The Spot: Santan Brewing Co. 8 South San Marcos Pl. Chandler, AZ 85225 480-917-8700 www.santanbrewing.com
The Hours: Monday through Friday from 3 till 7pm and reverse happy hour Sunday through Thursday from 9 p.m. till closing time.
The Details: $3.75 18oz pints, $4 house wines and $1 off everything else behind the bar. Plus, a $5 appetizer menu.
The Setting: The brewery is located in a prime corner spot that once upon a time housed a branch of the Valley National Bank. When you first walk in you'll notice the impressive brew tanks on display behind glass. Exposed brick and duct work, and concrete floors give it that nice warehouse feel. Plenty of seating indoors or head out the roll up garage style doors to the fantastic patio. The atmosphere is very laid back with a varied clientele. Classic rock was kept at a nice audible level and a couple of flat screens were strategically placed throughout the bar.
The Cost: 2 Devil's Ales, 2 Shockhops, a chip and dip trio and an order of wings came to a grand total of $27.03. Not bad considering the size of the beers and quality of the food.
The Conclusion: The service was amazing. The hostess was very nice even though it was relatively busy and we quickly found seats at the outside section of the two sided bar. The bartender was quick to introduce herself and even made sure to ask us our names.
The one and only downside was the food was a bit slow to arrive. It was worth the wait and the bartender was very apologetic so we're going to let them slide on this. The chip and dip trio is served with a generous portion of guacamole and a good amount of tri-colored chips. The wings were hot, crispy and had more of a glaze then a sauce. Make sure to give the savory honey barbecue wings a try.
We cannot think of a better way to spend an amazing spring afternoon in downtown Chandler than on the patio of Santan Brewing Co. drinking a pint of beer. Come to think of it, even it if it was pouring rain and we had to sit inside, this would still be the place to be in Chandler.The beers taste clean and crisp; even the Shockhop at 7.1% is refreshing. All of the food looked good and not a single complaint was heard from any of the surrounding tables. Everyone seemed genuinely happy to be there, and when everyone around you is having a good time you can't help but join in.
Overall Grade: A+
