I visited this place last Friday with a large group of about 10+ of co-workers and a few of their kids. The first thing I noticed is the different levels and all the stairs which reminded me of an old factory. I don't think beers and lots of stairs is a good combination. We went upstairs to an area with a large table and TVs. I thought that the speakers sounded unclear and the acoustics were horrible. I didn't bother with the Wi-Fi as I think I needed to sign-up.
We waited at least an hour before ordering so that our whole group could arrive. Our server was extremely patient. She paid attention to us and cleaned up all our messes. Even the server who brought out the food was friendly.
I ordered the 3 Brasseurs burger and fries. It seemed small for $15 as the burger was a little bigger than the palm of my hand and the portion of fries was like that of a Harvey's restaurant. The burger should perhaps be less thick and more spread out with a larger diameter as it is a struggle to bite into. The burger patty was however thick, juicy and flavourful and didn't need condiments. I also asked for no lettuce and I forgot to check at the time, but I didn't see/taste any gouda or bacon. The food was filling enough but I could have used more fries. The 11oz glass of neighbourhood beer had a taste, perhaps a little bitter, that I was not used to but was not too shabby.
I paid by credit card and I thought that tips and percentage are up to the customer but our server automatically entered a tip which I thought was odd practice. I mean she did a good job so I would have left her something descent anyways. During our 2 hours my co-worker accidentally tipped my glass over and it broke, plus my supervisor's kid dropped half a burger patty on floor, and our server cleaned everything up. I wasn't sure if she was trying to save time because we had a large group or if that's normal business practice as she didn't inform me. I calculated that tip to be 18% after taxes (or 20% before). I wasn't charged for the glass that my co-worker broke so I didn't complain, but I always prefer to add the tip amount myself.
In conclusion the food is so so, but normally priced for downtown. The loud atmosphere is not my cup of tea, The staff were great, friendly and did an awesome job. We were initially trying to get a reservation for Jack Astors which wouldn't take one after 5pm on a Friday, but this place did it without any issues.The concept is great as they brew their own beer in-house but the experience just didn't wow me.