I put on a new dealer in Wichita late last year and they're already turning into a promising account for me. I've had to make a couple three trips to Wichita and on a recent trip I had time to grab some lunch at a brewpub in Wichita's Old Town shopping and entertainment district - River City Brewing Co.
River City Brewing Co. is the oldest brewpub in Wichita and one of the oldest in the state of Kansas. It was founded in 1993 by Monte Griffin whose passion in life prior to opening a brewpub was to visit breweries of all sizes when he was on vacation. For his brewpub, Griffin found an abandoned warehouse in Wichita's downtown area - one that had been around since 1905 that originally housed a paint company before being the home to a grocery store, a tanning company and - up to the late 80's - a warehouse for a paper company.
Working with craftsmen, Griffin found leaded glass for the building's entryway from an old mansion in Wichita, wood for the bar came from the old Salvation Army building in Wichita, some of the seating for booths and overhead lights came from an old church in the area, wainscoting and flooring were saved from a house that was undergoing demolition, and wood trim and other materials for the booths were salvaged from old mansions that were being demolished in the historic Quality Hill neighborhood in Kansas City.
Along with partner Bill Shea, Griffin ran River City Brewing Co. for four years before selling his shares to Shea. In 1997, Shea sold the brewpub to a group of Wichita businessmen who called upon local native Chris Arnold to run it for them. Arnold had been running a restaurant in Arkansas - in a dry county, no less - and he knew absolutely nothing about running a brewpub, and not much more as how to work in a restaurant that sold alcohol.
The biggest problem that Arnold faced was the reluctance for locals to try a craft beer that was brewed in house. Customers continued to buy Coors Light and Budweiser, but River City's own beers weren't selling. Not only did Arnold have to educate himself on the brewing process and what made a handcrafted beer special, he had to do the same thing for his customers. He eventually installed former River City Brewing Co. server and home brewer Dan Norton as the head brewmaster for the brewpub. It was Norton's passion for brewing that eventually turned around the fortunes of the brewery part of the business and today the brewpub sells only beers that are brewed in house.
In 2001, the group remodeled the upstairs floor of the building and opened Loft 150, a combination live music venue, dance hall, billiard room, cigar bar and outside deck. Arnold eventually bought into the partnership as some investors dropped out and today he is the managing partner in the business. The brewpub is now producing up to 800 barrels of beer annually including special edition barrel-aged beers developed by Arnold and Norton.
I found River City Brewing Co. on N. Mosley St. near the corner of E. 1st St. N. (see map) There's a parking lot on the north side of the building and it was just past the lunch rush so plenty of parking was available. Walking inside, I found a space that held the historic value of the building. Beer vats were located behind a couple large glass windows behind the bar area.
The main dining space features the bar, a number of high tables and chairs, and an area on the other side of the room with booths. I was greeted by a hostess and I asked if I could sit at the bar. She said it was no problem. After sitting down, a bartender came over to greet me and dropped off a menu. She asked what I wanted to drink and a quick look at the beer menu showed me that they had an India Pale Ale by the name of Tornado Alley, one of over a dozen beers they had on tap that day.
Most of the food on the menu at River City Brewing Co. consists of pub fare including appetizers, soups and salads, sandwiches and burgers, as well as pizzas. They do have entrees including steaks (the Cowboy Ribeye is rubbed with a housemade ancho chile seasoning), pork chops, barbecued ribs, chicken and some seafood items. What caught my attention were the grilled tilapia tacos. Always a sucker for good grilled fish tacos - plus the fact that I really needed to eat something more light for lunch that day - that's what I ordered.
The grilled tilapia tacos were topped with fresh Mexican white cheese, an avocado relish, and a creamy chipotle sauce that had a nice spicy bite on the back end and some chopped lettuce. The fish and toppings were tucked inside a couple flour tacos and a side of rice came with the meal. I contemplated putting some rice in the tacos, but they were so full already with a good amount of grilled fish and the toppings that I just let the rice sit on the side. The tacos were going to be enough.
And the grilled tilapia tacos were very good. Surprisingly very good. The fish was light and flaky with no hint of a fishy taste. But the creamy chipotle sauce had a pretty forward bite to it, enough to get your attention that it was spicy but not overpowering. The Tornado Alley IPA did a good job of knocking down the spiciness of the sauce as the hops mixed well with the sauce. Compared to other IPA's, the Tornado Alley had a good hoppy taste, but not so much that it had an overly forward hoppy taste. The beer was as good as the fish tacos.
Wichita is a long way from my home - about 8 hours one way by car - but it appears that I'll be making regular trips to the city thanks to the growing business I'm doing there. My goal is to get back to River City Brewing Co. to enjoy a beer on the upstairs deck on some warm summer evening. While the menu isn't going to win many awards for uniqueness, what I had on my visit was very good and I'm sure the rest of the food on the menu is of the same level. River City Brewing Co. wouldn't be in business for nearly 22 years if the food and beer weren't good.
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