of their walls. I dig. I dig.
About the beer, though… Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy it all too much.
Their beers change periodically — so I’m not sure if the ones I’m going to write about are still on the menu — but I had their Black IPA (Nicollet Mauler) and Saison (Increasingly Lost Saison).
*Nicollet Mauler: The menu advertised it had hints of licorice, caramel, and cacao, and it definitely delivered on the first ingredient. Overall, though, it didn’t stand out and tasted watered-​down when compared to other IPAs I’ve had at other breweries. Maybe they’re going for a less intense IPA? I’m not sure.
*Increasingly Lost Saison: Like the Nicollet Mauler, it’s watered down, too. Described as having both clove and cinnamon, I thought my half pint could’ve had more of these ingredients. (Maybe it was the batch?) Some sweetness couldn’t hurt.
Overall, it wasn’t the best beer experience that I’ve had, but I’ll definitely return in the future to drink more and support this brewery. Best of luck, Eastlake!

I’m excited for this place! I had no clue what to expect when I was driving down here. I’ve never been to the global market area before and it was a new experience. East Lake is my kind of place. The place had a welcoming feel to it. The décor was almost backwoodsy in the middle of the city. They had suffed animals on the walls, lots of dark stained wood and the beer to go with it all.
With eight brews on tap, I would have killed for a flight. Unfortunately they didn’t have them and so we were left going down the list pint by pint. Ok, so we didn’t try all of them (I had to drive), we only sampled a couple. I started with the blueliner. This was a really good pale ale. I good way to start out the evening. Then I moved onto the Devils Kettle. A delicious belgian IPA. It had just the right amount of hoppiness with the belgian fruitiness. I tasted my buddy’s El Armatoste, which is a spiced coffee., but coffee brews are not my thing. He loved it however. There were other brews that were my style that I wish I had tried, like the Increasing Lost Siason, Stick Style or the L’Ogre. I need to go back to try them ALL!
The only growlers East lake sold were the $ 69 steel (classy as all hell) growlers. No glass, but they are willing to fill other brewery growlers if you bring them in, which I’ll be doing next time. Otherwise they sold bomber bottles — 22oz, so I picked up a L’Ogre and a Devil’s Kettle for later (they didn’t last long at home).
I’m excited for my next visit and I’ll come earlier so I can sample some food pairings with the brews!