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    Fretboard Brewing

    4.2 (136 reviews)
    ModerateBreweries
    Closed 3:00 pm - 10:00 PM
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Fretboard Brewing Photos

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    Recommended Reviews - Fretboard Brewing

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    Pretzel Bites - A basket contains small, round pretzel bites with a shiny, brown exterior, accompanied by a cup of cheese dip. To the right, there is a paper tray filled with fried potato wedges. A black fork and a small cup of dark dipping sauce are also visible on the wooden table.
    John S.

    The place was pretty warm inside and had a loud live performance. The food was normal bar food and you just sat anywhere you wanted. Service was great and they were helpful when selecting my flight. I liked this more than the Harrison location but not Hamilton. Hoping to get Factory 52 next!

    A transparent glass mug filled with beer, showing a logo for Fretboard Brewing & Public House on the front. The mug is on a wooden table, with a brewery or pub environment in the background. The beer has a light amber color with a thin foam head. The logo features a hop cone with a stylized fretboard design, indicating the brewery's musical theme.
    John M.

    Decided to stay outside Cincinnati for a night as we made our way to Lexington and found this true gem. Located in a small industrial area,the brewery has a musical theme. Great decor,plenty of parking and food is available by Smoked Out Cincy BBQ. Picnic bench type seating. Tried their lager Acoustic which was only 4.0ABV and it was light and refreshing. A pint cost 6.00. They do have Beer To Go. They have recurring weekly events such as Trivia night,Open Mic and Live Music. We went on a Friday night and there was a live band that was great. They did not charge a cover but I'm not sure if this is always the case. For a fun and relaxing evening, I would strongly suggest a visit to Fretboard!

    CarolAnn G.

    Great food selections. Very knowledgeable bar staff and fun ambiance. I decided to try the flight and the bar staff was very helpful in me making my decision. All our food was good - pulled pork, Turk sandwich and salad with salmon. We need to come back in the evening when a band is playing. We came on a Sunday and they had a pop-up boutique supporting women owned businesses- very nice!!

    people at the bar
    Annette M.

    This creative themed craft brew pub was such a fun place to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. The Latin band kept a percussive beat going so people danced, laughed and still it wasn't too loud to have conversation. Even the staff seemed to enjoy the music while giving attentive service and keeping things clean. Food is provided at an order window by Smoked Out Cincy. We will keep this place in mind next time we are in town.

    Chelsea K.

    The beer is absolutely delicious! Tried a western coast IPA and a Hefewizen. Both were high quality. The bartender was friendly and informative. The atmosphere was a total VIBE!!! The best Playlist I have heard in awhile. Nothing felt crowded or pretentious. Very industrial yet somehow cozy? Absolutely loved it! Wish I lived here so I could become a regular

    Flying pig sandwich with fries in the background - The image shows a table at Fretboard Brewing with a loaded sandwich topped with barbecue sauce and a bun, alongside a side of fries covered with cheese and green onions. There are two glasses of beer, one with a lime wedge, and small containers of dipping sauce. In the background, two people are seated at another table, and the setting appears to be a casual brewery environment with wooden floors and chairs.
    Sam U.

    I will disclose that I was definitely feeling my pre-brewery margaritas while we were here, but that being said, I was very impressed. The beers I tasted were great, especially the Peso and the Wah-wah. The greatest highlight however was the food. I ordered the flying pig sandwich and we got pretzel bites and fries for the table. All were incredible. The pretzel bites hit different and I know for a fact I looked like an animal shoving every last shred of bbq pork into my mouth but I regret nothing. We will definitely be back, hopefully soon.

    Large Mac and cheese - A white bowl filled with macaroni and cheese, coated in a creamy yellow cheese sauce, is positioned on a wooden tray. The background shows part of a person wearing a plaid shirt and a dark countertop, indicating a casual dining environment.
    Danielle C.

