Metazoa Brewing Company

We’re visiting on a Saturday afternoon and it is 92°. However, they have a large door open and there’s a wondrous breeze blowing through. The flights are more expensive than other places we’ve visited. I got a Belgian Blond on nitro and the Mr. got a Belgian Dubbel. Liked both.
I love that they have beers on cask and nitro. I love nitro! And in this over-​saturated brewery market, you need something to differentiate yourself. Kudos!

This place was great! I almost don’t want to Unilocal it to keep it a secret. The set up is nice. There is an amazing view of the downtown Indy skyline from their outdoor seating. They love animals and yours are welcomed. The beers were solid! They had a few different beers on tap. The menu felt a little more British or pub style with the brewing. They had a couple of delicious cask beers. Out of the 13 I tried I would easily order and enjoy a pint of the page majority. The cask version of the Ed delicious is one of the best beers I’ve tasted. Can’t wait to visit again!

Visited today for the first time! Love the concept and the taster trays. Not a fan of their nitro beers (sorry). Found the nightfall, Jackaroo, and Kinkajou to be the stars today. No guest beers (a plus in my mind), but they said they’re thinkin of adding guest ciders (smart for those sensitive gluten ppl). No food, but I’m sure clustertruck could help out (shameless plug, I love them!!). Great venue with a sweet view of downtown from their picnic table patio. I’ll definitely be back. The 2 behind the bar were friendly, fast and funny. What’s not to like?

Very cool concept, all beers are to benefit endangered animal or wildlife foundations. The namings of their beers are especially creative. Their logo is a point of contention, however– not a fan. They did go the extra mile and have it engraved into the metal backs of all their chairs, though.
Location is not opportune, but that is from someone who lived downtown– it is still somewhere I walk to. That being said, since it’s opening I have not seen it very crowded. The atmosphere is not divey at all. Indoor and outdoor seating options.
I went to their grand opening and have been to quite a few of their Sunday morning yoga events, they are quite nice. THey did have a live guitarist at opening night, but I’m not sure if that is a staple.

So much to love about my first visit to Metazoa. I was immediately won over by the open layout, which brings the summer weather inside, and the wonderfully friendly and enthusiastic staff. The beers were tasty and there was an impressive variety, including several seasonal options — I may stick to flights for my first few visits so I can try them all! Metazoa doesn’t serve food, but they offer a «grab bag» of snacks like chips and trail mix for $ 1 each. Also, they were hosting a wildlife demonstration by Animalia, so I got to pet a kinkajou mid-​flight. The BEST. Welcome to the neighborhood, Metazoa! I’ll be back to play some board games!

What a great place, and profits go to animal foundations. I had a flight of 6 and there was not one brew that was not amazing! You guys rock! Can not wait to see what all kinds of festivities you guys have here. Big perk that the pups can come inside and out!
Giraffe
Lemur
QB’s Girlfriend
Kuma

I love that Indy is becoming a craft beer oasis! My husband told me about this unique location and how they donate portions of their sales to animal focused charities. After that I had to visit.
When you walk in the space is industrial and open. A cool space with lots of lightning. To the left is a living room style seating with the rest of the space covered in high tops and regular tables.
The tasting bar has plenty of space for folks to talk to the bartenders and ask questions.
When we first walked in we were warmly greeted and the first thing they did was give my dog a treat which she loved. That is what I love about this place — they want you to bring your pups inside with you to enjoy.
We tried the 8 sample flight. Tastes all 6 of their house beers and 2 unique items.
The tasting boards are cut into the shape of animals! I of course had to be the lion .
Kinkajou, Dubbel, and Giraffe Dance were some of my favorite from the house side.
Once you get your flight head over to a table and grab a game. We happened to play battle ship!
For sure this will be a new place for us to stop when we need a cold beer.

Visited for the first time a few weeks ago a few we had great service and great beer! Great weather that day so several people came in with their dogs, and both garage-​style doors were open on the street side and parking lot side so there was a nice breeze coming thru since we sat inside on the comfy leather couches.
The bartender was very helpful too. I told her several different beers that we both liked and told her to choose for us for a flight of 8, and she chose well! Will def come back again.

I love the vibe in this brewery. It reminds me of breweries I’ve visited in Southern California. I went on a nice day and a nice breeze runs through the building. The bar is clean and well kept. The beer selection is decent. The beer I tasted did not blow me away, but I will definitely be back to taste more.
All in all, well worth the stop if you are touring Indianapolis breweries.

