Stillwell Beer Bar

Not really my cup of tea but a really cool spot none the less.

Love the beer at this place.

Great spot, great beer selection. Can get a little crowded/​loud with the tunes if it’s a bumping night, but all in all a great place to stop in and grab a pint!

My favorite place in Halifax to grab a drink. Especially if that drink is awesome beer. I was downtown for a weekend event and liked Stillwell so much I managed to cram in three trips. Stillwell is a beer geek’s heaven! For any craft brew fan it is MUST try.
Interior is minimalist with dark wood and industrial light fixtures yet there are casual influences to stop it from being too harsh. The focus is the beer from microbrews around NS, PEI and Quebec. I went in the late afternoon and there was plenty of seating but I picked the bar so I could get a close look at taps and get some background on new beers. If there is some hipster pretentiousness I must have been in too early experience it; I certainly didn’t get it from the staff. I found bartenders were friendly and super knowledgeable. With 12 taps, I recommend getting a flight to your go-​to styles and then zeroing in on a pint or two of your favorite. I tried some of the Quebec beers and was damn glad I did. They were unique; each was true to style yet had some individuality. Stillwell was great opportunity to try some of the more distant NS breweries (from Halifax)
The menu is eclectic small bites which compliments the beer. The tried the popcorn, fries and the burger. The Atari fries were obviously handcut and the Japanese-​flavoured mayo was an excellent accompaniment. They came out almost too hot to eat– just the way I like them! The burger less so as I found it small and the way it was packaged made the bun rest in a pool of grease. Soggy buns are sad buns. The popcorn tasted okay but the huge dusting of parm and pepper just slid off the corn and got all over me, the bar and the floor, so on and so on. Perhaps if the popcorn was tossed with the toppings in a bit of olive oil they’d stick to it and I would have enjoyed it more. Even with 2/3’s of the food hits and misses being misses I can’t give this place less than top marks. I mean it is all about the beer experience after all.
My only regret about Stillwell is that I took so long to experience it.

Fantastic beer selection! one of the best in the city, the food is amazing, so much flavor! they really are setting the bar in Halfiax

Great addition to Halifax. A great selection of beers. Love the sours in particular that they stock from Les Trois Mousquetaires, and would like to go back and try one of the Jester King beers that they have available; they’re expensive, but given how hard they are to come by probably not unreasonably so; I was fortunate enough to drink their beer in Texas both in both bottles and at the Jester King farmhouse itself. Kudos to Stillwell for having this kind of thing on offer.
Didn’t personally love all the food (fries and buttermilk chicken), but have tasted some that was superb — the alkaline noodles were awesome.

Fabulous local eatery… great beer and menu selections. Fast service too!

This place is just the best. Great bar snacks, an ever-​changing offering on tap, a great space to meet friends in central downtown Halifax. It’s worth getting there early if you can for after dinner drinks or on the weekend to meet a group. Space is at a premium! If you see a beer that appeals you’d better go for it as once a keg is empty it’ll be changed up for something else. The focus is definitely on the beer, but there’s usually a cider on tap and often several being served at room temperature, depending on the style of the brew. Ask for a sample or advice if you’re not sure. Highly recommended!

After checking into my hotel fairly late in the evening I decided to find some local beer. My hotel receptionist recommended Stillwell so I ventured out in the cold to have some beers. Stillwell did not disappoint. The bar was pretty crowded but I was able to find a small spot at the bar to post up and get some tasters. The selection was awesome, they were probably 16 or so taps and if I am not mistaken pretty much all of them were local or at least Canadian beers. I was able to get a flight of local delicious Canadian beer and each one was something new for me and all were very good. During my visit to the area this was by far the best beer bar I visited. If I was local or if I ever am in Halifax again I will be drinking here again for sure.

Good selection of beers and very tasty food. Food is a bit overpriced but it worth trying it. When I went there was a Sunday night and the place was quite empty, but I’ve heard that Fridays and Saturdays it is pretty busy.
The Staff is very friendly and personal and the background music is not loud to a point that you need to scream to be able to talk over it.