    I love me a location that has giant garage doors so that you still get the outside air and breeze on a nice day. Everyone really enjoyed their beers and the margarita was pretty good. The restaurant inside, Smoked Out, was really good and had generous portions. I was really disappointed in their lack of sours and/or ciders but it was still a pleasant experience.

    Taproom at Fretboard
    Chris B.

    Very good selection of brews . We're sharing pints of new release Grateful Spinner IPA and Bootsy IPA . They have bands on select nights. They also have a selection of cans to take home. Plenty of parking. Check it out!

    Pulled pork and grapefruit IPA.
    Kim S.

    Super! Had the grapefruit IPA and hubs had the Trey Amber. Both great beers and great bbq!! Glad we stppped.

    Main room.  Very open.  Several TV screen that always have sports on. - The image shows a large indoor space, likely a bar or brewery, filled with many people seated at tables and standing. The ceiling has an industrial look with exposed beams and pipes. Multiple TV screens display sports content. The space includes a bar area with staff serving drinks, and the decor features barrels and industrial lighting. The atmosphere appears lively and social.
    Nathan M.

    Short Summary: Who comes here? The place skews middle age and older. You'll find families with kids earlier in the evening. Parking? Generally plenty and easy access from the street. Beer? 20-25 on tap, all brewed in house, with a few award winners. Food? Yes, solid BBQ based bar food (no burgers or pizza). Mostly fried stuff. Venue? Open in door seating with sports on TV. Outdoor seating is somewhat temporary with it being in a repurposed parking lot. What makes it unique? Live bands and a decent stage. More elaboration. Cincinnati has dozens upon dozens of brew pubs strewn across the city. Fretboard is one of the few in a short circle from out house (others are MPH, March First, and Sonder). One thing we particularly like is they have some great drinkable Pilsner/Kolsch style beers. Of course they have the dark stuff and other trendy ones, but for most days I just want a nice cold one Also, we often come to hear the bands play on a real stage and with sound mixing. The bands are all over the place in genre, but it is this variety we like. They are normally local to regional bands. The food is pretty good bar food. It centers are smoked BBQ and associated fried foods. They do make pork rinds which is pretty unique.

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    9 months ago

    Food and service was great and our reunion went very well. It has lots of room for old people to move around and enjoy themselves.

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    3 years ago

    Cute place with good food. Loved the pulled pork and mac and cheese. Nice party room area that can be rented out.

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    Page 1 of 4

    Ask the Community - Fretboard Brewing

    Do they have anything else to drink besides beer?

    Canned soda and water.

    Busy on Saturday nights?

    Sometimes, but the parking lot is full because people are still waiting on their check.

    Do they offer reservations or call ahead seating? Or first come first serve?

    As always with these type of questions, I recommend calling the business first. That being said, I have been there when company parties have a private section roped off for the group. I am sure this is arranged beforehand. Depending on your group… Read more

    Do you accept dogs?

    Hi Chase, we have an in-house food provider so unfortunately we can not allow dogs.

    It says no kids in the tap room after 8pm. Is there another room for families or is the venue completely closed to children after 8pm? What is the age range on children?

    Is the brewery dog friendly?

    Not likely, since they serve food and there's no outdoor seating.

    Any gluten free drink options?

    I don't think they offer anything gluten free unless they have a guest tap of a cider. I do know that March First (just a few minutes north of Fretboard) has a lot of ciders which should be gluten free.

    Other than BBQ what is on their menu? Can't find one of the food posted online.

    Smoked Out is the restaurant inside Fretboard, they offer pulled pork, pulled chicken, brisket and a black bean burger. Limited menu. I uploaded a photo from their FB page for you.

    View All 9 Questions

    Review Highlights - Fretboard Brewing

    I think our favorite overall was the Fugee though, which tasted like liquified French toast topped with maple syrup.

