BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse - Irvine

Rating from when I stopped in a few years ago:

I was hoping that they brew beer at this location and upon seeing the fermenters I thought I had chosen a BJ’’s location wisely. But when I asked the bartender I found out that they just ship it in from other locations. I also saw a collection of Belgian bottles on the shelves in the back room but after hearing the list from the bartender, its nothing you can’t get at Bevmo.

The place was packed but nice and comfortable. A little loud but I guess thats what you get with a trendy place like this. The pizza that we had was spectacular. We ordered the BJ’s special or what ever its called. We also got two beer samplers in order to try all 11 of the BJ’s beers on tap. There were some pretty good ones like the German style hefe, the pumpkin ale, and the IPA. I hate to say it but the Berry Burst Cider was actually pretty good as well. The bartender filled the last 3 samples with Stella, Leffe, and Lindemans Lambic. Now I don’t want to complain about the sample sizes but they were 5 oz each and after drinking most of the 14 samples, and after having been at Back Street an hour before, I was pretty buzzed by the time we left.

All in all everything was good about this place; I think we got out of there for about $35.

Pretty straightforward experience here. A BJ’s is a BJ’s, afterall. Well done interior, decently friendly (though slightly clueless waitstaff), mediocre house beers, and the same food everywhere. Kind of on the expensive side for what you get. This is one of the nicer ones, though.

The best BJ’s I’ve been in yet. Of couse La Mesa leaves a lot to be desired. Much better selection of beer, and barkeeps that know what they are talking about.

Probably the best chain brewpub on the west coast. Your not gonna find much variation from place to place with the exception of a special brew here or there. Food is good to great. Very kid friendly.

Note: BJ’s have locations in Irvine, Brea & Laguna Hills. Very good food & service. BJ’s is a chain, so it’s worth checking their website for other locations. Some have cask nites. Their house brews are all pretty good. They are family-friendly.