The Church Brew Works

The Church Brew Works-Pittsburgh

I went to church last night.  It was a beautiful, big church with lots of stained glass, a large pipe organ, comfy pews and beer. Yes, beer! And not only was the beer one of the tastiest beers I’ve ever had, the food was amazing too!

The Church Brew Works-Pittsburgh

When you are walking up the stairs to the entrance, you feel like you are getting ready to sit through mass, not enjoy a wonderful meal. You pull open the huge wooden doors, pass the stoup in the wall (where the holy water once was held) and then you see the beautiful sanctuary.

a view from the entryway

The pictures don’t do this gorgeous church justice.  And the effort and attention to detail that went into the restoration of this place is very impressive. I learned that they used the original floors, pews, lanterns and the extra oak from the pews were turned into the bar.

Mike in the bar area where four big steel and copper tanks sit below the beautiful windows

The beer menu is pretty impressive with more than a dozen choices, and I went with one of their Oktoberfest flavors, Toms Pepper Wit. It’s one of their seasonal beers made with real peppercorns that gives it the perfect bite without the spice. So good!

Me sitting on one of the original pews with the altar and beer tanks behind

I was already sold on the atmosphere and beer, then the food came and it was delicious! We ordered the Traditional Pierogies (I mean we’re in Pittsburgh, we had to) and Pretzels to start. The potato and cheese filled pierogies were so tasty that we inhaled them so fast and I didn’t even get a photo. Oops! As for the pretzels, they were some of the lightest pretzels I’ve ever had with the perfect amount of butter and salt on top.

warm pretzels, mustard and beer

Did I mention they have a wood fired brick oven too? Well, they do and it sits near the altar popping out some awesome flavored pizzas with the perfect light and crispy crust.

The Cinco Fromaggio Pizza with pine nuts

The food and beer alone are worth a visit but it’s such a fun vibe inside, very different from your typical bar or restaurant, that you’ll want to keep coming back for more! Amen!

the pipes in front of the beautiful stained glass window

Check out The Church Brew Works in Pittsburgh, PA or here:

http://www.churchbrew.com/