Bube’s Brewery

Very interesting place, great food and wonderful service!

Bleck! Cobwebs, dust and unswept floors — I know try call it the catacombs but this is not kitschy its gross. The service takes forever and the food tastes like microwaved plastic. Don’t bother. I’m sure this place used to be unique– But eating in a dusty cave or a rusty beer garten isn’t cute it’s played out.

Eating in a tunnel with so much history — 5 stars, Quality of service and taste of the food — 1 star. Yes, it is pronounced «Boobies», named after the guy who started this really cool brewery and speakeasy in the tunnels of Mt. Joy. Restaurant is definitely struggling. Wait staff always seemed distracted despite only a few tables that were occupied. Food was really generic and bland which made the prices a bit amusing. Tip: If you are interested in the history take the tour, but if you are looking for a good meal, eat somewhere else.

Went ½/​16 for our birthdays. Had a 715 reservation. We got there early so we had a drink at the bar. Staff was very attentive upon our arrival. At about 710 our hostess came to get us at the bar and led us on a short but informative tour. Our catacomb table was very romantic (just know it’s an old cave so floors are not level). Our servers were quick to take our order. We each had a glass of wine, salad, pretzels with dip, and fresh hot bread. I had the Seafood Mornay, and the Fiancé had Chicken. Both were pretty good. We shared a cheesecake and 2 coffees. The bill was $ 98.00. Which I think was pretty fair for our special night. I would recommend going to the catacombs if you are in the area.

First and foremost, Bube’s has decent home-​brew beer on a rotational basis. Plus, the other taps have solid favorites, and I was happily surprised to see a Kronenbourg 1664 blance on tap. The bartender this Saturday afternoon was as sassy as they get, and that’s fine by me. Now, my co-pilot’s burger made him happy. Me, well, the ruben was a bit of an issue that I honestly didn’t realize until I was finished: there was no kraut on it! How can you make a ruben w/​out kraut? The break, pumpernickel was nice, the corned beef was decent, however, it was overly greasy and add the no kraut issue and overall it was just OK as rubens go. This was frankly the first time in years passing through Mt. Joy that I’ve eaten at Bubes – I have always stopped in the past for a hit-​and-​run beer. So, based on my food experience, I may keep the hit-​and-​run beer tradition alive and satisfy my hunger elsewhere.

It was okay overall. Only four beers on tap and the food was mediocre.

Go. To. A. Feast.
Their themed feasts are such a blast, it’s a wonderful time. I went to the Halloween feast and loved it, I’ll defiantly go to more. I love how the actors don’t break character, it’s really hard to improv well and they do a great job.
Don’t go if you’re uncomfortable with sexual jokes or human interaction. I was seated next to a very conservative couple who were visibly uncomfortable by the vampiress’s flirt-​y acting. And, you will have to interact with those seated around you, so come with conversation
The food was pretty good: a solid «that food was satisfying» feeling afterwards. The bartender made an EXCELLENT Bloody Mary as well.
The building is gorgeous; I saw another reviewer say it’s dirty but I disagree. Perhaps rustic. It’s certainly not modern looking, but it’s not dirty.
I can’t really speak to the normal food, though if what the serve at the feasts is equivalent to their everyday menu, it should be on the high side of average.

Bube’s is repulsive. The food is less than mediocre, it’s filthy inside and the wait staff is a joke. Don’t ever go here!!!

We just left there. The place is cool. We did not read the reviews before we went, all I knew about it was that it was a brewery and it had man-​made, underground caves that you could eat in.
The outside is gorgeous. The inside is old and amazing too. Rocks, slanted walkways, old steps… ummm yes… the building is like from 1850. It is awesome.
We had reservations for 7:30 and we ate in the catacombs. We had all three beers that the brewery is currently brewing and they were delicious. A saison and two dark beers (a lager I think and the other one I’m not sure, my boyfriend drank those). The drinks came fast too.
The food was good, like pretty damn good. It did take really long for us to get a waitress and it seemed like they only had one waitress working the whole room. Plus, our dinner took really long to come. We were there for two hours. However, I am okay with that, because the drinks kept coming and plus, it allowed me to space out my meals and open up room in my stomach.
I thought this place was cool. Only down side was the slowness… but who cares… bring a good friend or your best friend (like I did) and you have time to talk… and you are fine. Plus, I didn’t see any roaches.