Already been here a few times since it opened, Metazoa Brewing has proven to be a popular spot as folks flocked to another downtown brewery. The grand opening was certainly hectic but I was glad to come back to try some beers in a calmer environment.
At grand opening there were 24 beers on tap, which I thought was pretty impressive. Now a month in, there are about 7 house beers and a few seasonals/​specialty. There is enough variety to suit individual preferences and palettes.
The beers I like so far are the Dark Mild and seasonal Porter. The are cask versions of these beers that were also pretty good. I sampled the Midwest IPA and American Pale Ale and they were solid as well, and the Honey Weiss is a drinkable beer for warm weather. I was not as impressed with the Cream Ale and seasonal Hefeweizen. Something is off here with the flavor. The Irish Red was okay.
The taproom is built out pretty well. There are enough seats and tables on the inside, and plenty of outdoor seating on picnic tables. There is certainly room to hold groups events and parties. And the taproom is very dog-​friendly. I saw plenty of pooches during my visits.
So the beers were a bit of mixed bag, but it really just depends on what you like. I think there is plenty of time for Metazoa Brewing to grow into its business, and it serves an underutilized area of downtown.

We stopped in on open weekend and really enjoyed our time. Lots of tables for groups. The handmade tables and chairs were a great detail in the décor.
We tried a flight of beer and happy with the options. The Red Devilicious and Honey Badger were a couple of my favorites. I’m normally a hop head, but the IPA wasn’t my favorite. I plan to do some more research (taste testing) on their beers in the future.

I love that Metazoa has a focus on giving back, it’s always a plus to see this. (For those who don’t know, they donate some of their profits to animal/​wildlife orgs.) The atmosphere of the location is nice, lots of space to sit and stand. While we were there they had a local food truck outside where you could grab some food to enjoy (you can also bring in take-​out or order delivery).
Metazoa offers a variety of flight sizes so you can try as many or few as you would like. In terms of my experience with their beer selection: there were a some brews I enjoyed, some that could’ve been better, and some that I would likely not have again in the future. Wasn’t totally blown away by any of the ones I tried but didn’t absolutely hate any them either. They’re just getting started and I’m sure their beer will continue to get better after they’re brewing for a little while longer. (One downside from our initial visit experience, when we left they filled our growler with a different beer than what we had asked for — did not notice until we got home.)
If you have a dog it’s a great place because they can come inside with you… however, if you have dog allergies it may not be the greatest place to relax (of course, this depends on the day — when we went there were quite a few dogs). Their Instagram account also showed a cat there as well, I’m unsure if you can bring cats with you like you can bring your dog (not that many cats would even like that), but again — if you or someone in your group has severe pet allergies, just be aware of this. :)
***update — Since our growler was inadvertently filled with the wrong brew, Metazoa has offered to refill it with what we had originally requested! A+ on their customer service!

Enjoyed my first visit! The brewery seating area is huge. Big dedicated parking lot. Looks like it’ll have some good outdoor seating once summer arrives. Overall enjoyed the beer. Likely one of the best IPA’s around Indy.
Only negatives — all seasonal beers were tapped out and also no music playing creates an awkward ambience at times.
Will certainly return!

Soooo… 2 stars? Really? Yeah. I’m surprised too. Here’s the deal:
My first trip to Metazoa was great. I loved the Pints + Puppies event. Tried a variety of beer, loved the Kinkajou. The space is great and I love dogs more than anything in the world, so this was a wonderful experience. I intended to write a 5-​star review.
Yesterday I was headed to a birthday party and wanted to grab a growler of beer. I had a few options and was initially going to hit up Two Deep, but I remembered how much I enjoyed Metazoa and opted for it a second time. This was a completely different experience. I really don’t know what was up.
My thoughts were that I could waltz right in and get a growler fill up. 5 minutes tops. Maybe that was wrong of me?
As I stood at the the bar for 15 minutes making eye contact… holding up my credit card… pushing the empty growler closer… I was really confused that no one had acknowledged me. Not a «hello.» Not a head nod.
I’m not trying to be too demanding. I get that sometimes things take awhile. I’m just kinda perplexed why no one had a smile on their face and no one said hello. A bartender walked right up to me, looked me in the eye, I waved my card and nodded… and they walked away.
Thankfully my boyfriend who had been standing right beside me had spoke up with a, «Uh… excuse me? Hi. We haven’t been helped yet???» and we were assisted. Once again, no «hello» or «Sorry about that» at all. Two other couples sitting at the bar were very visibly (and vocally) frustrated.
I really feel bad about giving this 2-​stars because my first experience was great. I think the simple summary is that all of the frustration from every patron could have been completely avoided if a simple «Hey guys! Give me 5 minutes and i’ll be with you.» But the opposite situation was what happened.
The whole thing was just super awkward and confusing. I don’t know. I’ll try again in the future.

