Big Block Brewing

Solid place to grab some fresh brews just across the way from Lake Sammamish. The owners are very friendly, eager to share their story, and always quick to keep your glass full. Plenty of regulars, first timers, and people swinging by to fill their growlers. The patio is going to be sweet when it’s all ready to rock. I’d definitely recommend swinging by on your way back from a hike along I90 if you are looking to sip some satisfying suds.

Friend and myself were greeted by a young lady walking in. The other lady, who I later found out is an owner, barely said a word. She looked like she didn’t even want to be there. Very lukewarm reception. Both ladies were quiet and barely spoke. Did not feel welcome at all.
We sampled almost all their beers. This was some of the worst beer I’ve ever had. Nothing tasted like I expected, even a little dirty. I cleaned my palette and tried more beer, but nothing was memorable. I thought maybe my taste buds were the problem. Well, we went to 2 other breweries later, and the beer was much better quality.
Hefeweizen did not taste like a true Bavarian, pretty bland, and the kolsch, I don’t even know where to begin. It had some really funky taste to it. I had my friend sample it who even looked at me and asked «what is wrong with this?»
Service left much to be desired. Neither of the ladies showed any real interest in helping us out. Monotone, never smiling, grumpy, like they had better things to do.
I have no plans to come back. There are many other breweries which I feel do a much better job and have better quality beer and service.

No complaints about the beer. Nice and refreshing on a hot summer day. Awesome patio for relaxing in the shade and plenty of activities out there (corn hole, bocci ball and big jenga).

Finally I got to try Big Block Brewing! I made an attempt to go here when they served their beer at their home. Either I got their hours at the time mixed up or they were not home to serve beer so I moved on to other breweries and decided to come back at a later time. That «later time» resulted in Big Block getting a taproom. Lol!
The brewery is in a really cool area of town. As you come into the place you can get a gorgeous view of Lake Sammamish. The view is a bit harder to obtain in the tap room due to trees and traffic but it’s still in a great location!
At Big Block I got their Chocolate Porter which was very good! It had a nice rich, smooth taste and the chocolate notes were balanced nicely.
Steven got the Honey Pale Ale. He enjoyed it and I did as well from the few sips I got in but overall he felt that it was a bit too hoppy for him.
Service is in good form and the inside atmosphere is cool with the fire extinguisher table and an all metal light with a license plate shade.

I think this is going to be our weekend hangout place from now on! I heard this brewery started in the owner’s garage. The owner brews all the beer from their garage and sells them at this place. The owner is super friendly and we’ve had one super friendly and nice bartender while the other was not as fun/​nice. We see the owner sitting down with their guests and hang out with them. He is VERY fun to talk to.
They also have an outdoor hangout area. They are slowly building it but we were told that the outdoor area will be up and running by the end of May 2016!
The beer is very affordable and the decorations are fun and interseting. High recommended!

Love this place! I consider this my «home» brewery now.
I go to a lot of breweries and this is one is on the top of my list for several reasons.
1) The beer. Most places you go there is one or two good beers and you end up getting that same beer each time you go back. Not at BBB! I like almost ALL of their beers so I am constantly switching it up.
2) The people — Very friendly place to have a beer. It’s like the Cheers of Sammamish.
3) The owners and staff — John and Shelley are two of the nicest people you will ever meet and ALL of the staff are excellent. Friendly and attentive.

If I could give this brewery more than 5 stars I would!
The inside of the brewery is car themed and it is executed very well. Some of the lights are made from car parts and the sampler tray comes in a tool box.
The beer here was excellent! I had the raspberry blonde. This was delicious. It had the perfect raspberry flavor and you could definitely tell that they used real raspberries. I also had the milk stout on nitro. This beer tasted light and wasn’t too heavy. It was slightly sweet tasting and was an excellent beer. Plus I love almost anything on nitro.
I like that this brewery is still small enough so that you can talk to the brewer who was really knowledgable and personable.
Overall, this was an excellent brewery, I would definitely stop by here again sometime!

