| rev:text
| - I was really excited when the Coopers Tavern opened, but after a few visits, I'm a touch underwhelmed. However, they still have fairly good food and beers at a convenient location (with a beautiful view of the Capitol, I might add), so while I don't crave it, I'll probably return for beers and a bit every now and then.
The interior is really small, crowded, and loud. I purposely avoid the place when they have live Irish music because it's completely deafening and makes it impossible to talk to anyone. There's often a line on busy nights, and there isn't much room inside for it to grow, so I avoid it more during the winter. In the spring and summer, there's a large, pleasant outdoor patio, which is a significantly more enjoyable area to have a meal and drinks. The bathrooms are clean and well-stocked. If you're going with a group of friends, see if you can use the snug; it's like a tiny bar-within-a-bar that's walled-in and much quieter with seating for up to about 8 people. There's a tiny window that opens onto the bar, making it really easy to place drink orders with a bartender. It's a much more pleasant experience. I notice that their website says they've opened up the second floor Thursday-Saturday 4:30-midnight when there isn't a private event, so maybe this will help with the crowding and noise issues.
The staff is friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable about the menu. They're prompt and attentive, and make sure to check that you're enjoying your food and drinks. Nothing but kudos all around for those guys.
The tap beer list is seasonally rotated and extensive; it's full of great beers from local microbreweries as well as some other not-so-local yet delicious beers. The bottle beer list is as long as my arm and full of some fantastic choices. I haven't had wine or mixed drinks here, though; the beer selection is always too tempting to pass up. The food is really hit-or-miss. The Belgian frites with malt vinegar aioli are crispy and hot with a good hit of salt, and the aioli is a perfect compliment of acidity with a smooth edge. The poutine, although very salty, is a great winter dish, but far too heavy for a summer evening. The roasted bone marrow is extremely rich. The overriding taste is just pure fattiness. I like fat as much as the next person, but I had to ask for more bread because it's difficult to eat in large quantities at once. It works better as a shared dish. The mussels du jour are a crap shoot, since they are prepared differently every day. I steer clear of the days when they're steamed in beer (especially Guinness), because they taste extremely sour to me. They used to also have a chips and chicken curry plate, which I loved, but it seems to have been taken off the menu.
Overall, if I'm in the area and it isn't too busy, it's worth the occasional stop, but with so many other good restaurants in the vicinity, it's definitely not an overriding favorite.
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