On a Wednesday evening in July, my fiance and I found ourselves in the Cranberry area. We found…read morethis place and decided to give it a try, as we had never been before. It is also a non-chain establishment, which is a plus in this area.
Recon Brewing is located within the Meeder neighborhood of Cranberry. It almost feels like you are in the wrong spot when initially entering, but eventually you stumble upon the "town square" area with a big lawn, several storefronts, and lots of sidewalks, which make it very easy to walk to.
Since this is quite literally in the middle of a neighborhood, there is not a dedicated parking lot. However, there are spaces on the street around the entire area where all of the storefronts are. We had no issue finding a spot on this particular night, but I could see it being slightly more challenging if there is a big crowd eating here.
We arrived here a little after 7:30, and it was not busy. Our dog was with us, so we opted for seats on the patio. The wait staff came to greet us right away, and were attentive to us throughout the entire evening.
Since this is a brewery, we started off with a few beers. I had To Live & Rye, which is a red/amber rye. I appreciated this as an option, as a lot of places do not carry reds or red-adjacents, especially on tap. I enjoyed it, and it was a great sipper throughout the evening. My fiance ordered the Sour Series - Plum. He thought it was okay, but could have been more sour. Since they brew a lot of their own selections, these seem to rotate and switch out pretty frequently, which is a good way to be able to try lots of different brews.
For an appetizer, we split the Cheese Curds. The portion, for the price, is okay. They were tasty, and I liked how you could choose whatever dipping sauce you wanted. We chose ranch, and thought it paired well with the curds.
We both ordered 10" Personal Size Pizzas for our entrees, which are cut into 6 pieces. I opted for the Hot Honey, which was more of a white-style pizza with chicken on top and drizzled generously with hot honey. My fiance ordered the Peppers & Sausage, which had red pepper, banana pepper, and chunky pieces of sausage. Both had nice flavors, but we were not particularly wow-ed by either pie. The portion was solid for a personal serving, but if there are multiple people in your party, I would order multiple pizzas.
Our total bill came out to be just under $50. I do not think this is unreasonable given that we got 2 beers, an appetizer, and two entrees. I think that in terms of overall value, this is very standard compared to similar restaurants and breweries.
I loved the ambiance of Recon! If we lived closer to Cranberry, I could see myself coming here weekly, especially when the weather is warm. The patio lights make it such a cozy and warm atmosphere at night. It was not operating during our visit, but there was also a fire pit.
There was a ton of seating here overall - both indoors and out. This would be a great spot to meet a large group of people, or just for a night out for two. There is even bar seating on the interior. I can see this being a great spot for the neighborhood to walk to and enjoy often.
In terms of activity, there seems to be a lot going on at Recon. Though not anything specifically during our visit, there was a chalkboard advertising their regular events - DJ Trivia every Tuesday, Karaoke every other Thursday, as well as special events - a Comedy Show, Patio Party with music and vendors, and DJ Bingo. I would love to return for an event in the future!
Lastly, I love how nice they were to our dog. He got a giant bowl of water with ice in it! The staff and patrons were friendly and welcoming to both us and him, which is a big plus when we bring him along on outings. There was even a donation box inside benefiting the Butler County Humane Society, so I know the treatment of my dog was not an off-chance occurrence.
Overall, I enjoyed my first visit to Recon Brewing at Meeder! This truly is the perfect spot to be able to walk to and socialize with neighbors, grab dinner or a drink, and enjoy the atmosphere and ambiance that they provide. Plus, there are plenty of events and fun activities that seem to be happening regularly to keep patrons coming back. The staff were all kind, and we enjoyed our food and drinks. I look forward to another chance to be able to enjoy Recon, hopefully partaking in one of their many events.