The Bitter Monk

Great beer, great bottle selection, and great service. They also have free popcorn. Rotating taps of rare beers.

Great selection of various styles of beer and ciders on rotating taps as well as a well stocked case of bottles. There’s something for every brew lover at The Bitter Monk.

The only thing bitter about The Bitter Monk is the beer (well at least the beer I like). The place is on the small side, but the beer selection is huge! There were about 16 beers on tap shown clearly on an electronic menu that tells you more about the beers than pretty much any other bar including how much is left in the keg! Never before have I been able to prioritize my beer based on how much is left :). There are beers to suite any tastes and is easy to see which ones are which by glancing at the menu. The menu automatically updated and was even tied in to social media displaying a sampling of what people were saying about the place on Facebook, Twitter, etc. I even saw my picture on the menu after checking in with my beer on Untapped. How cool is that?!
The staff was also very friendly. We planned to stop in for just one and stayed for a few hours talking to the locals and enjoying some fine beer. I highly recommend this place to beer lovers everywhere especially if you need a break from the wine tastings in the area!

Came in to watch the game and check out the beer selection. We are out of towners. Great lil’ place. Cozy and comfy.

AMazing! My husband could have spent the whole weekend here. Great addition to downtown 3^rd Street. Coming from the SF Bay Area we were surprised to see the store carry Firestrone Walker beer (one of our favorites)! Being big beer drinkers, we were happy with what the Bitter Monk had to offer. If you are staying at the 3^rd Street Flats, this place is right around the corner and the Farmers Market takes place outside their front door. Keep up the great work and we will be back!

Excellent beer selection, superior service, top notch bar. They’ve got a Wednesday night beer run where joggers meet to complete one of several distance runs and celebrate with happy hour pricing all night. Ask for a Radler if you like lager/​light refreshments with a citrus hit. Skip the popcorn — no butter.

Fantastic, all around! I love this place!
Wayne G, from Las Vegas, who gave the Monk 1 star in his review below did so on the grounds that it was neither kid nor pet-​friendly. Rather than review the Monk here, which is top notch in every possible way, I’m going to review Wayne, so as to negate his ridiculous assessment of this casual, convivial and irreplaceable fixture of the local community.
The Bitter Monk is a tap room, licensed by OLCC to sell alcohol to people who can legally drink it. By definition, then, it cannot be kid-​friendly without losing its license to operate as. .. you know, a TAP ROOM. Perhaps a few toddlers perched atop the bar stools and drinking IPA out of sippy cups would be more to Wayne’s liking? To be fair, Wayne does hail from Las Vegas, where you can pretty much drink a 64-​ounce tequila slushie any damn place you please, including while you’re walking down the Strip with your kids or even IN A CAR with them, as long as you aren’t the one who’s driving, all of which makes Vegas, technically, the most «kid-​friendly» place to drink in all of America.
I’m not sure how the two full bowls of water for dogs outside the Monk’s door escaped Wayne’s notice. And how did he miss the many patrons who routinely come to sit at the outdoor tables with their dogs pretty much every day? Aha! Looking over his review again, I see that he posted it in February, so the tables weren’t likely out and any water in the Monk’s dog bowls would have surely been frozen over. Does Wayne encounter a lot of dog-​friendly outdoor seating in February? In Oregon? I’m trying to picture, as a dog owner myself, what pet-​friendly would look like in February in Oregon. Should the Monk maintain a heated outdoor tent full of dog beds from November until April? Seems like a lot to ask.
Wayne’s nearly three hundred reviews make for some good reading. Dude gets around. And he is not above reviewing (and harshly) places like a Newberg, Oregon Pizza Hut («Owner should have franchise revoked!») or, at the other end of the spectrum, his scathing comments about Lamborghini of Las Vegas that, I think, resonate with nearly every typical Unilocal reader trying to determine which Lamborghini dealer to choose («Also the Ferrari is far superior compared to the Lambo with better dual clutch transmission, far nicer interior, vastly superior technology in the GPS, monitoring LCDS and far superior sound system plus a hard top conv for about the same price as my prior Lambo.») I wish he had included in his Bitter Monk review whether or not the Monk was «Lambo-​friendly.» That’s the kind of stuff I need to know before I get a pint somewhere.
A Seattle Petco fared no better under Wayne’s scrutiny, as he berated their service and got in some faulty analogies/​political digs while he was at: «I rate them a F minus the same as our current Congress and President in USA!» (sic).
When you see an outlier review on Unilocal,I encourage you to tug the thread a little, see where it leads. In Wayne’s case, you’ll find some amusing reviews, some kooky ramblings, some jet-​set whining, some low-​brow surprises, and the most scathing review of a Sherwood, Oregon KFC you’re likely to find anywhere on the internet. One thing’s sure: if A1 Limo in Chicago is getting one star from Wayne (and it is), the odds are good that Chicago teens who want to impress their prom dates could do a lot worse than hiring a limo from A1.

