There is lots to love here, but also lots that is just average. The building is awesome. Right in downtown Urbana. A long wood bar with booths along the perimeter. Tiled floors, and a great worn in pub feel. The service is friendly and they know the menu. Food and beer come out relatively quickly.
The beer selection is nice. About 8 rotating taps of quality micros from around the nation and some Belgians as well. They also have a rotating cask which is great. Plenty of bottles as well. I enjoyed Summit Oatmeal Stout on cask.
All fine and good, but the food left something to be desired for me. I wanted the burnt ends sandwich. They were out, that is not a problem at all. It is great that they can go through the good stuff like that. I ended up with a half rack of pork spare ribs. The ribs are very good. I did enjoy them, but not great. I do not like the BBQ sauce at all. it is like a tomato paste, almost marinara like. The sides are crap though. Mac and cheese seemed like it was sitting out forever. Similar to old mac and cheese that has been sitting out and hardened for hours after Christmas diner. The slaw seemed almost rancid. I could not eat it. Luckily I did not get a sandwich that would have been covered in it.
Overall, I really wanted to love this place. The meat is very good though not great, and got to love the beer selection. As well as a very nice Bourbon selection. Though overall, I think the reviews here are a bit of a home town bias. I will continue to support these guys, but not up to the hype I had been expecting.