Barley Island Brewing Company

9/7/2007 6:21:05 PM, friday, september 07, 2007
A brewpub, with an Irish theme, Barley Island’s main calling is in the 15 or so beers (rotated, seasonally, and with a "sampler") that they brew on the premises. The overall beer selection is limited. They feature their own brews and a few guest beers on tap (Rogue Dead Guy, Founders Dirty Bastard, and Youngs Double Chocolate Stout stood out, during my visit). Beer prices are reasonable ($3.50/pint), though they have very good specials on pints of their own brews ($1.50/pint) on Mondays and Tuesdays. They also sell their beer in bottles and growlers. The menu is good, though sandwich oriented, as is typical of brewpub fare.

4/2/2007 8:28:09 PM, monday, april 02, 2007
I like this place a lot. It reminds me of some of bars in my small hometown. With thexception being they have great beer! Really I talked to the bartender for about an hour and he was a pretty cool guy, seemed fairly knowledgeable. Their Black Magic Java Stout just recently won a silver medal at the GABF.

1/16/2007 7:16:47 PM, tuesday, january 16, 2007
Quality beer and a pleasant, warm ambiance. A good brewpub with very cozy seating where each booth is separated off. Knowledgeable staff, good food.

8/14/2006 1:27:25 PM, monday, august 14, 2006
This has a rustic, old-timey feel which is right at home in a small downtown area filled with old brick buildings. Bottles to go are available in the cooler. I had a friendly, knowledgeable bartender. The bar itself is isolated from the rest of the restaurant. I was here around noon, so things were pretty quiet. I didn’t bother to look for parking provided by Barley Island, unfortunately. I did, however, find a parking lot with dirt-cheap meters a mere two minutes away by foot. This place is up to par for a brewpub.

4/30/2006 10:08:35 AM, sunday, april 30, 2006 [ Updated friday, may 05, 2006 ]
Located 6 miles west of I-69 in the downtown of Noblesville directly of street with good parking. Large building with Brewing on the right, dance floor in front. pool room in the middle and pub in the back. Wood bar with table seating against the wall. Good freindly service. Had the sampler set and a bomber bottle of bourbon barrel aged brew. Reviewed menu of sandwichs, pizza and soups. Had an app. Nice location with good brews.

4/21/2004 2:54:08 PM, wednesday, april 21, 2004
Barley Island is about 20 minutes from downtown Indianapolis. Aside from some confusion with their many streets named Fall Creek, it is pretty easy to find. They have the entire brew works viewable from the street! Parking consists of a small side lot, and some additional parking in the rear.

Inside you are greeted by a fairly sparse seating area, but toward the back things get a little warmer, with booths and frosted glass all in an Irish theme. I especially liked the hanging lights that showed leprechauns holding mugs of ale. The bar area is tucked in the rear and is pretty small but well stocked. They also have an adjoining game room with pool and classic arcade games.

The beer selection is fairly good. They have 6 beers available, including a seasonal or 2, and a cask offering. The have a sampler and growlers available as well. The beers range from standard brewpub stuff to more unique offerings like a 60 Shilling Scottish Ale.

The service here was decent, but they were not busy at all on a weeknight.

The food was a combination of Irish pub grub, pizza and sandwhiches. We tried the brewpub nachos and were not disappointed.

All in all this is definitely a recommended stop if you are in the Indianapolis area. It’s not that far (unless you take a couple wrong turns like I did) and the beers are all pretty good.