The beer is phenomenal and the staff is knowledgeable. They have an informative sign that details the type of beer and the current level. I love this place.

A year of great beer!
Thanks to the great staff @ The Bitter Monk for taking us around the west coast for the best pours on Earth!
My favorite was The 12 brews of Christmas, a tradition has begun! Happy first year!

Quiet, casual little place. Great atmosphere that’s laid back, comfortable setting with small board and card games to do while enjoying a cold adult style beverage. It kind of reminds me of a study hall on campus of a college that serves beer. Not a lot of food choices. I think if they were to increase food with such ideas as home made burgers, wraps, buffalo wings, bratwurst, sandwiches etc it could potentially increase beer sales and you could use everything local and locally grown and raised. The beer was amazing. Love the idea of the large TV screen to show you the names of the beer but color of the beer. Great place, we will return !!!

This is a great place to go for a cold beer. They have a decent selection on tap and a good amount in the bottle you can open and drink there. The people are very friendly and will pour tasters of things you can try. Fun spot.

The Bitter Monk is the best place in the valley for craft beer. Period. The beer list is carefully crafted by the owner who strives to bring in interesting and approachable craft beers and has enough variety to please every beer drinker, even those who don’t think they like beer. In addition to the 14 beers on tap there are over 100 bottles to choose from that you can either enjoy there or take home. And for those who are sure they don’t like beer there are always two ciders on tap and red and white wine from local wineries. Don’t be intimidated by all the choices though, the super helpful and friendly staff is well versed and educated in craft beer and always offer to help find just the right beer for you.
The atmosphere is just the right balance of cozy and boisterous neighbor pub and you can tell a lot of thought and effort has gone into the design. In the summer the outdoor picnic tables are a great place to bring your dog and sit out and enjoy a drink while soaking in 3^rd street. The Bitter Monk is so dog friendly that they put out water bowls for you pup and even have treats behind the bar that you can take out to fido, but because they serve food furry friends have to stay outside.
The Bitter Monk is a true gem and a great place to catch up with friends or even sit alone and enjoy a book. When you’re surrounded by this much outstanding beer, great people and beautiful setting, it is pretty hard to have a terrible time.

Great place to relax with the pup outside on a nice day! Delicious craft beer selection with helpful staff to select the right brew for your taste. Gorgeous woodwork interior. Nice little bar!

Terrible service and complete jerk employees! Not dog or kid friendly, way overpriced beers, awful band, I will never return!

The vibe is chill, like the bar in Cheers, where everybody knows your name. But with a modern interior, and MUCH better music.
And gee golly are those Bitter Monk bartenders beer wizards! So knowledgable, and just really flippin’ sweet.
The #4 and #9 are usually winners. And also, try the ciders if you want to experience joy in liquid form.
Cheers to a sweet experience at The Bitter Monk– McMinnville’s finest bar! :-)

We really enjoyed our stop here. The beer was choice and delicious. The service was friendly and very knowledgable. The place was small and not packed so there was a feel as if visiting a friend’s house who happened to have a nice selection of the best beer on earth. Good times.

Great environment! Exelent beer!
The owner is the server with makes the place even more inviting!

Excellent selection of sour beers, and obscure brewery offerings. Chill atmosphere, good music.

We popped in after dinner and to see the BB game… i had the best cider ever… blackberry? or was it marrion berry? Love the ‘live’ board so you can see how new the keg is and how much is left… plenty of choices for everyone… and the price? are you kidding me? Such a deal!
Too bad their hours are limited… last call 9 pm :(

This place is great! It’s right in the heart of McMinnville’s downtown scene. Surprisingly underrated. The space is small but the atmosphere is great! The owner really cares about beer and provides the best hospitality I’ve seen in the area. If you have one day to spend in McMinnville– Hell, if you one day left to spend living, you should stop by The Bitter Monk and enjoy a pint or three like you never have before.
–a happy customer