Five Questions to Answer Before Your First Visit to A Cinema Brewery - Trivia Night at Off the Grid Brewing Company

The flick you’ve been waiting for, the one with the trailer you’ve practically burned into your computer screen, premiers. Score! Before going to a local cinema brewery, it’s a good idea to get a few things in order. Aside from “do, I have the car keys?”

Do You Have a Safe Ride Home Arranged?

With cinema breweries, this needs to be the first question to answer. In the dark, with the great wait staff, you can drink more than you might in a brightly lit bar. Like the calorie curse of unlimited popcorn, a planned two-pint movie can morph into something that’s more than safe for driving home. Do you really want to be that person who calls from jail to get bailed out? I know, I’ve started the list off with a downer, but seriously, if you’re going to enjoy a few, make sure you can get home from there. Lyft and Uber are great backup choices if your designated driver plan falls apart.

How’s The View?

Yes, you should have bought your tickets in advance. Craft breweries are laid out to give all patrons a great view. Of course, since folks don’t stack well in that center row, center seat sweet spot, there are rows down the front as well. If you’ve got your heart set on that dead-on view for the anticipated 3D explosion, a good seat is important. Fortunately, online seat selection makes deciding on the view before buying your ticket. Or deciding to skip it in favor of a later show with better seat options.

Are Your ID and Credit Cards Handy?

Ordering your drink in the dark and then getting carded is a noisy hassle for everyone around you, not to mention the waitperson blocking the view. The five-minute purse fumble for a credit card doesn’t help when a movie’s getting to its climax.

Do You Like What’s on Tap?

If there’s a Lambic ale festival at the theater and all you really wanted was a nice IPA, you’ll see the movie, but not enjoy an awesome beer in the process. Most cinema breweries have lighting by the seats to read the beer list (which should be a good mix of in-house, local, draft, and bottled beers. Read it online, read it in the waiting area. Don’t wait until the waitperson is crouching in front of you, pencil in hand, answering inane questions like relative ABVs and whether the phenols have been polished for this Belgian. (Yes, really, these have been questions asked in the dark as the opening chase scene played onscreen.) I suggest picking a couple of beer choices—never know when a tap will run dry.

What’s Going to go With Your Craft Brew?

Or bottled or canned one—don’t mind the beer snobs. If you have your pints picked out but there’s nothing on the menu that turns your crank, you’ll either tank up on an empty stomach, or you won’t get the most out of your tasty ale. The time to decide on beer pairings is before the lights go down, not after. Makes for better, fewer “I’m starved, so whatever” decisions.