Dear «person» who keeps flagging these review updates:
You can’t hide the fact that the health department shut this restaurant down because of COCKROACHES.
We’ve tried to eat here again., but couldn’t because it was CLOSED because of BLATANT HEALTH CODE VIOLATIONS aka COCKROACHES.
If the truth hurts so bad, perhaps you should spend more time cleaning the kitchen and GTF off Unilocal.Eh?

Was really excited to visit the brewery, even made a special trip. We waited in the front for 10 minutes before even being acknowledged. Finally got a seat outside. Ordered the alois fries, they had too much sauce on them, which made the fries soggy. We also asked for them to come without scallions and they came with scallion.
The pulled pork was not good. The bbq sauce was more like spaghetti sauce. My fiancé got the Buffalo chicken cheesesteak. He said it was spicy but not bad.
We came here specifically because of the beer and first asked for a beer menu. They did not have one. They only had three beers on tap. So we each got a flight of the three beers. There were two dark beers, one was a black beer ipa and one that was described as a lager. The other was a grapefruit beer. All three tasted flat. Not good at all.
Happy we visited this place before because I was planning on having this be a stop for my Bachelorette party but will not now.
Apparently this place was also closed down in August for a cockroach infestation.

Bube’s (pronounced «Boo-​bees») is one of the few attractions in Mount Joy so if you’re in the area looking for something to do, you might as well stop by for a visit. We went during lunch, when the catacombs weren’t yet open. Lunch at Bube’s is when you’ll see mostly locals. I’m told that the tourists all come at night for dinner in the catacombs and for tours of the brewery. From what I recall, the food was decently good (ie. delicious when you’re famished but only ‘ok’ when you’re not). The dish I order when first visiting any pub is usually Fish and Chips and my visit to Bube’s was no different. My bf ordered a cheese steak and wings, and his mom ordered (I think) a crabmeat sandwich. The cheese steak was pretty good but nothing spectacular. My fish and chips passed the test of flakiness and crispiness, but was lacking in the flavor department. Overall, nothing really stood out to me. Nothing was egregiously bad but nothing was unforgettably good either. My bf also ordered a flight of seasonal beers to try with his mom. I’m no beer expert (in fact, I really don’t drink at all) but in the words of my bf, the beers were very «meh.» Granted, the service was super friendly and the atmosphere is unique (it is a small town beer brewery after all!), but as far as food goes, there’s much better stuff around.
Food: ³⁄₅ — Not terrible, but not really all that good either. Just so-​so.
Service: ⁴⁄₅ — Super friendly, welcoming, and attentive.
Atmosphere: 3.5÷5 — It’s unique… The catacombs are really cool but the upstairs are a bit dingy and old. Then again, it’s an old brewery.
Overall: ³⁄₅ — Decent. Food is good if you’re starving. Venue is interesting if you’re looking for something to do in an otherwise desolate town.

I was interested in trying Bube’s despite the poor reviews. I told myself I was only going to try the beer. Quick stop. Well the stop could not have been quicker as on the day of our stop Bube’s was closed. As in shut down by the health department. See photo attached for more info. They have apparently reopened since.

Horribly slow service, the food was almost inedible. In addition it took 2 hours to get our meals, and the place wasn’t even busy at all.

