The wife and I actually arranged to get a babysitter the other evening, so that we could go out and, well, actually have a conversation. (We have two young girls, ages six and four. Being able to speak to one another uninterrupted is a dream we share.) We originally planned on just having appetizers and walking around a bit in Frederick, but it was “First Saturday“, which is a rather popular event. After driving all the way through a parking garage and finding nary a spot available, my wife suggested that we go down to that brewpub I’d been talking about.

How can you not love a woman like that? (She even came up with the name for this blog.)

I pass Growlers every day while I commute on the train. (It used to be Summit Station, but recently changed ownership.) I can’t tell you how many Friday evenings I’ve been sorely tempted to hop off the train and stop in. If only MARC ran their trains later in the evening.

Anyway, enough my commuting travails. We headed on down I-270 to Gaithersburg. After a couple of missed turns (signage in Maryland seems awfully inconsistent to this New Jersey transplant) we finally arrived. It’s in a wonderful historic building in Olde Town Gaithersburg. I just love old buildings like this. There were plenty of people already seated, but we didn’t have to wait. That’s good, but I would have expected more people in the bar. I rather liked the decor, with plenty of polished wood, but it seemed too “new”; the place hasn’t developed a character yet.

We started with a beer sampler, of course. We both rather liked the Harding’s IPA and the Irvington Pale Ale. She doesn’t like stouts, but I had their Diamond Stout and found it pretty tasty. At first I didn’t think much of the Kölsch, but changed my mind by the time we finished the sampler. I haven’t had a Nut Brown Ale that I liked in a really long time, and this was no exception, although I wouldn’t say it was “bad”, I just didn’t think it was that good. Lastly, I was disappointed by the Belt’s ESB, since that’s been my favorite style for a long time.

For an appetizer I had the crab cake sliders. (About which I had to chuckle, being a fan of White Castle. There aren’t any down this way.) They were very good, in spite of the fact that I’m not a huge fan of seafood. My wife had the house salad with the roasted garlic sherry dressing, which she liked. For our entrées, she had the Rockfish & Chips, actually served in a paper bag (how genuine!) and I had the B & O Chicken Grille. The mix of the stone ground mustard and guacamole was surprisingly good.

So, all in all, a worthwhile trip. I think it needs a few more years to develop a little more personality, but most of the beers we had were rather good and the food was excellent. I am eager to go back.