The Merchant Ale House

98 St. Paul Street
St. Catharines, Ontario Canada L2R 3M3
Mon-Wed 5:00 PM-2a, Thu-Fri 11:30 AM-2a, Sat 12:30 PM-2a

Taps: 12 | Bottles: 0
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86
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 9/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 8/10
  • VALUE 9/10
  • OVERALL 17/20
Travlr  (4543) No fixed abode, Slovenia | May 18, 2022
This place is on the main drag, this section of which looks like it's seen better days. But this is an oasis amongst the empty storefront. Medium sized bar on your right, bar tables, restaurant tables, brewhouse right up against the back wall. For a special treat go downstairs , turn left at the fermenters, pass the washrooms, peek into the kitchen on your right, then keep going to the fire escape. Descend the stairs and - volia - patio. With table service! Actually the whole place has table service, and staff were great. Good variety of beers on tap included a sour IPA, fruited Berliner and a dark lagers, among others. Food was proper British style pub food - I had the fish & chips which was haddock, none of that crappy cod here. Solid stop.
68
  • AMBIANCE 3/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 6/10
  • VALUE 6/10
  • OVERALL 12/20
Ferris  (1878) Burnaby, British Columbia | October 21, 2018
An old school pub with a very young local vibe. Service was hard as it was busy and as it was crowded they wouldn't do flights. Beer was OK and food was sub par. I think at a slow time it may be better, but when busy it is just too chaotic.
78
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 8/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 6/10
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 15/20
Quevillon  (394) Boisbriand, Quebec | July 26, 2015
Visited on June 26, 2015, in late afternoon. Located in the heart of downtown St. Cath, it’s a nice cozy old fashioned pub, the inside is fairly wide open. The service was pretty nice and and courtesy. The beers were ok, not awesome but not disgusting, there is a lot of selection from their own and invites. The food is typical but tasty pub fair. In all its good place to go when you want a break from all the good wine!
70
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 9/15
  • FOOD 7/10
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 15/20
kseecs16  (209) Naperville, Illinois | September 10, 2014
Cozy wood and brick bar with large windows opening to the street. Perfectly loud without being obtrusive and a bustling crowd on a Wednesday night. A nice list of house beers and a handful of regional guest taps. House beers were fairly run of the mill in type with a slant toward light and fruit flavored wheats. Good, focused menu and solid beers. A worthy stop.
78
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 13/15
  • FOOD 7/10
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 15/20
Bendrixian  (75) Canadiana, Ontario | December 30, 2013
An old stomping ground of mine and the place where I first discovered craft beer when I was an innocent young lad. Having recently returned now many beers later I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of their beers (I was expecting them to be sub-par as my beer experiences have grown alot since I was last here). They also sport a few Ontario craft beer taps and I saw that they had the GLB 666 on tap. Food is great for pub fare. Everything looks and tastes like it is made in house and the place is right on St. Paul street in the core of St. City. I will always be popping in when I’m passing through the town.
66
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 6/10
  • SELECTION 8/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 6/10
  • OVERALL 15/20
thevep  (3) Ontario | February 7, 2013
A solid place to grab a pint and relax in the environs of an active brewing company. The taps rotate and don’t always have what you might be looking for so check online before you make the trek. It’s loud inside after 9pm and the cigarette smoke has a way of wafting in from outside which diminishes the appetite (don’t judge, I’m just sayin’) The poutine is pretty good - shoe string fries, so that might not be your style. It’s good that St Catharines has a place like this.
80
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 7/10
  • VALUE 8/10
  • OVERALL 17/20
redpooba  (4) Texas | January 31, 2013
This is a pretty cool spot to chill and down some pints, (or there is also a wide selection of bourbon’s and whiskeys behind the bar too). All the beers are made in house, but thankfully there is a wide selection. From the seating you can see the tanks for the beer, really has a hometown vibe to it. There were some pretty good specials on the wall for food-beer combos. Probably will haunt here a bit more often.
78
  • AMBIANCE 3/5
  • SERVICE 8/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 8/10
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 16/20
SudsMcDuff  (190) .....Manchester United.........., Texas | January 26, 2013
had gone to the brewing college so had to stop in here.. . they have healthy sized sample flight trays so thats a huge plus .. good amount of house beers and locals .. friendly and rather cute bartender chicks .. i’d stop by again without even thinking about it!
74
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 11/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 14/20
SoberDave  (18) Escondido, California | January 23, 2013| Updated January 31, 2013
Best place I’ve found north of the border so far. It’s a popular joint and the place seems to always be full. Brews its own beer which is cool, and offer a set of 4 tasters of any house brew at a reasonable price. They have over a dozen house brews which is pretty impressive!
60
  • AMBIANCE 3/5
  • SERVICE 6/10
  • SELECTION 9/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 12/20
Radek Kliber  (419) Toronto (Can) Krotoszyn (Pol), Ontario | July 24, 2012
Average spot. Beer was served very cold , frozen almost. Service was OK nothing special. Had my beers and go without ordering meal. It has potential.

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