The good news is that Bube’s could be amazing, but our evening was marred with rude wait staff, and an amazingly stupid theme dinner.
Our evening started at the bar outside, where the bartender was rude, and simply not focused on any of the drinks people wanted. We arrived at 6pm and they were already out of some of their «signature» drinks. When we asked for alternatives he pointed at the list and walked away. The lady next to us got a drink from the list, and when he brought it to her, he stated, that it wasn’t his best effort and walked away. My wife who doesn’t drink beer asked for his opinion on the Cider, he openly said, he didn’t drink Cider’s and recommended a stout.
We only went there for the Ceaser themed dinner in the catacombs. I can’t begin to describe how tacky this was. Poorly constructed costumes to start, but it took 30 minutes just to get the crappy watered-​down sangria. Seriously tasted like Fruit Punch. Then over an hour for the salad.
The main meal consisted of overcooked mystery meat, with undercooked gravy, that was more like vinegar with a few tomatoes in it.
Apparently everyone thought it was great that you could get a massage during dinner from the entertainers, but seriously who wants to watch that while you are eating?
The entertainment was terrible, the food would gag most maggots, and they put the entire group in a room, that heated up to a very uncomfortable temp so that everyone was sweaty and smelly.
Don’t waste your time or money.

We signed up for the $ 50 Murder Mystery at the Alois restaurant.
Upon entering the main entrance, there was no hostess or anyone to greet us. There was a crowd of people asking about the catacombs, another group about asking where the bar was, and another group asking about the Murder Mystery night.
We slipped into a couple of seats at the bar areas and ordered some of the house brews– I have to say great stuff. The lobby crowd ebbed and was sorted out over the course of the next 20 minutes– but for awhile there– a free-​for-​all.
We went outside and waited in line for access to the Alois restaurant section of Bube’s. After being greeted by one of the actors of the night, we made our way into the bar area, where the appetizers were of the Sysco variety. If you’ve been to a luncheon at your local community college, you’ll get the same salty spinach dip and doughy bread.
We were seated in a dimly lit dinning area– long tables with not a lot of room between our neighbors– lots of bumping elbows. The «show» started, a murder-​mystery about a booze runner out of Philly and a whodunit when the murder was committed. The actors where really trying to jazz the crowd, but after being served limp bib lettuce and tomato salad with a cold clam chowder we reserved to just chat among ourselves.
The final shot was the diner– family style– some dry chicken or beef. That was it. I sampled both, but having to choke it down while the actors tried to razz us up to solve the mystery was hard to swallow all together.
The HIGHLIGHT of the evening was the tour that was lead by one of the actor’s of Bube’s Brewery. A really amazing site– one of the original sites of Pilsner beers– learning the Bube was among Adolph Coors and David Jüngling (Yuengling). The actor showed us through the caves that they cooled the beers and how they were built. He took us through the catacombs where the beer was cooled, and how it was hauled to the nearest towns.
The $ 50 didn’t go to the Murder Mystery– It went to the tour. Bube’s Brewery should focus more on the history and showing how the beer was/​is made. That’s where the real attraction is.

Food was good, little on the pricey side especially for children’s menus.
Beers were descent, flight price was great.
Atmosphere is a little dark. Tables wobbling.
We tried to eat outside but the flies were just unbearable.
Even the women restroom had a sworn of flies in there.

I was so excited to try Bube’s brewery. I drove down from Harrisburg with my husband. Walked in to the museum area which was so neat!
Was seated in the bar area by the host. A Saturday at 1:30 with less than a quarter of the tables filled. We waited 25 minutes prior to walking out. No one even acknowledged us.
So disappointed to drive 45 minutes. Wait another 25 and still be hungry. Not even a drink order.
Total let down.

I have been here several times over the course of many years. If you are looking for a casual hangout with friends or a low-​key place to hear local music, this is the place for you. The interior is dark and authentic.
The food has always placed second fiddle to the bar. My soup came out at the same time as my steak and was rather bland. The Pub Steak was cooked to perfection and very tasty. Be careful with salads. They always put on too much and they often over-​power the salad. I always ask for it on the side. The deserts are tiny, so don’t plan on sharing.
Also, don’t sit at any table near the stage. You will get an unpleasant whiff of the bathrooms as patrons open those doors.

This place has gone downhill fast. Here I am, 9:30 at the bar… and it is QUIET. I should’ve brought a book. Also I saw the bartender fix her hair and then immediately put the clean dishes away– touching the inside of the glasses. Please, please, train them how to handle food safely.
I used to love this place…