Really enjoyed our time here!
We all ordered the fried chicken as I saw the photos from previous Unilocalers and couldn’t resist but to try it.
It was D E L I C I O U S!!!
Surprised to see a Belgian Kriek on the beer menu so I just had to order it. Kinda pricey at $ 19 per bottle but I truly enjoyed it. Also tried the Belgian ale on tap and that was also vey fresh and flavourful!!!
The only negative is that you have to order at the bar and they’ll bring it out to you…
Super cool interior, cozy and dark. Definitely a hipster joint.
Friendly staff as well!
I highly recommend you trying out this place.

Like most people in Halifax, I like this bar. You could say I love this bar even! Although it’s always packed in here, and loud, I love the look of the place and the snacks are good. What I enjoy the most is the great selection of craft beers they rotate on their taps. Every time I go in, there is always something new that I haven’t tired. New to me anyways, and I like that. I like to be adventurous, if you call ordering a beer you haven’t tried before adventure. Then that’s me! Ms. Adventurous! Although I have a love/​hate relationship with communal seating, in reality I don’t mind it that much. I’ll share if I have to. Most of Stillwells patrons are pretty cool, so you’re most likely sharing your table with a good looking stranger, if not interesting. It’s borderline too cool of a place for me to hang out, but occasionally I can fool the general public and fit it. I’m cool! I swear!
I love sitting by the window because Barrington is one of the busiest streets in Halifax and I like to people watch. Before you call me a creeper, we all do it!

Beer. Bar. If those two words don’t catch your interest — just keep moving.
I love Stillwell. It’s a fabulous place to stop in for a quick pint or a leisurely evening with friends! The atmosphere is great — sometimes it can get really crowded, but it’s great to just slide up to the bar and stand around for a chat with friends.
I’ve munched on a few snacks that friends have ordered and was seriously impressed — that popcorn? Um yes. More please!
The beertenders are very knowledgeable and ready to make suggestions or just talk craft beer. They’ve sampled everything (OMG dream job?!) and know their stuff. If you don’t do beer, they do have wine and spirits, but why wouldn’t you want to try something from their delicious, but varied, selection?!

I like it. They do what they do best. And the food is fantastic. It’s a great place to just hang out with friends even if I find I am not wearing enough plaid to be there ;)

Awesome brews and great food, if I could have a diner burger and Tokyo fried for every meal without feeling like a horrible blob, I would live there. Really great bottle selection and there is always something for everyone on tap. I do kind of wish they had most seasonal selections sometimes (who drinks porter and stout in the summer?) but the rotate the taps so frequently that there is always something new to try.
The biggest problem is that it is always SO busy, but that just speaks to how good Stillwell is. Go early or be ready to stand for a long time, getting a table here is a cutthroat business.
Beer is pretty pricy, but I think that is a strength for Stillwell, if you don’t want to drop more than $ 50 just get a bite and 2 drinks. The price means I am more likely to savour what I do order and leave wanting more.

Great beer selection for reasonable prices. The style is very simple and I loved it. Behind the bar is a blackboard with all the beers and a quick description on it. Friendly staff, great atmosphere. Only reason I’m giving it 4 stars is because of the damn chairs. They have really high tables with really uncomfortable stools. I know they’re going for the simple look but if you want me to hang out in your bar for a couple of hours to drop some good cash, it better be a bit more comfortable.

This is my go-​to spot for anything! Friends from away in town, Stillwell! Friday night drink with the husband, Stillwell! Afterwork drink with colleagues, STILLWELL! Hands down, this is one of my top three places to grab a drink and catch up with friends.
Now, if you don’t drink beer, you may want to look at other great options in the city, but having said that, Stillwell also has wine, spirits, and cider… but why would you want anything other than beer? (that’s my humble opinion).
Not only does the beer selection ROCK, the chicken and popcorn are both single handed, my favourite snacks at any pub/​bar/​gastropub/​wine bar/​cocktail bar in Halifax. Even when I’m not at Stillwell, I sometimes find myself craving these. The popcorn especially.
The staff are incredibly knowledgeable, quick, and attentive. The only downside is space, but it’s hard to work with such a small room but I think they have laid out the room effectively.
I could go on and on about the greatness of Stillwell, but you really need to check it out for yourself… and get the popcorn — you won’t regret it!

