Stratford

Illuminatus · Post by **Illuminatus** » Thu May 29, 2008 12:08 am

Where's the good beer in Stratford?

SteelbackGuy · Post by **SteelbackGuy** » Thu May 29, 2008 7:48 am

I was there recently for lunch.A couple of the places that might have been promising were not open until dinner.
I found that a lot of places at least had the Stratford beers on tap.
If you walk along the main drag downtown, you'll go by about 15 places to eat, and most of them seemed to be casual fine dining.

I ended up eating at a chain because I couldn't find any good beer.

In any event, if you find something good, keep us posted.

Ohhhh, and don't swing by the brewery. I made the mistake of assuming they had a retail store because I wanted some fresh Pilsner. Silly me. They aren't even open to the public, and if you want a tour, you have to make group reservations ahead of time. Bah.

tupalev · Post by **tupalev** » Thu May 29, 2008 9:31 am

Here's a really old thread from my experience there - hopefully things have changed!

http://www.bartowel.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=1150&

co · Post by co » Thu May 29, 2008 10:24 am

I've always enjoyed Down the Street Cafe on the main strip. Although they don't have a tonne of options on tap they always have a couple of good ones (including the Stratford Pilsner), nice decor, and good food. I've been to Stratford several times and, while I love the town, there's not much there for the serious beer drinker. Depending on where you're coming up from it may be worth a stop in Guelph where the Woolwich Arms has always had an excellent selection of Ontario micros (that is assuming they haven't tanked like their sister pub the Bow and Arrow).

GregClow · Post by **GregClow** » Thu May 29, 2008 10:53 am

co wrote:Depending on where you're coming up from it may be worth a stop in Guelph where the Woolwich Arms has always had an excellent selection of Ontario micros (that is assuming they haven't tanked like their sister pub the Bow and Arrow).

I was at the Wooly a few months back and it was great - top notch beer selection in good shape, and great pub food.

clasher · Post by **clasher** » Thu May 29, 2008 1:48 pm

co wrote:I've always enjoyed Down the Street Cafe on the main strip. Although they don't have a tonne of options on tap they always have a couple of good ones (including the Stratford Pilsner), nice decor, and good food. I've been to Stratford several times and, while I love the town, there's not much there for the serious beer drinker. Depending on where you're coming up from it may be worth a stop in Guelph where the Woolwich Arms has always had an excellent selection of Ontario micros (that is assuming they haven't tanked like their sister pub the Bow and Arrow).

Might also be easy to stop at the Castle on King, since it's right there at the 7/8 Junction.

Illuminatus · Post by **Illuminatus** » Thu May 29, 2008 2:46 pm

Wow, Stratford sounds rather bleak. I'll have to see if the gf wants to go somewhere else.

flip · Post by **flip** » Thu May 29, 2008 3:33 pm

If your sole purpose is to go to Stratford for a great beer bar then you're probably visiting for the wrong reason... and you'll likely be disappointed.

I grew up in Stratford and still visit family a few times a year. Beermat's response on tupalev's previous post probably sums up the beer scene the best. You'll likely find that those places (particularly Bentley's and The Boar's Head) probably have the best tap selection, but they won't have anything too out there. I prefer the ambiance of Bentley's over The Boar's Head, but that's just me.

OT, of any town its size Stratford has one of the widest and best selections of great restaurants, IMHO. So, if you're limiting yourself to beer only would be a great disservice. For a somewhat fancy meal, check out Keystone Alley Cafe, it's great. Pazzo's and the Sun Room are pretty good, and Fellini's is alright and reasonably priced, or at least it was the last time I was there. I've also heard good things about Down The Street Cafe. If you want to REALLY impress the GF check out Rundle's, The Church Restaurant, or The Old Prune (Hopefully you've been saving...) For an excellent picnic lunch stop by the York Street Kitchen.

And 86 the Elizbethan... I'm so sorry that tupalev went there. It's even weirder than Ellam's.

Belgian · Post by **Belgian** » Sun Jun 01, 2008 10:44 am

flip wrote:If your sole purpose is to go to Stratford for a great beer bar then you're probably visiting for the wrong reason... and you'll likely be disappointed.
.

I ate ex. well in Stratford, The Somethingorother Café (stone building?) - GF did the research & food was astoundingly good.

midlife crisis · Post by **midlife crisis** » Mon Sep 15, 2008 4:37 pm

Was in Stratford this weekend. To me the best bet (both for food and beer) is Pazzo, 70 Ontario Street. I e-mailed the guys at Stratford brewery ahaed of time and Pazzo seemed to be the only place that has both Stratford offerings (Pils and Common) on tap. It's more a restaurant than a pub, but very inviting with a more informal area downstairs and a very good restaurant upstairs.

[This might be another good candidate to move to the Local Guides section].