Calapooia Brewing Company

I just like this place. Great pub food — fish and chips as well as burgers! Wonderful beer! And … Best of all we can bring our dog!

Top notch brewery for craft beers and the food is excellent! They even had a chili beer. Sounds crazy but it’s good. In the craft beer Capitol state this place definitely doesn’t disappoint!

Literally, I came in and stood at the bar while the place was empty. There was one guy sitting at the bar, and I got ZERO service. Not a «I’ll be with you in a moment,» or a «Hello,» Nothing. Empty place, zero service. To me, as a woman who has worked in the food industry for years as a bartender, host, server, and supervisor, it is very unacceptable. If you want to run a successful business you need to hire people that care about customer service, and actually know how to implement it when they are working. On the flip side I have been to this place before, and had good service from a guy that worked there, plus their food and beers were quite tasty! I would go there again, because I did have at least one decent experience. Otherwise the customer service I did receive was just awful. It’s too bad, I would have given this place high stars.

Worst customer service. Food was mediocre at best. Very cold and rude attitude coming from the waitress. (Long faced, blondish redhead wearing big pearls around her neck) Our group of friends were tempted to walk out of the establishment but we thought that we would give her a chance and unfortunately she failed to deliver, along with the food. It made for an extremely uncomfortable experience. Unfortunately we will not return and nor we refer any friends or colleagues to this brewery.

I’ve eaten lunch here many times. Although this type of venue caters to a younger crowd I’ve been pleasantly surprised to have always been treated hospitably. It has never been terribly crowded at noon during the week and the staff and kitchen seemed not overwhelmed.
The beers are a lot more palatable than most of the other microbreweries in Oregon. I have not thoroughly explored the menu and tend to stick to fish’n’chips, which is reliable, after a recommendation by an earlier reviewer. Seating is idiosyncratic and I have seen tables moved around to accommodate large parties. One critique I have is the Muzak, which is a little more intrusive than average. In a restaurant of this type happy chatter would be the perfect background sound.
I am OK with value for dollar but the $$ rating is fair. I don’t go out enough to ferret out the really economical joints to eat. My gut feeling is with the cost of living in America increasing like crazy, any venue that intends to stay in business for the long haul is going to have to charge prices that antagonize certain customers.
I happen to love the location but I’m a nut for Old Towns, ghost towns and brownfields. One can walk across the street to an asphalted trail on the riverbank and walk for miles if one wishes.
A friend of mine plays in a blues jam on Sundays but I have not explored that aspect of this venue, which I think deserves to be approached as more than just a pub with food.

The food here is awesome, but the beer and wine selection is even better. On the weekends they have music nights, and this is a favorite hang out for artists of all types.

I love going to Calapooia — darts, disc golf putting league and good brews and food (tip: the food special is always on point!). Love the wings special on Thursday and the Reuben sandwich. My favorite beer is the Pacific Pils!

There was a large party that had ordered just ahead of my husband and I, and we were told that it might be just a little bit longer than normal to receive our food. Well, 45 minutes later we finally got our food. The food was average, nothing to write home about. The service was absolutely terrible. Our waitress was one of the worst I have ever seen. She never once came back to our table
to see if we needed any drink refills or anything else. She wouldn’t even bring our check to the table at the end of our meal, we had to go up to the bar and ask for it. If you plan to go here on your lunch hour, turn around and walk right back out the door if it’s crowded when you walk in. Otherwise, like me, you will get back to work late.

Solid beer and neat location. Food menu has some great items. Could be a bit cleaner and I do wish my table was less sticky. Certainly a good place to stop for a cold pint.

I really like this place, wonderful selection of beers and wine. Several dart boards. The menu for food items are diverse. and at a reasonable price. have tried the hamburger its really good. They have live music on certain nights. its location is a little bit out of the way from central Albany but not too far.

My husband and I went here for lunch. I got the mushroom swiss and he got the squirrel burger. After waiting 45 minutes AFTER we ordered we finally got our food. It was mediocre at best. I was hoping for some good pub food but this was awful. The burger was woefully under seasoned and the mushrooms were definitely from a can. The squirrel burger was stated to have ham on top, it was nothing more than a single slice of lunch meat. When we quizzed them about our food taking so long their line was, we have a small kitchen. Yet people who ordered after us had their food in 15 minutes.. . We timed it. The moral of my story is I will never eat there again but still like their beer. I don’t recommend their food.. .Not even as a joke.

Good beer and food. Nice atmosphere. Enjoyed their Boxcar Brown. I prefer brown ales and theirs rates! Will be back next time I come through Albany.

Very expensive brews, wine & food. Nice outdoor patio. Food is slow & service is almost non existent. Burger was small but fairly good but was $$+.

Fresh Beer, Stale Service. I stopped in off 1 – 5 traveling home from Eugene and wanted to check out a random out of town brewery. Thank goodness for GPS, you have to wind around a bit to find this corner brewery. Calapooia had been around for about 9 years or so and they’re most known for their Chili Beer. It really is good and has great heat –made with 300 lbs of Chilis and only 5.5% ABV, but it’s not for everyone.
I ordered the Riparian IPA, it was good, but not remarkable. I sampled one other before that.
The women working were not very hospitable. I asked them a question about what their best selling beer was and they seemed bothered that I tried conversing. I got my beer, sat there, paid my tab and left. The pub atmosphere was sufficient, but not charming. People packed in though, and it seemed like a good food spot.
I wasn’t there to watch TV, but their monitor was very outdated and should either be taken down or upgraded. The picture was so lousy that it hurt my eyes as I glanced around the room.
Outside patio offers heat lamps.