Metazoa is a concept that most certainly would be found in a more Portland setting, so happy to see it in Indy.
Though they haven’t been open long, we had a good time here. I’ll be honest that the fact you can bring your dogs in really had me sold. The beer was pretty good; some much better than others. The Dubbel, IPA and Honey Weiss were my favorites.
The flight is a great opportunity to try a good variety of their beers. You can choose 4, 6 or 8.
The atmosphere was good. Lots of dogs, open space and ample patio space come summer.
A portion of each beer goes to animal rescue, also, so what’s not to love. I’m excited to see what this place has in store.

This is a new place, but they have been brewing for a while so the learning curve for making a good beer certainly isn’t as long as it has been for quite a few of the other newer breweries opening up recently. There are quite a few good things going for it, and a few that I would say could be improved upon, but it’s definitely a brewery I will be back to.
It was refreshing that they actually opened with a finished feeling business and a full lineup of beers. Actually, their lineup of beers was surprising. They probably had on 16 or so beers on the Sunday after their opening day. They covered a wide range of styles, so there was likely something that everyone would find that they like. They also set themselves up to expand capacity by quite a bit, as it looks like they have the ability to add quite a few more taps if they need them. They also have 4 cask pulls in addition to that, but they didn’t have anything on yet.
The beers themselves were hit and miss, but mostly hit. I’ve had their stuff at other events as well, and I think they have some that are great and some that could use a little tweaking, but maybe that is just personal taste. I never expect a brewery that does as many styles as they make to do any of them very well, but they had some that surprised. They do offer quite a few options for buying samplers that vary in price depending on how many you want, and they even sell half pints if you don’t want a full beer. Their beer list is up on large TV screens behind the bar, so I imagine they can update them pretty quickly. They had all of the information I look for when going to a brewery, which contains a lot of key info that many places lack. They tell you the style, the ABV, the IBU, the price, and the serving size.
The bar is pretty big, and had a lot of seating around it. The rest of the inside had quite a few tables, and was very open. This would be a good place to bring a group as they can accommodate a large number of people. Their outside area is also very large, and has a bunch of big picnic tables along the front and the parking lot side of the building. They have a nice view of downtown from the seating outside, and it looks like they may have plans to make it a little nicer once they get it all finished up.
At the time we were there, beers were only available by going and ordering at the bar. It looks like they had their ownership doing all of the serving, which makes sense that they would want to be involved in everything on opening day weekend, but they could certainly benefit from hiring some experienced bartenders to take over. Maybe they were just exhausted from a long opening weekend, but serving did not look like anybody’s forte that was behind the bar that day. This was my only real complaint based on my first visit. Oh, and I don’t like how they keep your credit card if you open a tab. Their system of just lining them up on the bar underneath where they are serving and just piling the receipts underneath them makes me uncomfortable. Seems easy to mess up, lose track of, and add a lot of time looking through the row for the right bill each time you order a new beer. I have to think a new place like this has plans to get a better system in place, so hopefully it just wasn’t up and running yet.
This place has a great cause in that they donate 5% of all of their profits to a dozen different wildlife organizations. On top of that, they are also very friendly for animals inside of the brewery. There were a ton of dogs there when I went, and they were welcome both inside and outside on the patio.
It sounds like they have plans to do some work on their parking lot, which is in rough shape now, but they do have a convenient and large parking lot. The actual location, however, is not very convenient for anyone wanting to bike or walk there. There just isn’t as convenient a way to get there from downtown or the surrounding neighborhoods via sidewalks or bike friendly roads as there is for most of the other breweries around the area.
In conclusion, this seems like a good addition to the Indy brewery scene. Their cause is great, they have some good beers, and they offer a wide selection that I haven’t seen matched at any other breweries. They are dog friendly, and have convenient parking. It’s a little inconvenient to get to by bike or on foot, but it’s worth the trip out of the way. Hopefully their service gets better as they actually get operating at a normal pace after their grand opening weekend. Sounds like they have some additional things lined up for this place, so I’ll update as they get more done.

Though this brewery has only been open for about a week and I have only been here once, my experience was as good as it gets for a new brewery.
Not only, were they super busy but they definitely had the staff to accommodate and I did not feel like it was too crowded. The space is very large.
The only thing difficult was the parking and been then there is plenty walkable street parking. (It was Pints and Puppies night)
As for the beer, my first impression, is a good one. There was only one beer I tried that fell flat and that was the Irish Red. I tried four different beers and all the rest were very good. The seasonal which was a smoked Klosch was different than any other beer I’ve had and it definitely was delicious.
First impressions are important and this place will have me coming back soon!

