Hops & Fire Craft Tap House

This is our new favorite local restaurant!
The food is amazing, with a big variety for lunch & dinner.
My husband suffers from Celiac Disease and absolutely has to avoid gluten. All the breading is Gluten Free, so everything that goes in their fryers is free of gluten and there is no risk of contamination!
He is used to having a tiny menu with limited choices at most restaurants, but at Hops & Fire, he can have just about anything on the menu — including onion rings & French fries! For those of you with a gluten allergy, you know what a big deal that is.
The staff is friendly and the atmosphere is relaxing. We are quickly becoming regulars here!

I have been here a couple of times once for drinks and appetizers which while service was just OK the appetizers atmosphere and draft selection was good.
I had brunch there today and was disappointed. Unless they move the chicken an waffles to the kids menu, it was way overpriced. 3 tiny chicken strip and a waffle that was slightly larger than an eggo for $ 12. The chick strips were good, but just a sad presentation. Should have taken a picture. Was never offered a refill on coffee or water, auto reduction in tip at the very least. Other meals at the table were just OK.
While I may go back for a drink and appetizers, that will be it.
Very sad I had high hopes for a new non standard brunch spot.

My husband and I went on a Sunday for an early dinner. We were given menus and seated in the bar area. We looked around wondering why the place was completely empty other then 2 people at the bar. The place looked very impressive so we were excited. The bartender was also the server she introduced herself and asked us what we wanted to drink. We asked about what was on tap and she seemed to get annoyed that we were asking. Finally i asked if we could sample. She brought over 4 shot glasses with beer but could not remember what was what. We sampled the beer and waited for her to come back we waited and waited. After about 30 minutes of waiting she finally came back to see if we wanted to order a beer or was ready to order food. We started to order and she became frustrated again saying the host/​hostess gave us the lunch menu and what we wanted was not available for dinner… all this after 30 minutes. She brought us new menus and my husband ordered a margarita. She left to go and make the margarita… we studied the dinner menu and waited and waited for the one margarita. Finally she came with this little glass not even a margarita glass. By this time i could tell my husband was getting upset. He sipped his drink stating that we had been there over 45 minutes and he just received a drink. He said he wasn’t liking the bartenders attitude and did not feel comfortable eating there… needless to say we asked for our check and paid …$ 10… 1 margarita

I have been here two times for lunch and had wildly different experiences on the two occasions.
My first visit (5−12−16) was a solo venture for me. I sat at the bar and was able to ask the bartender questions about the business and the brews available including asking them to identify the local breweries on their menus. (Which they now do!) I ordered the triple play and was pleased with the quality of all three items:
Prarie Organic Gin Creamy Tomato Soup — Sauteed Crimini Mushrooms, Red onions, leeks, Julienned carrots, and garlic. Deglazed in Prairie Organic Gin with Tomato soup stock, topped with Sour Cream and chives. Unlike most soups that look like they are out of a can.
Crispy Southwest Chicken Wrap — Crispy chicken fries wrapped in a tomato basil tortilla w/​chipotle ranch sauce, roasted corn, roasted red peppers, red onions, Pico de Gallo, black beans, lettuce and colby jack cheese.
Chop Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing — tossed w/​Mozzarella, heirloom tomoatoes, red onions, pine nuts.
No problems and good service. Probably would give them a 4 star rating.
However, my second visit (5−20−16) had a friend meet my wife and I for lunch. We liked the plentiful parking and that they have a small outdoor patio, but the weather was a bit cool that day. The interior of the dining area was large and allowed plenty of room between tables. And my friend thought the Bloody Mary was excellent!
But… that was about the end of the niceties. I ordered a round of Porter battered jumbo onion rings, dipped and dredged in seasoned cracker crumbs and crisp fried for the table. The onion rings were drizzled with porter beer BBQ sauce, served with jalapeño ranch dipping sauce. The serving was pricey for an appetizer until I saw the quantity. There were 12 rings that seemed huge as tennis balls. The first bites were fine, especially with the BBQ sauce. But too much of a good thing is too much. The cracker breading sat heavily in our stomachs and some of the rings were a bit under cooked which left a pasty taste. We only finished half of the rings and didn’t even want a take home box because the crumbs were beginning to hold the cooking oil. Nice try for something unique, but just too much.
I also ordered the stout pork belly BLT with Stout beer and kosher salt brined pork belly, seared and oven roasted, served with baby bibb lettuce, beefsteak tomatoes, and homemade apricot onion jam on grilled garlic shallot bread with garlic parmesan chips. Again, this sounded like a delicious combination to try, but the execution was very disappointing. The thickly slice pork belly was more like jerky. Because it was plentiful, it was stacked one slice upon another. As I bit into the sandwich, the pork slid across the lower layers, resisting my bite. I have read other reviews where the pork was melt in your mouth smooth, but others have also complained about the jerky quality. The only thing that will save this option is getting the consistent tender or lightly crisp texture. It was so distracting and difficult to chew, that it was hard to enjoy the flavors.
My wife and guest also had some problems with the flavor combinations on their food, so we left disappointed. I hope that the kitchen manager can get some consistency soon so that this promising concept doesn’t disappoint very often.

