Old Capitol Brew Works and Public House

August 12, 2008
Certainly nicer now that there’s a smoking ban (used to get really thick in there). A fairly run down bar side and an overly spiffy restaurant side. I like the bar side ok. Pretty comfortable. Decent beers, but not much variety, and not especially great either. I think they need to clean the tap lines though.

January 9, 2008
Visiting on a winter Wednesday night, the entire town was essentially dead, and this spot was fairly dead as well. In the front door of the restaurant and it’s nearly 100% empty, and up to the bar at the back of the high-ceilinged, lodge-like main rom we walk only to find that it’s closed, and the side bar next door is open. So down a couple of steps into this side bar (this being the actual public house), and we’re greeted by a thick fog of cigarette smoke and an ambient air temperature in the 80s. Sweating in our coats as we take a seat at the bar, a quick look at the beer menu shows the standard fare of pale ales, wheats, and lights accompanied by two stouts and a seasonal chestnut brown ale. A pint each of each stout, that had a bit of a sweet twang and no real depth, and we’re back out the door onto to greener pastures. The beer quality wasn’t terrible, just boring and uninspired. The coffee stout was probably the least coffee I’ve had in a stout, and it didn’t taste much different than their standard oatmeal stout. So, in short, beer quality was mediocre, the crowd was a bit honky-tonkish, and the smoke and heat made my visit quite uncomfortable.

October 22, 2007
I love the atmosphere here but it was much better as Fitzapatrick’s. They brew about eight different styles none of which are overly impressive. They also have a few Belgian imports on hand. The beer is not pricey and they have a sampler. The service has never been very good but I usually go after an Iowa home football game and it is busy.

October 14, 2007
Brewpub at the location of the old Fitzgerald’s (Fitzpatrick’s?). Had 5 or 6 handles of their offerings. The pale ale was decent, if unremarkable. The Oktoberfest was mediocre. Didn’t try any of the remaining handles, but the styles offered were nothing too interesting. At the other end of the bar were 6 guest handles, all well selected. Unfortunately, the first three selections I requested (LaChouffe, St. Bernardus, and ?) were out. A disappointment. Didn’t try the food, as we had heard good things about the Thai restaurant down the street and that was on the agenda. Unlike some of the previous ratings, I found the service to be courteous and efficient. I’ll check in again next time I’m in town.

August 1, 2007
Visited on a Sunday for lunch. The place was dead, but that’s not unexpected on a Sunday at 11 AM when school is out. The place was a wide open place, and we sat in the back room. Our waitress was very good, although not the most beer knowledgeable person (she was pretty cute though). The beers were all pretty good. I even liked their Hefeweizen, which is rare. I enjoyed their rye the most. I had a chicken quesadilla, and it was very good. I was happy I chose that. All in all, a good stop. Would probably be an awesome place to hit after a Hawkeyes game.

July 22, 2007
Agreed. Good beer, but horrid service. Please be advised that one-half of the bar is smoke free and you DO NOT have to sit with smokers in order to enjoy a beer. It is not likely that the staff will share this information with you.

March 22, 2007
Good beer... but terrible service. We waited forever for our food and for the check at the end. I’m pretty sure our waiter was drunk too... Anyways, the food was good (12 wings for $3.75 isn’t bad). The beer sampler consists of eight 4oz. beers for $8, and is presented nicely. OK place...

January 5, 2007 [ Updated May 13, 2008 ]
Tried this place again. And for the last time! It sucks! Nobody knows nothing but how to drink shots. The staff is dumb! And only had 2 beers on tap

December 19, 2006 [ Updated July 16, 2007 ]
This place used to be one of my favorites when they first opened the fall of 2004. The beer is pretty decent with decent food. Service is spotty at best. This place used to have a nice brewpub atmosphere--now they have flat screen TVs, screaming music and the place looks like a sports bar.

November 21, 2006
Thanks be to the University of Iowa for providing me with a trip to town and leavign enough time after the interview for a little pub and bottle shop tour of the town. Stopped by on a Monday afternoon, totally empty. Large, lots of smoke residue. Big TV’s with sports on. Couple different beers on tap, couple guest belgains on tap. Had the cheese dip, it was good.