BrewDog, Aberdeen

So here I am in Aberdeen's reopened Brewdog (there are others in the city which remain closed, probably never to return). It's buzzing, despite the doors only having opened in the last week. Mind you, it's Saturday evening, and everyone's out tonight. Reservations are taken, which entails a regular shift to another table for another 10 minutes of drinking. There's not a huge range listed on the screens and the usual pricing policy prevails. As is customary, the staff are top-notch, but they really could do with one or two more of them behind the bar. In summary: it's a Brewdog. You either like them or you don't. This one's not so bad, though the first Saturday after its return probably isn't the best time to reach a conclusion.

Amusingly located a stone's throw from the Spoons, it felt only right to call in seeing as I was in Aberdeen. To be fair, it's a decent conversion of a nice old building. One long narrow room inside with padded booth and bench seating at either end and high fixed tables running down the centre, the usual quasi-industrial stylings but less grim than some of their other outlets. I counted 22 taps as well as a refrigeration unit stocked with products. My first choice of Jet Black was being changed so I plumped for 5AM Saint at £2.35 for a half. Unfortunately it only served to remind me just how pale an imitation this beer now is compared to the cask version a few years ago. Staff were friendly and if you have deep pockets and a desire to show-off, this would be the place for you. There’s also a late-opening bar called Underdog downstairs.

This fairly large Brewdog bar in the centre of their home city might well be viewed as their showpiece, boasting nice views out across to some of the finest buildings in town. The pub has a wide but fairly shallow interior with the servery along the left hand section of the rear wall. The room is bare boarded with high long tables and benches through the centre and some super-comfy padded banquettes along the front wall. The right hand side of the room looks like it has been set up more with diners in mind and has some nice button backed banquettes serving a variety of tables, some of which had been reserved. The bar has a no frills counter and big beer boards on the bar back with letterset lists of the available range, rather than the cinema-style boards seen across much of the chain. A big set of fridges to the right of the bar was well stocked with craft bottles and cans for drinking in or off-sales it would seem. The general feel is of a slightly warmer, cosier version of their industrial-style décor, with big exposed girders running around the undressed ceiling, but smart furniture and attractive muted lighting softening the impact somewhat. There’s not a great deal of visual distraction on show – the only thing that caught my eye was a big neon sign that read “Aberdeen, Berlin, Tokyo, Barcelona”. An indie soundtrack played throughout my visit and was quite good for the most part, whilst a fair few punters were enjoying food on this post-work hours visit. I think I counted fifteen Brewdog beers on the big beer boards plus a further eight guests, mostly served from a row of taps on the bar back. I had a drop of the Brewdog Vagabond which didn’t really do much for me and was priced using the chain’s, by now familiar, confusing pricing strategy. Of the two Brewdog bars in Aberdeen, this one seemed to be the one where all the investment went, creating a comfy and quite pleasant space with great views in which to sample from an extensive range. I liked it in here but still felt something was missing which I couldn’t quite put my finger on.