I LOVE the gluten free/​celiac friendly kitchen/​fryers. There were so many options for my gluten free boyfriend. We brought our vegan friend who was impressed with the menu and options but overall her food was fine at best. The gluten free pasta including Mac n cheese were comparable to what we make at home and not what I expected from a restaurant. It was pricey, expect to pay 12 – 25 a plate easy. The idea, atmosphere, and options are a FANTASTIC IDEA but they missed their mark and it’s going to take some work to get this place where it needs to be. I will definitely give it another try but my medium steak was well done. The service was terrible. Waiter hardly checked on us, ran out of drinks multiple times, it was not busy at all and no reason why we shouldn’t be followed up with after receiving our food. If I had wanted to complain about my super over-​cooked steak I would have to wait until he came to ask how we wanted the check.

Great place. Amazing food AND super gluten-​free friendly. Also vegetarian and vegan too. Carnivores don’t despair they have tons of delicious options. Try the pulled pork nachos. Swoon.

Good food and loved that they had so many different beers and menus to choose from! They have vegan, vegetarian and gluten free menus. The staff has been really wonderful as well. We will be back!

I really hope the owners read the reviews on here. The 135 area really needs some better choices for non– chain restaurants. I had high hopes for Hops and Fire. We’re lovers of good craft beer and quality food and think that with an overhaul of their food this could a great spot.
I’ll start with the good: We’ve been several times and have ALWAYS had great service. The servers and bartenders are attentive and really nice. They are very quick to get food out (so if you’re looking for a slow pace, don’t order quickly). They have a great selection of mostly local craft beer (and we haven’t ran into issues of beer being out), plus they have wine and full bar options. We really liked the bar area décor and vibe and they have a cool hangout outdoor patio with fireplace.
Where they need to improve: the food. It’s just not quality and not seasoned well. Here’s what we’ve tried over the coarse of a few visits… The cheesy bread app is good although the marinara is just OK. The pulled pork nachos are one of the best items on the menu and the wings are worth the try. The parm crusted salmon was clearly frozen and not good at all. The mashed potatoes were not all the way cooked (there was a half cooked potato in my serving). The fries tasted like they had been sitting out for a while. Don’t get the filet, just don’t. The chicken wrap was mediocre, I didn’t care for the tortilla shell. The white cheddar Mac n cheese is in desperate need of seasoning. The onion rings need to be cooked longer, they’re so big that they don’t get done enough. The flat breads are more like doughy pizza with low quality toppings.
I really want to see this place succeed because the area could really use it. However my bet is that, unless there are changes to the menu, it likely won’t last long. I recommend trying it though, especially if you’re looking to grab a beer and an appetizer.

