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Kettle: the Best Brewpub in the U.S!
Tucked in a strip mall in Strongsville, Ohio, about two minutes away from the Route 42 exit from I-71 or Ohio Turnpike, is the Brew Kettle, voted best brewpub in the U.S. in 2007 on ratebeer.com. Unassuming on the outside, it surprises on the inside. Wood tables, wood floor, copper-topped bar, breweriana covering the walls, it is much bigger than it looks, and a very friendly place. Tables stretch almost all the way to the back to where the brew-on-premise and the 10-barrel brewing system is located.
There are twenty-four taps featuring several of their own Ring Neck brand beers and the rest feature primarily American craft beers, with an occasional imported beer. The food is fantastic, from nachos topped with pulled pork, to the black bean cakes with chorizo and shrimp, to the mac & cheese with andouille sausage, to the barbecued spaghetti. And don’t forget to come on Saturday for the smoked prime rib!
The prices are reasonable with specials during happy hour and $6 pitchers on Sundays. They feature special events throughout the year such as the OgreFest every February, during which all but two of the taps are beers of 8% ABV or higher. The beer menu, with brief descriptions is printed on the place mats, and you can pick your own sampler tray. It’s a wonderfully user-friendly system. You don’t have to depend on the knowledge of your server or being able to read the chalkboard from the back of the room!
The Brew Kettle was started by Chris & Pam McKim in another strip mall a couple of miles down the road in 1995. McKim had heard of places where you can brew your own beer while vacationing in Costa Rica in the spring of 1994. Less than a year later, he quit his “real” job and was determined to start his own brew-on-premise. He traveled to several BOPs in Canada, brewing 8-9 batches in various locations as part of his “research.”
Soon the McKims were operating Ohio’s first brew-on-premise microbrewery, with a small 3-barrel system to brew their own Ring Neck Brewing branded beers. After a couple of successful years, they added a few taps, some basic bar grub, and a few tables. Outgrowing the first location, they moved to the present location in 2002.
At the present location, they were now able to have a kitchen, smoker, full menu of appetizers, sandwiches, and dinners, and, of course, the larger brewing system. Now, nearly six years later, they are expanding again. The present location will stay, but they will be installing a new 20-barrel brewing system in a new location a mile or so away. They are also moving some of their kitchen activities off-site, adding another smoker and a kitchen to prepare meats, soups, and sauces, and to be a home to their catering services.
Adding to the excitement of the new brewery and catering services, they also have a new brewer. Jack Kephart, award-winning homebrewer, and former brewer at the Roadhouse and Willoughby Brewing Co, is now the brewmaster at the Brew Kettle. Things are poppin’ at the Brew Kettle!
The new expansion opens up all kinds of possibilities for the Brew Kettle’s future: new pub locations with added BOP kettles; more BOP capacity at the present location with the removal of current brewing system; using their own wort rather than extracts for the BOP; bottling and distribution of Ring Neck beers; more Ring Neck beers on tap and thus more taps in their present location, and more participation in local festivals with the added smoker (on wheels).
The Best Brewpub in the U.S is getting better!