Denver (Capitol Hill), Colorado:
LowDown Brewing and Kitchen
Visited on: Friday 1st June 2018
Bob Thompson
This brew pub restaurant opened on 4th February 2014 and is the brainchild of co-owners Philip Phifer and Scott O’Hearn. When they met they were both working for the Rock Bottom chain of brewery-restaurants. Philip was the Brew Master at their outlet at Park Meadows in Centennial, south of Denver, where we visited the following day, see article. Scott, with twenty years experience, fulfilled a similar role at Rock Bottom in Westminster, north of the city.
They met in 2008 after Philip moved from Portland (OR) and apprenticed under Scott. Food was always going to be important in their new venture and they made a conscious decision not to have any fryers in the kitchen, so onion rings along with fish and chips were out. Also, no burgers. This was simply because every other place did them. What was in were imaginatively made salads and lots of pizzas.
After going to four brew pubs on our crawl north on Broadway we eventually found one that served food. We were hungry by now so our visit to LowDown served a dual purpose.
Unfortunately it wasn’t the greatest visit for a couple of reasons. Firstly, they didn’t do taster flights so we only able to try one beer here. The second problem was the over-zealous waitress. We realise that it is the norm in North America for waiting staff to be attentive to customers. This is linked to the desire to earn the largest tip available.
Well, it is a consumerist society, yet there is a lot of insincerity involved on the way to being awarded a good tip. Here though, it wasn’t the usual false bonhomie that was the problem. It was the continual attendance at our table. We were continually being asked if we liked our pizza. Once is enough! She filled the water jug three times and we had hardly drank any! And so on and on.
The pub is a large property in a 14,000 square feet building located in the so-called Golden Triangle district. The owners installed a new brewery of 8 barrels (bbls) capacity which can be seen from the main room. There is parking for 26 cars along with many bikes and there is also an outside patio. The premises are shared with a fitness studio. A potentially good combination?
The one beer we had was Selfish (5.3%), an English-style ale. It was fine, being bitter yet also well balanced. Most of the production here is of ales of various UK or Belgian origins. They also do some German top-fermentation beers like Zwickl.
The one beer we had was good so this brew-pub is recommended as it is probably the only place you will get LowDown brews. It has a drinking area with a proper bar counter with stools. This is where you should head to if you want to avoid being harassed at a table!
Important Information:
LowDown Brewery + Kitchen, 800 Lincoln Street, Denver, Colorado 80203
Web: lowdownbrewery.com Tel: 720 524 8065
Sunday-Thursday: 11.00-23.00; Friday-Saturday: 11.00-24.00
We arrived from the south along Lincoln Street using the frequent Bus 0. We alighted at the Lincoln Street and 9th Avenue stop and walked back in a southerly direction by one block. If you are coming from the city centre on the 0 bus you should alight at Broadway and 9th Avenue. Then go easterly along 8th Avenue and you will find the pub on the opposite corner one block over, at Lincoln.
The 0 bus starts at Union Station yet there are many other bus routes to and from this area.
