| Address | 800 W. Diamond Ave., Gaithersburg, MD 20878 |
|---|---|
| Hours | Mon-Thu, 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m., Fri-Sat 11:30 a.m.-12 a.m., Sun 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. |
| Phone | (301) 963-4847 |
| Website | http://www.dogfishalehouse.com |
5 for beer, 2 for food. It's all about the beer, people!
Don't come here for culinary delights. It's a bar. Come for the onion rings and fries, which are great, the pizza, which is decent, but mostly for the beer, which is so good it may make you stop noticing that most of the food is only so-so. I was disappointed in the food -- the original Dogfish Head restaurant in Rehoboth was terrific the few times I went, and this did not hold up. But the beer, the beer! The 90 minute IPA will make you happy happy happy, and apparently they're going to be bringing the 120 Minute IPA in within the month (that's a 20% alchol beer, BTW, so be careful with it.)
Though the contents of the menu suggest a TGIFriday's, the food is much higher quality than your standard bar food. The beers are fantastic, which probably goes without saying, and the space is attractive and pleasant. Unlike the previous reviewer, we've found the wings to be perfectly done, spicy and flavorful. The sandwiches are large and full of tasty grilled ingredients, and we've fairly consistently enjoyed the pizza with crabmeat (though on the last visit there was less crab than in the past, when what must be a half-pound of meat has covered the surface of the pizza). The service is sometimes a little less attentive than one might like, but all in all this is a great neighborhood place with great beers and consistent food. We go pretty much weekly.
“It’s beer first, then the food,” says Marty Ryan, co-owner of Dogfish Head Alehouse in Gaithersburg, Md. He’s right. Distinguishing this two-story, suburban bar and restaurant from an Applebee’s or TGI Friday’s is doable thanks to the beer, a Delaware microbrew with a cult following, for good reason. One recent Sunday night, the chicken wings had the right crisp and kick, but were overcooked. The burger, served on wood-grilled focaccia bun, was a tad dry, and the signature dish of this Alehouse’s parent in Rehobeth, De. – a pizza that is “thin, crisp, and chewy” – was merely thin and chewy. The service was uninspired, with servers acting as if they were delivering diet cokes instead of some of the best beers that can be found on the East Coast.