First time here and everything was amazing. Had some tasters and split a burger with a friend. Beer was 5 stars burger was 4. Will definitely return next time I’m in the area.

Great staff! Friendly and informative. The beer selection is very good. The good selection is in need of more choices but the food is good. :-).
If you haven’t. You should.
See you there.

The burger was out of this world yummy :) Think the Beaver Brand mustard gave it an extra dose of flavor. Fries and beer were so-​so. Chili beer was way too weird, but a must try! The atmosphere was lame — too many windows and big empty spots (for darts??), no warmth. We went for lunch so maybe better during dinner hour. Would highly recommend for the burger tho, and the fun selection of brews.

A-​OK for Calapooia Brewing. I came in here a month ago while having to make a quick trip to Albany. I pulled up the reviews and found that Calapooia brewing was not too far away.
They seem to receive praise for their burgers and beer. I’m a big fan of local breweries and craft beers, so I was certainly up for the challenge. My daughter and I showed up at 7 p.m. I was pretty excited to see that they allow miners until 8 – 9 O’clock.
I swear though, when I walked in that place you would have thought it was a full on bar. The noise level is very high, and the seating is very compact. when you are 6’5″ you notice when a place is much smaller than it needs to be.
When ordering your food and drinks, you must walk up to a counter and place your order. They will deliver your food but that’s it. That style of service is perfectly okay with me. The guy behind the counter was friendly, so for the most service was pretty good.
I decided to order the squirrel burger. It was a pretty decent burger, absolutely loaded with cheese. I felt my arteries clogging with each bite. Death may have been on the way, but it was a pretty decent burger. I can’t say it’s the best I ever had unlike other reviews, but it was a solid three stars.
I was not impressed with their IPA. It had some hops to it, but it was way to malty for my enjoyment. I normally have one/​two beers with my dinner, but I only drink half of that pint.
With the noise level being so loud, the tight seating, and having my daughter with me we decided to leave as soon as we were done eating. Let me rephrase, we left as soon as I was done eating. I requested a box for the remainder of my daughters food. I would say we were there for a total of 20 minutes.
I would absolutely come back and try this place again. However, I would prefer to not have the kids with me. It was simply too busy and too noisy for a child, in my opinion.
Next time I go back I’ll try something different to eat as well to drink, and give this place a re-​review.

On our way down to Creswell to see a friend it was called to my attention (by my stomach) that I was hungry. I stupidly didn’t end up bringing any food with me like Sue did so a Unilocal search was started for the Albany area and Calapooia was the winner on this night.
Must be the happening spot in Albany as the place was pretty damn packed on a Friday night. We weren’t sure if we would be able to procure a seat, but we found a table near the corner. Before that happened we walked up to the bar area (where you do all of your ordering) and each got a pint of beer. I believe the one I had was called Norman’s Ale, or something like that. I can’t access their website at work as it is blocked. Don’t worry. I’m typing this while on my lunch break. Sue had the ESB. We found a table and I took a look at the menu. Ended up ordering a Reuben with fries.
The sandwich came out and I started to chomp down. I probably wouldn’t order the fries again. They are $ 1 additional, but they are those really greasy kind. The name escapes me right now, but just not my favorite fry. I would opt for the chips that come on the side for no additional money. The Reuben was very good though and I would have no problem ordering that again.
Always nice to see brewing companies and always good to support local beer and businesses. A good stop on your way down south.

This is exactly the kind of place I hope to find when I travel. When I visited Albany on a hot summer Sunday earlier this year, it felt like about the only place open in town. There were **crickets** in downtown, so most of the places I’d planned to visit were a no go. While waiting to pick up my boys who were paddling down the Willamette River to nearby Bowman Park, I stopped in here for a cold drink and was really impressed. They had a live band and great crowd indoors plus an outdoor beer garden with covered seating. On that day, I just cooled off with a root beer (I was driving) and made a mental note to return.
When the family and I returned yesterday for a full meal, it was just as I remembered. We were the first customers of the day [1] and had our pick of seats. No band this time, but they had football on two small TVs. They also have three dart boards that dominate the indoor space, but are designated adults only.
Our meals were classic pub grub that is making an effort. I had the special, French Chicken Sandwich, and Mr. K had the Chicken Club. The boys ordered off the kids’ menu. A couple notes about ordering… sandwiches and burgers are served with a pickle and chips, unless you «Make it Chubby» and substitute fries, tater tots or salad for $ 1. The side salad is really basic, so I’d guide you toward the other two options in general and the tater tots in particular.
The grilled cheese on the kids menu is served on dark bread, so if that is an issue you might want to guide them towards the ‘Pooia Puppies (mini corn dogs) or one of the other options. Kids meals also come with chips and a pickle and at least they have the good sense to mention this on the menu, so you can pass on the pickle. Personal pet peeve averted. As a dessert option, they have bite sized cupcakes from nearby Rocket Queen Cupcakes for $ 1.
This time I did drink the beer and went with the White Water Wheat and Mr. K had one of their seasonal beers. Both the beers and the food were good, but not exceptional. Service was conversational and fun. We managed to spill not one, but two drinks during our visit and they barely batted an eye. Pretty much an all time low in restaurant etiquette for the K family, but the server just laughed and said, «Believe me, worse has happened in this joint!» She was just generally wonderful all around.
I love a good brew pub for casual and affordable family dining and Calapooia didn’t disappoint. This one is well worth a visit when you’re in the area.
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[1] Current business hours are wrong and I’ve sent an update to HQ. They open at 11:30a daily and closing hours vary —