Not what I expected, beer selection good.
Food was not worth price
Server really needs to work on smile !!
Stop for a drink but go somewhere else to eat, you will thank yourself.
We had «Chef Special» left unimpressed with «Chef»

Went for the first time tonight, and really enjoyed the experience. High points:
1. Friendly, knowledgeable staff.
2. An actual bar area for adult drinkers.
3. A really good beer list, with unique brews from all over the state. Indy staples like Bier and Sun King, to farther-​flung breweries like Carson’s, Evil Czech, etc. Also, good national specialties like Sculpin, DFH, etc.
4. A wine list for the non bet folks that didn’t disappoint.
5. Great food with an individual twist. Smoked chicken wings. House made sauces and chips. A lobster roll. Cool local pork cuts. Good recipes.
6. Really nice décor, even in a strip. Very comfy pub atmosphere.
These folks are about beer, but unlike a lot of places jumping on the train, they do a good job stocking it. Add great staff and not-​frozen, cool food to it, and you have a place where you want to hang out… like a pub.

Very good experience. My wife and I went in for dinner and they were on a wait of about 20 minutes. We sat at the bar since there was room and I’m glad we did. The selection of beer was an excellent mix that ran the gamut. We ordered a flight and the flat iron pizza and wings so we could try a couple of different things. The food arrived quickly and we enjoyed it all, having a couple more beers after we tried a few. Beer prices were a tad high but that’s not that uncommon nowadays. They had an impressive selection of whiskey and a full bar. All of the food we saw go by to other tables looked excellent so we will definitely be back.

I was not impressed. The staff didn’t seem to know where to find wines that were ordered, nor remember what beers we ordered. The manager offered us a burger that the kitchen accidentally made, which he had offered to a few other tables first. We declined, and he moved on to other tables to offer them the burger.
The food was mediocre. We ordered smoked wings, but received baked wings. We had waited awhile and decided to just go with it.
I will chalk it up to being a new establishment. Hopefully the kinks are worked out and running smoother soon.

Praise the beer gods! Another solid eatery/​brew house on the Southside!
Having heard the orgasmic exclamations of so many friends when describing this joint, we had to have an experience ourselves. We were not disappointed!
Our server was very enthusiastic and keen to drop some beer menu knowledge on us. The beer list is a pretty decently sized one, so having a beer scout guiding us on our journey was much appreciated.
I opted for the milk chocolate stout from Taxman (ohhhhh my friends. A must.) His suggestions were spot on and he even offered us samples of other beers we might like to order.
The menu is a good size. Plenty of options all around INCLUUUUDING a gluten free menu AND a vegan menu. WHAAAAT?! Virtually unheard of on the Southside.
Our food came out incredibly fast. I, the pulled pork nachos, my husband the ghost pepper burger. Both were huge portions for the price, both were totally satisfying to shovel down our gullets. I don’t want to say I’m a nacho snob (but I’m totally a nacho snob.) The chips stayed crispy to the last bite and it even comes with avocado (kinda made me feel like, «hey, it’s got avocado so it’s gotta be somewhat healthy, right»)!
I will definitely be coming back and will be bringing friends to share in the bounty.
In the end, our check was less than $ 35 (after 3 beers and two meals total.)
Cheers!

I really enjoyed my first experience here. I went for lunch on a Saturday and sat by the bar. My friend and I had to take quite a while to get through the menu as there were a lot of really good options. I decided on one of the lunch specials which included chili, a side salad, and a half of a wraprap. The Southwest chicken wrap was excellent and I would get that again in a full-​size. I didn’t care for the chili but I am quite picky with that, admittedly. I thought the salad was really good and the balsamic was tasty. Entrées are not available until after 4 PM I believe. Definitely going back to this place, especially after they get their outdoor seating area up and running. Beware I hear lines can be quite long as this place is hoppin… pun intended.

