The Ginger Man (Austin)

July 30, 2008
Cool atmosphere with a dimly lit interior and nice wooden floors and a long bar with tons of taps. Not the cheapest place in town to grab a pint, but definitely a fantastic selection, and one of the few places in town to get cask beer. (usually Elissa IPA). Dart board up front and some couches strewn about for comfy lounging. Also nice patio seating out back. Definitely my favorite downtown spot for beer and a stark contrast from most bars in the area.

March 6, 2008
A cool downtown place to meet friends and hang out. Not the quietest or cleanest place on earth - but pretty decent. Nice selection of beer, local and not. Overall, I usually don’t like downtown bars - but this one may be the exception. Hip dirty couches in the corner to sit and drink. The people who frequent this bar aren’t necessarily the most enjoyable aspect - but I went for beer - not conversations.

June 12, 2007
Good pub, not the same feel as the Houston location. Good ambiance and decent crowd. Beer selection is very nice and is close to other spots if you are so inclined...but I’d just stay here.

March 8, 2007
By far, my favorite pub in Austin. Although often crowded, this is an establishment that embraces blue jean beer-nerds with open arms. I truly enjoy the ambiance, with its relaxed atmosphere and casual style. Play some darts, sit in a comfortable chair, enjoy a good conversation with a friend, or take a book from the shelf and have yourself a read. It all makes for a good time. It can be a bit pricey, but if you factor in that most of the college crowd skips this place for Sixth Street, it’s well worth it. While I have not been to other Gingerman locations nationwide, I highly recommend this to out-of-towners wanting to catch up with old friends, or old friends wanting to catch up on some good pints.

February 1, 2007
I had one night to spend in Austin, I knew I must visit Gingerman, and I was happy I did. This was a great place to get a glimpse of the Texas craft brewing scene, both by scanning the beer menu and talking to the bartender and several very friendly and knowledgeable patrons. The bar was long and a substantial brass back-bar punctuated with taps stacked about three high. There were maybe 80 taps in total (+1 beer engine) with a great selection of local beers from St. Arnold, Live Oak, and Full Moon. Decor was of heavly varnished wood. I didn’t find the place to be too smokey. I found a seat at the bar, saw a rye beer on the menu of interest (Full Moon Pale Rye), and got my beer right as the bar started to get really busy (particularly for a Tuesday). I started chatting with the guy on my right ("Tim") who was a resident and had an interest in Texas brewing. He and another patron ("Eric") chatted with me during the duration of my visit to Ginger Man had a couple of good beer recommendations, which made my visit very pleasant. The bartender was also pretty helpful and conversant with Tim, Eric, and I about local beers, particularly given how busy the place was. Tuesday was "Texas beer night," so all my Texas brewery drafts were $3. I was impressed! I was very happy with my visit to Ginger Man.

September 16, 2006
A fun place, a tad on the pricey side, but the service was very good and personable. Food choices were limited but we had no problem about it.

April 17, 2006
went with some dutch party animals and me mum...had a delicous pint of real ale coffee porter. that alone makes me giddy...nice mellow place at 1pm on a weekday...real chill, comfortable seats, and a ample selection of booze!!

December 13, 2005 [ Updated November 28, 2007 ]
I visited two times in December of 2005. Taps included: Real Ale Coffee Porter, Maredsous 8, Live Oak Liberation, St. Arnold Christmas, DeKonnick, Dupont Moinette, Kwak, Triple Karmeliet, Real Ale Full Moon Pale Rye, Scaldis, Delerium Noel, Aventinus, New Belgium Two Below, Live Oak Pilz and Hefe-Weizen, Independence Pale Ale, Stone IPA, Sierra Nevada Harvest, and they just ran out of Urthel Quad. Scaldis & Delerium Noel on tap is not common! Additionally, it’s non-smoking (unlike the Houston location which didn’t have such a great selection). Probably the best beer bar in Texas and possibly in the top 10 or 20 in the U.S. Big focus on offering the best local micros. Long bar, some sofas, high ceilings, fun bar ambience. Minimal food options but tasty empanadas. Lots of other choices very close. Busy downtown area without much free parking, around the corner from the former Bitter End (the B-Side is still there and had Bitter End’s great Whiskey Stout on tap). Overall a top notch place well worth visiting over and over again!!

September 3, 2005
Oh, my, God! I love this place and hope to go back again and again and again. The copper covered wall filled with beer taps is truly amazing! Very dark, but nice place to visit and drink beer with a group of friends.

June 11, 2005
Not impressed yet not unimpressed...seemed like most other ginger man locations...old tavern feel...great selection but the beers really are overpriced...$18/btl La Terrible for example...the pizza definately sucked...