Down in the Boneyfiddle District of Portsmouth, Ohio is a badass brewpub that you won’t soon forget.
Described as 1860s-core, the Portsmouth Brewing Company was originally founded by German immigrants in 1843. After the distributorship left, the building was turned into an arcade mall until it was reopened as a brewery in 1996, using the same original recipes and adding a few new ones in the meantime.
A hot commodity in Portsmouth, this hybrid of restaurant and brewery has quite the interesting decor. When you walk in it truly feels like you’re walking into the past, with brick walls lined with barrels, but the environment is nothing short of an exquisite modern experience. TVs and sports games line the walls as well, giving this dinery and brewery a definite sports pub experience.
Despite being a Friday night in Portsmouth, our wait was only about 15-20 minutes. The waitstaff was very friendly, and there is a small, but quality, food menu. I can tell that the main focus isn’t on food but rather the brewpub aspect of things, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the food.
Being the adventurous soul that I am, I went with the chicken tenders after being recommended to them by my friend that I was eating with. I also ordered the fries and green beans. The chicken tenders were a little above average, but the fries were out of this world! I should’ve doubled up on the fries, but I can’t complain about the quality of the green beans. The only thing I would complain about is the portion size on the green beans. Otherwise, the portions were hearty and enough to satisfy my immense hunger.
The main thing that I came for was the famous Portsmouth Pilsner, one of my all-time favorite beers. I first had it at the [Scioto Ribber], a sister restaurant of the Portsmouth Brewing Company, and since then it has become the pinnacle of what a good pilsner should taste like. The fact that it is an original recipe from the early 19th century is really interesting.
In addition to the Portsmouth Pilsner, the Portsmouth Brewing Company also offers a full menu of their custom, hand-crafted draft beers. These include the Red Bird Ale, named after Portsmouth’s 1939 minor league baseball team. I have not yet tried the Red Bird Ale, but it is on my list for the next time I hit up this fine establishment.
I was pleased with my experience and I would definitely like to come back. Next time I think I will be a little bit more adventurous and order something like a steak. If their steaks are anything like their sister restaurants, then I think I’ll be in for a real treat.
Have you been to the Portsmouth Brewing Company? What do you think of this badass brewpub?