What an amazing place! Where to start? It is a cool and chill environment with nice bartenders that do a great job at conversing and engaging their customers.
The beer selection is phenomenal. Local beers that are opened at a minimum quantity in order to maintain freshness. They have great deals on flights and the bartenders are very knowledgeable about what they are serving, which is a plus.
The food. OMG, the food. To start with I had 2 of their oysters which were quite simply orgasmic. Raw black point oysters with freshly grated horseradish and an amazing kimchi purée to put on top; one of the best oysters I’ve ever had. I also has the fried chicken that was on top of a bed of pickled radishes that were to die for. They brine the chicken for 24 hours, which made it super flavorful. The meat was tender and the skin crispy, and they drizzled a honeyed sauce on top that was just the icing on the cake. My boyfriend had the burger that had cheese and the mushroom duxelle; the umami flavor was out of this world. He hates mushrooms but he loved this, and I would probably have eaten two if I were him. We also got the popcorn flavored with brown sugar and chili, and the flavor contrast was dynamite! It’s like eating spicy kettle corn and it was out of this world. I was tempted to have another bowl. To finish off our meal, we had their rhubarb trifle. It had rhubarb compote, lemon crème, and a cookie crumble on the bottom. So delightful and not overly sweet.
If you live in Halifax, you must come here! Definitely a place you can easily spend many hours relaxing and having a great meal.

Recently bereft of any of the big restaurant and bar openings of 2013/​early 2014 (ie. 2 Doors Down, EDNA, Field Guide, Stillwell senior), Halifax was eagerly anticipating Stillwell’s ambitious beer garden that they planned to open up right on Halifax’s boardwalk, and last week that wait ended.
Located directly behind Sackville Place, the Stillwell crew put in a lot of work converting the little amphitheatre to a useable space for a bar. There’s now 20ish picnic tables, although the levels of the amphitheatre still comprises most of their seating. What is probably the most functional shipping container in the city (sorry, I Heart Bikes!) operates as their bar and kitchen. Painted fire engine red, it’s sure to stand out on the boardwalk no matter what the weather is and has a very cool, laser-​cut metal work of their funky logo.
Given the huge capacity of the beer garden, they’re keeping things relatively simple here, with 10 beers available on my visit, written in familiar chalk of course, and three locally-​made sausages for your non-​liquid desires. I thought pretzels were going to be one of their fixtures, so I was a bit disappointed to see them absent, although an empty spot on the menu suggested I may have arrived too late.
There was a cool-​ish day, so we clung to a sliver of light as the sinking sun peeked around the corner of the office building. Seated on one of the lower levels of the amphitheatre, we chatted and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the boardwalk, including an interesting fellow who put his coffee on a railing and then promptly open-​hand slapped it, still filled with coffee, although it luckily went in the opposite direction of us. Given the location here, I think Stillwell will have the double-​edged sword that Fickle Frog has — fantastic people watching, but you’re going to be right in the thick of it for sketchy people as well.
They need to get their garbage/​organics/​recyclables system sorted out a bit better, as there was only one spot where they had the trifecta of disposal containers and many people were throwing the compostable cups in the garbage despite the note next to it saying not to. Also, if you were wondering, «How do I pee here?» the answer is two porto-​potties.
Stillwell showed some great entrepreneurial initiative in approaching the WDC to get the beer garden going, and I look forward to many summer days here enjoying beer, people watching and hopefully a pretzel or two.

I f’ng love this place.
Great sampler beer platters. Homemade burgers gourmet locally sourced ingredients. Awesome service. Have to find a standing or sitting spots but be patient & you’ll share a spot next to new friends. Strike up a conversation.
Try the fancy burger with blue cheese & bacon jam, black pepper parmesan popcorn, fries plate. Love it. New favourite.