Our first review! J Brian's Tap Room

Alright. Here it is. Our first review. For our first outing, we all put our heads together to come up with a scoring system (as well as drink some beers) to make sure our ratings made sense.

The Categories are:

• Selection/Variety
• Atmosphere/Location
• Service/Staff
• Prices
• Events/Entertainment
• Happy Hour/Specials
• Food (extra credit - This is a drinking review, after all)

Each category is rated out of 10, and the total score is out of 100

Without further ado, and just in time for St. Patrick's Day:

Bar: J Brian's Tap Room

Location



Rated by
Musselman
Krebbs
Mike 
Reggie
Jeremy

Date of Visit
3/12/2015

J Brian's is the closest thing to an actual pub that Fredericksburg has. Sure, we have a place CALLED The Pub, and a British themed Tavern, but this feels like a legit pub. The only thing it's missing is a fruit machine. Due to the nature of the bar, it has become a staple of local St. Patrick's Day celebrations, and is a stop on many a bar crawl.

The main bar area is somewhat small, which gives it an intimate feeling. The main form of "entertainment" is a jukebox, which primarily plays classic rock or 80s music (at least when we're there). Off to the side is a larger dining area, which is well suited for eating or visiting with a group. In addition, there is a small front porch with 4 or so tables and a large back patio, perfect for drinking on a summers evening.

And now, the scores.

Selection/Variety - 9

• 24 different beers on tap - 7 from overseas, 8 from Virginia, and 9 domestic
• Fully stocked liquor bar (and, to quote Reggie, "more whiskey and scotch than you can shake a d*ck at"
• Always has Two Hearted (extra points from Todd) Note - this ran out as we were here
• No cheap beer (except for Bud Light - we'll forgive them for that)

Atmosphere - 9

• Bar area is cramped, yet cozy
• Easily crowded, but it's not a crowd you mind being with
• The back patio is wonderful on a summer night
• The bar counter is comfortable to sleep on, per Mike. And the railing outside
• The bar area feels like a local pub. Lots of sports decorations, mainly Boston
• They cater to the chill, quiet crowd who wants to enjoy their beer
• They can get rowdy on a weekend evening, but it's few and far between that it is
• The clientele is friendly

Location - 8

• Parking near the bar is hard to find
• In the heart of downtown, near most everything
• Easy to get to

Service/Staff - 7

• Krebbs didn't get a fork. He was very sad about this fact
• Mike, the bartender, is seems surly (to go along with the Pub vibe) but he's friendly
• Staff is friendly, and accommodating to annoying patrons
• If the bar is packed, there can be a bit of a wait

Prices - 8

• Prices are reasonable for the beer that you get ($5 or $6 is the average price)

Events/Entertainment - 3

• Note: There was nothing going on in the night we went
• Menu advertises the following:
• Monday: half priced wings and trivia night
• Tuesday: half priced burgers
• Wednesday: sliders and flight night
• "At least they have a jukebox"

Happy Hour/Specials - 5

• See events for specials
• Happy hour is an unadvertised, at-the-bar kind of thing. The website advertises it, and we didn't know they had one until we paid our tabs

Food - 8

• Standard pub fare (wings, cheesesteaks, pot pie, etc.)
• The Big Bad Wolf burger (sausage and chorizo) is the best burger Krebbs has ever had (Reggie thinks it's not that great)
• Musselman really likes the quesadillas
• The main dishes are all good; we've never had an issue with anything we've ever had

Individual Overall Scores

Reggie - 85

Mike - 88

Musselman - 85

Krebbs- 83
Jeremy - 85

Final score: 87 (out of 100)