Selfie at the bar inside Brick House Grill
The Brick House Grille in downtown Huntington, Indiana was quiet on a late Monday afternoon. They had several craft beer taps, as well as bottles. I opted for another pumpkin ale, this one called Kentucky Pumpkin Barrel Ale. At 10% alcohol, this is served in a 10 oz glass, and is made for sipping. Damn, that was one fine beer! I guess that another name for this weekend trip could be "The Pumpkin Ale Trale (or perhaps Trail, but that doesn't rhyme as well). Anyway, I sipped to my heart's content. As I neared the bottom of the glass I felt more and more like taking up residence at the keyboard of the currently vacant piano bar. I'm certain the few patrons present would not have minded hearing a bit of Beethoven, Couperin, Liszt or Philip Glass from a slightly tipsy classical pianist.
Kentucky Pumpkin Barrel Ale (**** stars)
There is a figurine of sorts in the above photo, too. It resembles me a lot, and the tiny thing seems to be dipping something into the glass, perhaps contemplating a swim (or maybe it's just me holding the camera steady). The beer packed a nice spicy kick. Afterwards, Deb drove us back to the Quality Inn and we had dinner in our room. I had a large left over half of a delicious sandwich in the fridge from yesterday's dinner at Mad Anthony's. Deb had bought herself an Udon Noodle microwave dish at Kroeger. We settled in for a night of reading, resting, and 6000 channel tv.
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Next morning dawned dark, cloudy, wet, and generally crappy. We had hoped to visit downtown Huntington (the courthouse was open today) and do some local walking trails. I was also holding out hope that there would be time to visit Bryon, Ohio on the way home. Another fine courthouse awaited, and an intriguing-sounding brewpub. After our motel breakfast (oatmeal, toast, juice, tea) we drove the short distance to downtown Huntington. It was mighty quiet. We parked and walked down to the river. The bridge here is large, as the river is very wide. An island sits amidst the river, and the bridge crosses it as well as the two parts of the river. By the time we headed back towards the courthouse, it was raining.
Inside the courthouse, Huntington, IN (pop. 17,400)
Beorn is parked downtown. The building on right
was undergoing major renovations.
We had to pass through a metal detector to visit the courthouse. One of the deputies was very friendly, and as soon as he found out we were tourists he came over to talk to us. He told us where to find the local museum and the full history of the courthouse. Everyone we met in these small towns was very friendly, especially in the downtown tourist info buildings. The main street has no traffic lights, and is very pedestrian friendly. Because of the rain, and because I needed a haircut, I couldn't resist a walk-in stylists' window add promising haircuts for $10. I looked even more handsome than usual when I walked out of there.
It quickly became evident that this was not going to be an outdoorsy kind of day. There were a few other fine pubs and cafes in town I wished to visit, but we had to be home today. Rather than hang around Huntington and watch the rain, we headed for Bryan, Ohio, which was about halfway home. Coffee and beer in Bryan sounded good, so we left Huntington with some reluctance, hoping to return with our bikes some fine spring day.
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It rained heavily all the way to Ohio. Well before exploring some of Indiana, we had extensively visited dozens of small towns in Ohio over the years, as well as their four big cities (Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo). Northwest Ohio was our specialty, especially the towns along the Maumee River. However, somehow we had never made it to Bryan. I was looking forward to my first visit. The particular brew pub we were searching for closed from 2 pm till 5 pm (much like traditional English pubs), so I wanted to arrive around noon hour if possible.
The heavy rain stopped during our short visit to town, but it was still raining. Bryan feels like a city, more so than any of the other smaller centers visited on this trip (Napoleon, Defiance, Huntington, Wabash, and Peru). A wide main street (north-south) passes the courthouse, but a second busy street passes east-west. These streets are lined with storefronts, but the rear of the courthouse has a quieter street with some shops, as does the south side. So the downtown area is spread around the four sides of the courthouse, and we explored the entire area.
Courthouse in Bryan, Ohio (pop. 8,500)
Another view of the courthouse in Bryan.
We arrived shortly after noon, spending a bit of time exploring the courthouse. A lot of impressive detail went into the creating of these old buildings, and this one was no exception. We wandered around freely (no metal detector), then headed for lunch.
Courthouse interior.
Courthouse interior
Deb had spotted the brewpub on our drive around the courthouse. It's on the southwestern edge of the central plaza, a block from the courthouse. It's in an old church, and it's called Father John's. It turned into one of the greatest pub visits this avid pub-goer has ever had!
The church had sat vacant for around ten years before the owner decided what he wanted to do with it. He created a very atmospheric restaurant and brewery in the basement. In so doing he has created a destination brewpub, worth visiting from Detroit. I can't wait to get back here and try the rest of the beers!
Part of the bar at Father John's Brewpub.
We weren't certain we could find something to eat. However, today's soup was a vegan squash, and Deb ordered a bowl of it. I ordered their veggie bean burger and was not disappointed. I also ordered Pumpkin Pie Ale, continuing a theme I had been following for the entire trip. Though loaded with spices and quite good (***), it fell behind all the other great pumpkin ales I had over the past three days. As I would be driving home afterwards, I only had one pint. Check out the beer menu and try to guess why I wish to return here, soon.
Beer Menu, Father John's, Bryan, Ohio
Interior of Father John's
Buddhist Room at Father John's!
Some serious time and money was spent getting this incredible space ready. The basement is quite large, and divided into different spaces. There are at least two separate rooms besides the large room, which itself is divided into smaller, cozy spaces. The bar is in the shape of a large horseshoe, and is spacious and has comfortable stools. They don't bottle, but they do sell growlers of their ales. Details abound, and I took more than one walk around. The garden has a wonderful outdoor seating area for fine days, too. This was a spectacular way to end a very fun trip.
We strolled the downtown areas after lunch, finding Seasons Coffee and Bistro on Main Street across from the courthouse. We had coffee before leaving for home. The drive back to Detroit was a nightmare, with downpour after downpour hitting us on the I 80 Tollway and then I 75 north. Construction on both highways did not help matters. Still, I had fresh memories of Father John's in my head. We'll be back, hopefully with friends. I rounded out my six pack purchases with Crooked Tree IPA from a favorite Michigan brewery, and six singles, including two with ginger! A bottle of single malt Scotch at the duty free store in Detroit completed my alcohol purchases.
Mapman Mike
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