Brew City Grill

Upbeat and vibrant, with an overwhelming beer menu

by Dawn Keable

2299 Post Road, Warwick
732-9533
Open Mon-Fri, 4 p.m.-midnight
Sat and Sun, noon-midnight
Major credit cards
Sidewalk access

Don't even think of going to Brew City Grill unless you have on your dancing shoes and your party hat. The restaurant vibrates with high energy -- literally. There's a dance club downstairs called Bell Bottoms, and its powerful sound system was pumping the bass through the floorboards early on the Friday evening we visited. No worry. Andre, my boyfriend, welcomed the pulsating rhythms as a free, end-of-the-week foot massage. I had to talk fast to convince him to keep his shoes on.

Along with the music, the casual main dining area here is colorfully upbeat. Large picture post cards decorate the bright yellow and green walls. On our table, an assortment of crayons invited us to decorate the tablecloth of brown paper. (We drew a great stick people epic.)

If this weren't enough to occupy us between courses, several TV sets were anchored to the corners of the room near the ceiling. (That's where Andre tearfully learned, on a set tuned to ESPN, that Dana Stubblefield was resigning from the 49ers. See what I have to put up with?) And separating the bar area from the restaurant space were video games and a pool table.

Brew City has a separate menu just for its beers, and the list is so long that Andre was overwhelmed by the choices and had to settle instead for a familiar rum and coke ($3.50). (Actually, he's not really much of a beer drinker, but it makes him seem more masculine and American to describe himself this way.) His drink was served in a full-size glass that was bigger than my water glass, I think. The blend was so good, he sipped on a second.

After this, we upped the testosterone level a bit with our appetizer -- "Macho Nacho" ($5.95). The dish was accurately named. We could have used at least two more manly appetites to help us finish it, and Andre estimated that there was at least a bag and a half of tortilla chips on the platter. Baked to a perfect crispness, these were topped with a variety of traditional nacho flavors -- jalapeño peppers, black olives, scallions, tomatoes, Monterey Jack cheese, salsa, and sour cream.

Unloosening our belts a notch, we were ready to take on our small garden salads ($1.95). Andre's was included in the price of his meal, but mine was a side order whose freshness and flavor made it an incredible value. Crisp iceberg and romaine lettuce tossed with green bell peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, mushrooms, crunchy extra-large croutons, and shredded cheese. I wanted a refill.

For the main course, Andre chose "Steak Philly Stir Fry" ($6.95), a plateful of tender steak tips still juicy from the wine marinade they'd been soaked in. Mixed in with a side of carrots, broccoli, and snap peas were three types of beans (kidney, navy and chick peas) that gave the buttery vegetables a creative edge. Andre was reveling in his good choice.

I went with the seven-inch, personal-size "Tuscany" brick oven pizza ($4.95). Its crispy crust was just thick enough to hold the delicious pesto, seasoned spinach, and chunks of tomato piled high on it. Topped with both Cheddar and Mozzarella, the pizza was extra-cheesy as well, just the way I like it. And with four slices, it was the perfect amount for one person to feel satiated but not overly stuffed. (Especially for someone like me, who has no self-control.) Pizzas also can be ordered in bigger 14-inch sizes, but we already had enough nachos alone to fill the back seat of our car.

I'm not sure how to break it to you, but Brew City does not serve dessert. Nope, none at all. But look on the bright side -- why would you want to bog yourself down with the extra calories? It would just slow you down when you head downstairs to shake your groove thang.