    Mentioned in 7 reviews

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    Voodoo Brewing

    Voodoo Brewing

    (97 reviews)

    $$

    Downtown

    Stopped in recently for dinner after a Bengals game and had a great time. If you're leaving the…read morestadium area it's a 20 minute walk with some uphill, but well worth the trek to get ahead of the crowds. The bars near the stadium were mobbed. The seating is family style with long tables. You can order via QR codes (meh) or walk up to the side of the bar for food and drink. The manager came around and introduced himself to everyone and was all over the place. Helping in the kitchen, bar, cleaning up etc.. He's definitely an asset because he didn't disappear as the rush started coming in. The inside is nicely decorated and I was digging their Voodoo/skull theme. We settled in and watched the 4pm NFL game on one of the large TV's while chatting with some disappointed Bengals fans and locals. Beer wise they had a nice selection of classic Voodoo brews (we used to get them a lot in the Philly area several years ago), a balance of styles and some newer brews I'd never heard of. If you enjoy the dark side of beer the Where Our Secrets Go Imperial Stout was delicious and thankfully more along the lines of the traditional style Impy Stout. I had an IPA that I can't remember the name of, but it had a nice Belgian yeast/hop twist to it. My son enjoyed their root beer. Food wise the Jumbo Chicken Wings, roasted in house hit the spot, I highly recommend them. I added their Good Vibes BBQ "Sawce", but you can get them dry rubbed or chose from several other "Sawces". The wings were big with fresh meat and the sauce was great. The Pub pretzel we ordered was huge and the good vibes beer cheese complimented it well. The Mr. Pickles Fried Pickles were also a great choice for an app. They were a big portion. My friend had the Chili Mac and my son ordered the Lil Mashburgers - 2 little smashburgers oozing with cheddar & chippies off the kids menu. We ate, had a couple of beers and enjoyed our dinner at Voodoo before we explored more of downtown Cincy. I'll be honest I wanted to avoid BrewDog and Voodoo and experience home grown Cincinnati breweries, but we were really happy we stopped at Voodoo. Thanks guys you earned a fourth star for great friendly service from the manager and bartenders!!

    It wasn't great, it wasn't bad. We got the beer cheese queso, some wings, and fries. The beer…read morecheese wasn't great, the chips were a little stale. We ordered extra hot wings, and the sauce was great but to make it "extra hot" they just added a metric ton of hot pepper or some hot seasoning, and it was nearly inedible. They were extremely over sauced. The fries were okay. My dry rub wings were good. It's basically self serve, you order on the website via QR code. They brought our food all at once due to that, to include the appetizer. Service was quick but we only saw our "waiter" once to deliver our food. If we had needed refills, we wouldn't have gotten them. We didn't even get silverware and only got one appetizer plate. The ambiance was nice, it's a great looking facility. I probably won't be back though, unfortunately. Just not great enough to bother going again. We did have one beer off the draft list that was good. The dragons milk.

    BrewDog Cincinnati - The preview of the front of the brewery

    BrewDog Cincinnati

    (189 reviews)

    $$

    Over-the-Rhine

    After striking out at Braxton down the street (Closed on a football Sunday for an event wtf?) we…read morewent to BrewDog. The layout was pretty typical for them albeit on a smaller scale than their locations in Las Vegas and Columbus. Several bar areas, a gaming mezzanine, couches, art on the walls and a roof deck (wasn't open when we visited). The large L shaped bar was clean and manned by a nice fellow. We headed up to the mezzanine and played some games while watching the 4pm game on their big screens. Food wise - we didn't eat here, but I can tell you from past BrewDog experiences their wings are always on point. Beer wise - They had a good mix on their 24 or so taps - IPA/Pale Ales (8 on tap), ciders (4), stouts & dark beers (3), lagers & pilsner (2), sour & fruit-based (2) and five beers for a community beer festival that was running that weekend. $1 of every pint poured went to charity. I had a Winter Staycation at 7.5% - our seasonal stout that brings rich pecan and sweet toffee flavors right to your glass. Every sip is a warming blend of nostalgia and bold flavors, crafted to remind you of the comforts of the season. If you loved last year's cozy winter release, this one's sure to feel right at home. It was average with sweet pecan flavors, caramel, vanilla, toffee and tasted malts. Drank like a porter. It was OK which is what most of their beers are. Just above average in my humble opinion. From my experiences between BrewDog and Voodoo, it seems the outsiders are better options than the local breweries (except Northern Row they were good) in Cincinnati. Can't go wrong with visiting this BrewDog. Thanks guys!