A breath of fresh air to the south side. ;)
This place is beautiful inside and out! We decided to visit on a Friday night around 8:30 pm and the place was about half-​full. We were immediately seated and had a GREAT server! They offer a regular menu, vegan menu, and vegetarian menu — how awesome is that? I chose the vegetarian menu (of course) and ordered the cauliflower steak. Overall I would say the menu looked better than the actual food. The food wasn’t bad, but it could be better. The cheese & meat appetizer looked like it had been prepared a head of time and looked kind of old (and barely had any bread with it.) And my cauliflower steak was just «okay» — and the vegan mac & cheese I ordered just sat at the side because I didn’t care for the taste.
The drink menu however was great — AND, so we’re the drinks. Plenty of choices for beer and wine, and I loved that they had Mallow Run wine (I’m obsessed.) I also thought it was cool (yet risky) that they do not offer traditional soda & fountain drinks. (But they do have lots of other options.)
So overall:
Facility/​Space: 5
Service: 5
Food: 2.5 (has potential)
Drinks: 5
We will be back!

Feeling a bit torn between 3 and 4 stars, but i’m going to go with A-​OK. Some of the reviews here seem pretty harsh, so I want to balance out some negativity by saying that I visited yesterday and had a solid experience with a friend.
I ordered a beer from Tin Man that was about $ 6.5. Another review on this page said that beers seemed overpriced. I would agree. I think my choice was appropriate, but other listings were confusing for me. You might want to keep this in mind.
I shared a cauliflower wing (Vegan) appetizer with three dipping sauces. 12 Wings for $ 10 seem strange… isn’t a head of cauliflower like $ 2.5? It was good, but once again, I felt like this was overpriced.
I ordered a breaded tenderloin with chips for my meal. It was, as I expected, a beast. I ate like ¹⁄₃ of it before I opted for a box. The sandwich was great, the homemade chips were subpar.
My recommendation is to skip the appetizer as meals are huge, opt for something other than chips and keep an eye on beer prices. Not a bad experience, but might not be on my radar again.

Went to Hops and Fire for the first time with another couple after hearing about their vegetarian options. It was quite busy when we arrived, so we grabbed a beer from the bar while we waited for our table.
We got our menus and noticed that the vegetarian options that were online weren’t on this menu. We asked the server, who apologized and explained that they had three separate menus (regular, vegetarian, and vegan). Make sure to ask if you aren’t given the menu you would like. We ordered the fried cauliflower, which came with a choice of three sauces. We got a garlic butter, buffalo, and a sweet and spicy Asian sauce. They came out very quickly and were quite good.
I gave up on the vegetarian show and ordered the pork belly BLT. The pork belly was sliced fairly thin (similar to a bacon thickness) but it melted in my mouth. It had an onion jam on it, which slightly overpowered the sandwich, but it was really good.
For dessert, I ordered the apple pie. It was horrible. The server noticed we weren’t eating it and apologized and took it back.
Honestly, I would give this a 3, but our server (I want to say Jamie) was one of the best servers I have had in a long time. She had a bunch of tables and yet gave us all the time, checked in with us often, and made us laugh a lot! She made things right and was a hoot! We may go back if we are on the south side of town. I think they still have a bit of tweaking to do with the menu, but there are a lot of positives as well!

Our waitress was MIA. Spent all her time with tables around us with patrons who purchased copious amounts of alcohol.
Meanwhile our drinks (water and soda) NEVER REFILLED!! Also we waited over 15 minutes for our bill. I know it’s new and busy but just because we didn’t order alcohol.

