Where to find good beer
When you first walk up to Union Bear, the impression is of a temporary food stand. The bar juts out onto the sidewalk with its fold-up windows and 40 tap handles, and patrons are perched on barstools like day laborers. You can look through the taps into the empty room behind it but there’s little to see but some mirrored walls.
Union Bear is the latest craft beer-friendly bar to open up in Dallas’ West Village, the idea of Matt Spillers of Eno’s and Oddfellows. It sits next to Taco Diner, literally facing The Magnolia theater and looking rather out-of-place among the super-trendy lives of the Villagers. But Union Bear has some surprises, which you discover walking through the red doors on either side of the bar.
First, the bulk of the place is below street level. The “empty room” you saw behind the bar is open to the room below, overlooking the main bar downstairs. Down a short flight of steps and you realize that this establishment stretches for three or four rooms both to the left and right—under the ground-level businesses above. It’s spacious but cozy at the same time, like a den or playroom from a converted basement, with décor varying from room to room.
The 40 taps housed downstairs are split lines duplicated upstairs, so all beers are available both places. Another surprise comes with the beer pricing: $5 each, every beer, all the time. Instead of charging more for premium or seasonal releases, Union Bear keeps the pricing the same but varies the serving size accordingly (10-oz, 12-oz, or 16-oz glassware). Bottles are limited to the larger 22-oz or 750-ml formats.
But yet another surprise awaits: Union Bear introduces us to the concept of the “nanobrewery.” One step smaller than a “microbrewery,” Union Bear is licensed as a brewpub and will use a small brewing system to make and sell one or two house beers at a time. Add that to a full bar and the menu of homemade pizzas, flatbreads and a few sandwiches and this becomes the newest star in Dallas’ developing craft beer galaxy.
A grand opening party is scheduled for this coming Sunday, February 26th, from 3pm to 6pm. Real Ale’s WT3F?! American wild (sour) ale will be tapped along with music and specials, and Fryman will sing for you if you mention this piece.
Recommended Pint: Check the menu for the best values (sizes of servings are listed beside the names).
The Union Bear
3699 McKinney Avenue
Dallas, Texas
Cheers!
paul@scientist.com
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