I visited Metazoa for the first time for the Pints and Puppies event. The event and the brewery did not disappoint as there were plenty of Pints AND puppies. If you are an animal lover, and specifically a dog lover, this brewery is for you! The design of the space, the materials used (i.e. Concrete floors, chain-​link fence), and the (dog) friendliness of the staff make this an ideal place to bring your pup for a nice brew on the patio this summer. The large Metazoa logo adorns the far wall of the brewery and can also be found in more subtle details, such as in the chair designs-​nice touch! The names for the beers are very clever and add to the overall style of the brewery and what they stand for. I expect, based on the the turnout for their opening week events that Metazoa will be a strong addition to the neighborhood, and a local favorite for those who have animals or like to support organizations for animals. I was only able to try the Giraffe Dance beer on my first visit, so I am looking forward to visiting again so I can try additional beers. The large TV screens over the bar show three lists: the regular beers on draft, seasonal specialty beers, as well as those on nitro.
My main negative critique/​concern was the lack of good, safe parking. The parking lot next to the brewery is gravel and honestly quite treacherous in places. There was a serious overflow of cars along the road in front of Metazoa. It will be interesting to see how the neighborhood responds to what could be a major issue on busy nights.

Just a quick note on the Pints and Puppies event last night at Metazoa. Amazing location, set-​up and event. I was expecting a small crowd but this place was PACKED! And for good reason! The space is so awesome and I cannot wait for warmer months. I foresee a lot of afternoons on the patio with a beer and a dope view of Indianapolis.
I tried the American IPA and was not disappointed. At $ 5 a pint, its got a great taste for a good price. I love all of the names they’ve come up with for their house specialties. My friend had the blonde ale and seemed to enjoy that as well. I wasn’t able to try a ton of things because of the volume of people there for the event, but I can’t wait to get back in the summer months and grab a flight and hang out! The view from the patio is unbeatable!
Another thing that I thought was really cool was that the president of Metazoa, Dave Worthington, was running around the brewery last night during the chaos, clearing tables and interacting with customers. Just something I took note of.
Don’t sleep on Metazoa because it’s going to be a summer hotspot, that’s for certain. I was so stoked to see such a big crowd out last night on a Tuesday. I’m always amazed at how much Indianapolis rallies behind local businesses. It truly makes this city special :)

This review will have several parts… first the beer, second the atmosphere and finally service. Each played an integral role in my review… especially service and atmosphere.
OK so I was gentle convinced by my run partner to check this place out because it was the hosting brewery of the Brew Ha Ha run that we were looking to participate in. That was a bad idea on OPENING DAY! Busy was an understatement… this place was packed! The lines for beer were long… really patrons just stood and moved as close to the bar as they could as others got their beer.
My friend and I chose the honey weiss, a pale ale and a chocolate banana beer. The pale ale she picked was awesome. It was a clear crisp light beer that had virtually no after taste… the kind of beer you drink on a hot summers night or after a sweaty 5k! The honey weiss was a tad bit heavier, but still easy to drink. It didn’t have the crispness of the first beer. As expected the chocolate banana beer was dark with a hint of bitter undertones… it really wasn’t my type of beer. However if you have a group of friends with different taste in beer, this place definitely has a great selection.
The atmosphere of this brewery was nice. It definitely caters to the laid back working downtown crowd. There are dog biscuits for your 4 legged fury friend that accompanied you to the brewery. There is a spot for a small live band, couches and a huge bar and other seating. Now they also have amazingly large outdoor seating. plenty of park benches to enjoy the warm summer sun or stars and a warm breeze. What it didn’t have and I so wished they did was OUTDOOR HEATERS! These heaters would’ve save many folks unprepared to sit out in the cold from freezing their buns off! So yes not having outdoor heaters was a huge disappointment!
Finally service. Service is crucial to my experience as a patron of any establishment. Being that it was opening day and clearly many people recieved the memo about its grand opening, service took awhile. I understood and waited patiently as was others to get their coveted spot at the bar to get their order. What ruined the experience was realizing that I was being deliberately passed over by the server working my area of the bar. I stood at the bar with my friend waiting for our turn. We both watched as the server took orders from the first, then second customer that had been waiting long before we had reached the bar. We watched as she spilled 2 of the 8 drinks she was passing to the customer. She spilled it on herself… it was busy! But we also stood and watched as she served other customers that had just gotten to the bar. She refused to acknowledge me or my friend. Remember we were shoulder to shoulder with folks pressed at your back… I was pretty sure the people behind me were losing patience. So the server after filling orders for 5 other customers, some who came before but several who came after us proceeds to ask the lady next to us for her order. The lady kindly deferred and advised the server we had waited quite a long time to place our order. It was only then that the server acknowledged us. It was such a sad and almost heart breaking moment. I’m thankful that the other customer spoke up so we could get service. But disappointed by the service recieved.