After seeing a dealer in the far northwest suburbs of Chicago, it was early in the afternoon and I thought about stopping somewhere for lunch. I pulled over and did a quick look up for brew pubs in the area and I found a place that turned out to be not too far away, a place with four locations that I'd heard about before but had never been to before - Emmett's Brewing Company.
Hunt's Block was the name of one of the first large buildings built west of downtown Chicago. Also known as "Hunt's Folly" at the time because of it's size, the three story corner building was finished in 1871 and has housed everything from a dry goods store, a bank, professional offices, a ballroom and a billiard hall. It was a rundown relic when Timothy Burns, along with his sons, Matthew and Andrew, bought the building in 1998 and installed brewing tanks, eventually opening a brew pub the following year. The Burns family named the place after Timothy Burns' father Emmett, a man who they all revered in life.
The second Emmett's Brewing Company location opened in Palatine not long after, but that was closed in 2005. However, it reopened in 2006 and is still going today. Subsequent Emmett's Brewing Co. locations opened in Downers Grove and last year a new Emmett's location opened in downtown Wheaton in a restaurant that was simply known as The Bank.
The Palatine location of Emmett's Brewing Company is located in the downtown area in the midst of a number of other restaurants and bars in the area. (see map) I immediately recognized the area as one that I had visited previously on a couple of occasions, one to go have dinner at Schnell's Brauhaus across the railroad tracks. (Click here to see the Road Tips entry on Schnell's Brauhaus.) It was just after the noon rush when I got to Emmett's Brewing Company and the parking lot in front was sort of full, but I was able to find a spot near the front door that had just opened up.
There's two parts to Emmett's Brewing Company in Palatine - the dining room and the bar area. Doors from the bar area went out to a patio that was half-filled with diners on this beautiful day in Chicagoland. I thought about sitting at the bar for lunch, but I was told by the hostess that there was no service in the bar until later in the day.
I was seated in the dining room, a cozy and ornate area that looked more like someones suburban living room than a restaurant. It featured high-backed booths, a number of tables in smaller rooms, a fireplace and a number of prints and paintings on the wall. I was given a menu and I took a quick look through the beer list to see what I'd like to have for something to drink. I saw that they had something called World's End American Pale Ale that day and I signed up for that.
In the middle between the dining room and the bar area is a glass enclosed space behind the hostess stand that looks down into the brewery portion of Emmett's Brewing Company. They have won a number of awards including top-three finishes at prestigious beer festivals such as the Great American Beer Festival and the World Beer Cup. Also downstairs is a tap room that is used for private dining or events.
The menu at Emmett's Brewing Company is a pretty extensive and diverse offering. The appetizers went from pretty eclectic such as truffle fries with garlic aioli, sesame-seared ahi tuna, and portobello mushroom fries to basics such as fried calamari, chicken quesadillas, and an artichoke and spinach dip with pita chips. Soups, salads and small bites that could be shared such as blue cheese and bacon potato chips, barbecued pork pulled pork sliders, and a baked pretzel twist.
Emmett's also featured a number of sandwiches and burgers, and a number of seafood entrees as well as steaks, pork chops and chicken dishes. I was sort of burned out on burgers although their Boursin cheese burger with a portobello mushroom sounded pretty good. And their entrees just sounded like too much food for lunch, but I did give the braised pot roast with veggies and Yukon potatoes a quick look before moving on.
I ended up getting the Tavern Tacos with seared ahi tuna. (Steak, battered cod or roasted vegetables were also an option with the tacos.) The tacos were filled with shredded cabbage, pico de gallo and a spicy Southwest ranch dressing. I got a side with it and I wasn't too fired up about fries, sweet potato fries or potato chips, so my server - Cynthia, a pleasant lady who was very helpful throughout the meal - suggested I get the cole slaw. And I'm glad I did. The cole slaw had that perfect mix of sweet and tangy.
The seared ahi tuna tacos were also very good. The tuna wasn't fishy, the cabbage and the pico de gallo both were fresh and delicious. The spicy ranch dressing was a nice accompaniment to the seared tuna. The meal was light, it had a lot of different tastes going on, and it was perfect for lunch. The American pale ale was somewhat hoppy, but it was a great pairing for the fish tacos.
Now that I've tried Emmett's Brewing Company and I know the extensive menu they have, I can see going to one of the other locations - or going back to the one in Palatine - at some time. The fish tacos were very good, I was happy with the American pale ale that I had, the service was top notch and it was tough to beat the homey atmosphere at the Palatine Emmett's Brewing Co. There's a lot of good to very good brew pubs in the Chicago area and Emmett's is one of the better ones that I've encountered.
Comments