Friday April 20th was the last day for me between jobs, so Heather and I decided to go on a day date. We won’t talk about how we started the day, after the kids were off to school; let’s pick it up at lunch. We decided to try Barn Town Brewing in Waukee, Iowa. We picked it for for two reasons. One, we had not been there before, and two, it was the only brewery open for lunch in the area.
The dining room is on the east end of a strip mall, so they have nice outdoor seating area with festoon lighting. The location on the east of the building lends itself to a perfect evening in the shade. When we walked in, we were hit with the smell of hops. Inside, the ambiance lives up to the name. The primary wall finish is old barn wood. On one wall, there is half of an old, blue, Ford pick-up. Heather and I debated whether the other half of the truck was on the other side of the wall. Although, we did not discuss where the back side of the deer on the wall might be. Ok, not really, we are fully aware that the other half of the truck is likely in a junkyard. The chandeliers are made of wagon wheels, and the light fixtures are glass growlers, and a series of ropes and pulleys. There is a mural on one wall, made from old beer cans and outlines the State of Iowa with a BTB in the middle. There are two big overhead doors that can open up to bring the outside in.
After being seated, we immediately went to the beer list. That day, they offered 14 beers, brewed in the brewery, which is located in the space adjacent to the dining area. They also had four guest brews, three ciders, and a mead. The brewery also had a house brewed root beer.
Heather started with a flight consisting of: Rain, Enamored Amber, Get Up Get Down Brown, and Mo’stachio. I began my lunch with an IPA flight including: Groovy Ruby, Appaloosa, Hop Skewer, and Neon. I, of course, helped myself to a taste of Heather’s selections, and vice versa. There wasn’t one in the bunch I didn’t like. In fact, I found two IPAs that Heather will actually drink. Both the Groovy Ruby, and the Appaloosa, are very mild IPA’s, more sweet than bitter. Hop skewer tasted like an old school IPA. Plenty of bitter, but not so much it is undrinkable, and Neon was similar. Heather was a big fan of the Mo’stachio, although the pistachio flavor was not very prevalent.
This was supposed be a lunch date, so I guess we should order food before one of us is sleeping in the booth. Barn Town offers a lunch menu where you can pick any item from the main list and any side for $9.99. We learned that all of the breads, buns, and sauces are made in the kitchen on site. Heather ordered the poutine with a side of skillet mac and cheese, and I got the pastrami sandwich with a cup of beer cheese soup.
It was all magnificent. Heather was most looking forward to the mac and cheese, and by the end of the meal, though delicious, it was her least favorite item. The poutine has copious amounts of gravy and cheese on a bed of fries that were delicious in their own right; just a little crispy, but not so much that they wouldn’t soak up the gravy. We learned later there was an option to add bacon to the poutine. We would definitely have added the bacon, had we known. Who doesn’t like bacon? The beer cheese soup was my favorite, especially when I was surprised by several chunks of smoked pork belly hidden within. The pastrami sandwich was melt in your mouth. The pastrami is also made in house, and my suspicions were confirmed when I quizzed our server about the pastrami being made from brisket. Even Heather, who doesn’t typically like pastrami, stole a good portion of my sandwich.
After lunch arrived, and we downed the last of our flights, it was time to try some more beer. I ordered the Peach Apple Tart, a Gose with peach and apple. Upon my first taste, the beer lived up to its name. Very tart with that hint of saltiness that comes with a Gose. Heather got the Jefferson County Apple Pie, which is a guest cider. Our server informed us that the Apple Pie tastes best with a shot of Fireball added. While we believed that the drink would be enhanced with the added spirit, Heather passed and got the cider as created. On the first sip, Heather eyes lit up with joy. “It smells nice, it’s not overly sweet, and it is crisp” she exclaimed.
There was still beer to be tried, but we were running out of time. My final selection was the Imaginary Time, a special Double New England IPA, served in a small tulip glass. The tropical notes mentioned in the menu were evident along with the floral flavors of the hops. Heather kept with the cider theme and gave the Jacked Cider Blueberry a try, which tasted just like it sounds. Lucky for me, I drink faster than Heather, so I got the opportunity to have one more. I went back to the Groovy Ruby, and to my surprise, it had a completely different flavor this time. Not sure if they tapped a new keg, or serving it in a bigger glass opened the flavors more. This time, it was much sweeter. So much so I would not be too quick to classify it as an IPA.
All in all, our experience at Barn Town Brewing was a good one. The beer was good and the food was amazing. We would recommend others visit, and when you do, let us know so we can join you.