I was very excited to try Hops & Fire tonight. We had a party of six — five adults and one child. The atmosphere was nice, if not a bit loud. Service was good, except for a few observations. First, the server didn’t tell us about the beer flights. Because they weren’t listed on the menu, my husband ordered a pint instead of a flight, which he’d rather have had. Also, the bidders whom were helping deliver food to the tables need better training. They had no idea who had ordered which dish (not their fault), and they were reaching across patrons to set dishes on the table instead of walking around the table. We observed this, not only at our table, but several others as well.
Now on to the food. We sampled the root beer, which was very good. The beer menu is extensive, and I’m sure beer drinkers will all find something they like. The wine menu is less extensive, but it’s still sufficient. There are two food menus: a pub-​type menu will lots of appetizers and bar foods, and a «house» menu with salads, soups, burgers, wraps, sandwiches, steaks, and pastas. With about three options for each category, there is some diversity without being overwhelming.
Our orders consisted of the pulled pork nachos, a side of fries, pork tenderloin, shrimp pasta, pulled pork bbq wrap, cheddar & pepper bacon burger, and a kid’s fried shrimp with mac & cheese. In general, everything was mediocre, not good but not bad. The bbq sauce was sweet, so it didn’t appeal to everyone.
The worst meal, by far, was the shrimp pasta. According to the menu it is, «Jumbo Shrimp Sautéed in Garlic Butter w/​Crimini Mushrooms, Green Onions, Tomatoes, & White Wine, then Tossed in Angel Hair Pasta.» The shrimp wasn’t fresh and had a bit of a «fishy» flavor. It was also overcooked. I couldn’t taste garlic, butter, or wine; overall, the dish was flavorless. And I didn’t see a single mushroom in the dish. The pasta and tomatoes were overcooked and mushy. The serving size was adequate, although I didn’t want to finish it.
When I complained to the server, she apologized and offered another meal. I declined because everyone else had already finished their meals, and I had lost my appetite. She apologized again and brought our check, which included a discount of $ 9.50 — half the price of the shrimp pasta. The manager never came to speak to us, get our feedback, or apologize. Considering that Hops & Fire just recently opened (and our bill was just under $ 100 after the discount) I expected a manager to come speak to us about our complaint. So I consider that to be poor handling of a customer concern.
After leaving, we all decided that Hops & Fire would be a place people should go if they want to try a new beer without the burden of pairing said beer with satisfying food. Go in knowing that the food is no better or worse than any chain in Greenwood, although (to my knowledge) this is not a chain restaurant. Try a flight, perhaps watch the game (although one of the televisions badly needed a color adjustment), and snack on the bar food. If you’re looking for a decent meal worthy of the $ 20/​dish price tag, I’d go elsewhere.

The hubs (a vegetarian) had heard about Hops and Fire and their pretty extensive vegan menu from an online vegan/​vegetarian group, and we were excited to give it a try. So he, my brother-​in-​law, and I made the trek to the Southside to give it a shot. In truth, we went not knowing it was brand-​spanking new and still in it’s soft opening stage! No worries! We’re game to give it a go!
Now, being so new, I totally expect there to be growing pains and such. However, we were pleasantly surprised at the food, service, etc.
Service — Everyone was very friendly and all were working very hard. The place was SLAMMED, but we were seated within 10 minutes during peak time on a Saturday night. Our server promptly checked in with us and got us drinks. Although he was busy, he did not rush us and was helpful in making selections.
Food — They have a huge on-​tap drink menu and, of course, lots of craft options. We were very pleased with that. For an appetizer, we got the house beer cheese with pretzel pieces. Delicious! For entrees, we also ordered the cauliflower bites, the portabella blt, the hops and fire ghost pepper black bean burger, and the meat lovers grilled flat bread. All were really good! The food did take a little while to get, but again, they were slammed and also had just started their soft opening the night before. So we were very understanding that there is a learning curve to speeding things up. Again, the service was great, so our drinks were regularly filled while waiting.
Ambiance — It is indeed a little loud in here. I would recommend something for dampening it. It was clear the servers had a hard time hearing people as they ordered. Otherwise, I loved the look and feel of the place.
Note that it’s a wee bit pricey as far as food goes, but the food is quite good. Fortunately, the drink prices were normal for craft beers.
Overall, we’ll definitely come back, even with it being a 30 minute drive. Looking forward to their progression as they take off!