I would give this place six stars, and here is why. The beer and cider are flat out bleeping awesome. If you dont agree, there is something fundamentally wrong with you.
The owner dude is GENUINELY a great host. He obviously loves what he does, loves the big block, loves the customers. It shows. And last time our service was awesome — the beautiful Maria handled us idiotic slightly offensive dudes with grace and humor. She is one of those rare waitresses you want to tip 20 bucks, because she makes your night better. I will never hesitate to accept an invitation from a friend to go drink at the Big Block. TIP: grab some Za from next door and bring it in.

Great beer, fun group of people and staff. Watch the GPS direction they used to brew at their house so that where the GPS first took us. I then looked it up on Unilocal and found there new place. I wish them the best of luck!

Great beer, great staff and I like the décor of the establishment. These folks make you feel at home every time you enter. Always have a variety of beer to taste and guest taps on hand too.

If you’re ever looking for amazing beer and great conversation I suggest you head over to Big Block. The owner John really knows his stuff and it shows in the quality of his product. Awesome décor too. A must visit whenever you’re in the area. Try the nitro red ale, it will change who you are at your core.

These guys seem to be a light-​hearted bunch out to have as much fun as possible while doing what they love. They’ve grown pretty quickly from a garage operation to a working strip mall brewery with a good-​sized tasting room, full staff, and flat screens showing the game. They have the support of the neighborhood behind them, from what I can see.
GPS routes you through houses on your way here, which might make you wonder for a second if they’ve already moved back into the garage. Nope. They’re right behind the 7 – 11 on the south end of the lake parkway, and their parking lot seems to fill up pretty regularly. There are well over a dozen tables in the taproom, and probably half were taken when we got there. There’s quite a bit of racing memorabilia scattered around, which suits a brewery named after a type of powerful car engine. There are lots of American muscle cars and race cars in photos, models, plaques, and so on, and the tables are custom-​finished with a crossed-​pistons logo. The merchandise case offers t-​shirts that say «this beer isn’t gonna drink itself,» which is the slogan that seems to accompany virtually every Facebook post the brewery has ever made.
They offer about a dozen different house-​made beers. It’s mostly American ale styles – pale, blond, ipa, porter, stout, with a bit of variety thrown in. You see honey, raspberry, chocolate, and other sweet additives pop up here and there on the menu. Their beers are clean and drinkable, but they’re more of the neighborhood brewery variety, rather than the type that will be going for medals at world competitions (they are rightfully proud of their medals from a Washington beer competition).
The prices are fair, and the staff here know how to answer all your questions. If you’re in the neighborhood, it’s a good place to stop in for a cold one. They have a big deck outside which must be nice for a pint in the summer.

Big Block brewery is what a small brewery should be. All their beer is great, they don’t lure you in with gimmicks (has one tv) and is big enough to have a large get together, but quaint enough to meet with friends. If you are a homebrewer this is a place where people will understand the mad science you conduct in the garage. Overall great experience and will be back with peeps. Hope John keeps up the good work and can’t wait to be back with my Dad. I would love to see this place grow and be open to events.

Fabulous beers, great location. These guys started brewing beer in their garage and used to have the tap room set up there. Good news– they grew so much, they had to get a new location! And it’s right near us. Nice, spacious new place with the same great beer and rotating guest taps. Love the theme– old cars! Owners working are always nice, and you see the joy in their face for being able to serve the Sammamish community. Honey Ale is the bomb, and I like the English Ale too. Had a sip of the Bacon Beer so good! No food, but feel free to order from Uncle Si’s next door. Truly feel like Norm walking in this place.

Was looking for a brewery to try that didn’t require me to drive very far from home pand we found this place. It’s in a strip mall and nice inside with a auto theme. Husband had the double IPA and loved it. Staff was SO NICE! Makes a huge difference. Once they get the outside patio finished you won’t be able to get into this place — it’s gonna be so awesome!

Great beer and cool stuff on the walls. The view is amazing and staff are very helpful. Will definitely visit again when in town.

First time here in new location. The beer is really good! They have a large variety for hop heads. Their IPA is solid. And a lot of other styles to sample. The Owner is super friendly. No food served like a typical brewery but there is a pizza place next door. This is a nice treat in a residential area right across the street from the lake.

Attended Block Head Friends gig for very important people. I lucked out as I’m not important. New space on the lake is great. Ambience exceptional (yes ambience in a beer joint). More flavors on tap, lots of room. Put it on the list. The patio will be a top 5 beer garden in Seattle.
BOOM!
# big block