First Look: Southern Tier Brewery, Restaurant and Taproom, Opening Next Week

Cleveland has no shortage of homegrown breweries, with more than 30 small, medium and large producers located in and around the region. But come Tuesday, September 4, downtown will welcome into that frothy mix a well-known out-of-town brand. That’s when Lakewood, NY-based Southern Tier Brewing will open its brewery, restaurant and taproom in the Gateway District. The final touches are being attended to at 811 Prospect Ave., which was home for a short time to Red and Moxie offshoot 811 Kitchen. Though it’s located in Western New York, Southern Tier already has its share of local fans. The brewery, a stone’s throw from Chautauqua Lake, is a short two-hour drive from Cleveland.

“Since we opened our doors, we’ve really appreciated the number of people from Cleveland who have visited us in Lakewood, so I couldn’t be happier to open a brewery there,” says Phin DeMink, Founder and COO of Southern Tier.

Southern Tier launched as a small brewery in 2002, but has since expanded production and distribution significantly. In 2017, the brewery opened its first satellite brewery and taproom in Pittsburgh. This summer, they opened an even larger one in Charlotte, NC.

Next up is Cleveland.

The two-level brewpub features a brewhouse, tanks and barrels that are visible upstairs and down. There are bars on both floors, each outfitted with 30 taps dispensing mostly Southern Tier beers, but also some selections from sister brewery Victory Brewing. In addition to the beer, which is available in flights, glasses, crowlers and growlers, the restaurant will serve vodka, gin, rum and bourbon from three-year-old Southern Tier Distillery. House-brewed beers, overseen by brewmaster Jason Comeaux, will begin appearing over the next couple months. The lunch/dinner menu, described by executive chef Richard Sinwald as “upper-scale pub grub,” is designed to complement the beer.

“We make big, strong, hoppy IPAs and sours; there’s nothing mild about it,” he says. “Our job with the food is to accentuate all those big, punchy flavors.”

There is seating for approximately 130 on each floor, with the lower level largely reserved for private events and overflow dining. Southern Tier has no patio, but it does boast a façade of folding windows that open the lounge up to the sidewalk beyond.

On the menu are snacks like pretzels with beer cheese, fried pickles with horseradish cream sauce, and house-smoked chicken wings with barbecue sauce. A trio of salads and four pizzas join beef burgers topped with prosciutto, shrimp and crab burgers, house-smoked pulled pork, and shaved ribeye, onion and pepper hoagies. A handful of entrees include chicken-stuffed pierogis, fried chicken and waffles, pan-seared mahi and peppercorn-crusted sirloin.

A retail section offers chilled Southern Tier beers to go.

Following a week of private events, Southern Tier will begin welcoming the public next Tuesday. 

This article appears in Aug 22-28, 2018.