    We had a great pre-concert experience at this location! Service was great! Elvis juice is always…read morehittin! Honey adobo wings is straight gas!

    MadTree Brewing - 2025 Oakley Taproom Patio - Cincinnati Brewery

    MadTree Brewing

    (689 reviews)

    $$

    Oakley

    MadTree had my heart, and there's no other way to say it. This is my parents' and my go-to spot…read morewhen they visit to hang out with some good drinks and food. We absolutely love their nachos and, of course, their variety of drinks. Their nachos were perfectly cheesy, and the guac on top adds the nicest flavor and oomph to the massive tray. For drinks, I tried the new 'Cincitucky' trail lager. It was super smooth and a nice, easy drink, definitely recommend if you're into similar drinks like Rhinegeist's Cincy Light. I think the atmosphere and the vibes are what keep me coming back to MadTree again and again. It is so warm, welcoming, and lively in there. The space is big and perfect to chat amongst others or watch whatever game is going on at the time. It is also so perfect for families and fluffy friends.

    My partner and I came here for trivia the other night. We both got beers and ordered some wings and…read morea cheese pizza to split. Overall this place is cool. It's got a huge inside with long tables and a large bar, plenty of space for large groups. Outside is even bigger, with plenty of tables of all sizes for any group. We sat outside to hear the trivia better and enjoy the pleasant evening. You order your drinks at the bar and your food through a QR code on the table you're sitting at. This process was nice, as we didn't have to track anyone down or stare at a menu while trying to order with a line behind us. We got our beers from a friendly bartender, sat, and took our time scrolling through the menu. Our food came together, which was strange as we expected the wing appetizer to come first. The pizza was awesome! The cheese blend reminds me a lot of costcos. The wings were just okay. Maybe I am not a buffalo person, but overall they did not have much flavor. Next time we'll try something else. Prices can add up, but it is nothing crazy compared to places around town. If you want a nice evening with good drinks, good atmosphere, and good food, I'd recommend here.

    Listermann Brewing - Wine making class

    Listermann Brewing

    (152 reviews)

    $$

    We had a really fun evening at Listermann Brewing Company's beer and cheese pairing event. The…read morepairing of four of their beers with Urban Stead Cheese Company had been thoughtfully chosen. A representative from both the Listermann and Urban Stead gave us some background on their businesses and then talked a little about each offering. We enjoyed all of the beers, but Chickow!, a Double Brown Ale with Hazelnut, was definitely our favorite. Hubby even bought some cans to bring home! Their restaurant is closed on Tuesdays, so perhaps we'll go back on another day of the week next time to check them out as well.

    One of my favorite activities when traveling with friends of like mind is some beer tourism. This…read morewas our first spot in Cincinnati. We had hoped for food, but the business that does food in the building is another company and they were out for spring break. So sad. ;-) The brewery has a nice vibe to it. There is a small taproom with a much larger Oktoberfest styled hall (meaning large community tables). There are plugs here if you work remote, although I would NEVER do that. :P The beers are not the best I had in Cincy, but they are above the average in Cincy, so it is definitely above average. It is also a well-known, stable brewery. I understand Listermann recently sold the spot, so it will be interesting to see if there are changes going forward. The board is a bit heavy at this point, with quite a few brews over 10%. My feelings on the beers? The IPAs are decent, but they shine brightly with their stouts and pastry sours. The blackberry cobbler sour (12%) and Forbidden Imperial Stout got my top marks. Would love to return and see how the food is here, but spring break worked against me. If you go through my profile, you will find I have a couple of hidden gems we found on our trek.

    Fretboard Brewing - breweries - Updated May 2026

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