Jolly Pumpkin Café & Brewery
| Address: | 311 S Main St, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, USA |
| Phone: | +1 734-913-2730 |
| Site: | jollypumpkin.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 11AM–12AM 11AM–12AM 11AM–12AM 11AM–12AM 11AM–2AM 10AM–2AM 10AM–12AM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
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Jessica Rosenberg
Ive been loving Jolly Pumpkin since they first opened, so the only astonishment here is that Id yet to write a review. As youll see in my profile, and as has been true of my profile for years now, JP has my favorite meal in the city. The grilled romaine salad with chicken and warm potato croutons. I get melty just thinking about it. Further, friends have told me that I get a little dreamy-eyed, and simultaneously a little car-salesman-y--just talking about it. Beyond that salad, there are so many things to love about JP. I like the ambiance--populous yet intimate. I like the drinks--tasty sour beers and creative cocktails. And of course I love the food--the burger with cambozola, the snack boards (veggie and meat), the pizza... my goodness. So why just 4 stars? Two reasons. One, their reservation system (as in, the lack thereof) absolutely sucks. If you want to eat here on a Friday night, for example, you have to go downtime about an hour ahead of when you want to eat and then sit around--at their bar is their intention, Im sure--with one of those vibrating coaster things that doesnt work if you stroll more than half a block in any direction. Two, while I am consistently wowed by that salad and my fiance is consistently wowed by the south pacific pizza, its not generally a place I bring people to to wow *them* (thats more like Seoul Street or Frita Batidos). Ill still bring them here, though, for a more casual meal. Bonus: Nice outdoor seating upstairs!
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Sean Taylor
All I can say is wow. Ive only just moved to Michigan 2 months ago and was told by an acquaintance that I needed to try the Jolly Pumpkin in Ann Arbor. I dont think Ive ever fallen in love with a restaurant so quickly. We dined on a Sunday and it was a bit busy but still were seated almost immediately. Not only were we surprised by an interesting seasonal set of offerings but also an extremely attentive wait staff. We settled rather quickly on splitting the brie chicken apricot sandwich and a truffle pizza and were completely surprised when our waitress split the sandwich for us without even being asked (having overheard our discussion about splitting the pizza and sandwich). We were also offered samples of the beers we were considering without prompting. The food and drinks were superb, the truffle fries we ordered were well worth the upgrade, having a very subtle flavoring of truffle that wasnt overpowered by the salts for once. I think this is the first time Ive gone to a restaurant in this price range and had anything that even resembled the actual flavors of a truffle. The pizza was also amazing, containing one of the best combinations of flavors Ive ever tasted and the brie sandwich was gooey but fantastic. For whats offered the price is phenomenal and reasonable by any standards and the décor is not just interesting but also fun. If you are in Ann Arbor and you dont stop by youve made a horrible mistake.
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Lyndsi Winer
Wouldnt really come here for most of the food Ive had and saw on the menu. The candied pineapple on the pizza we got was horrible and the tempura fried veggies just so so. I dont care for fried food. But, their merchandise and beer is AMAZING! I love their sour type ales and I have even run across a few of them out here on the West Coast now that I have moved away from Michigan. I do miss hitting up the Jolly Pumpkin after dinner and having a couple beers. It was something I did a few times a month when I lived in Southeastern Michigan and I do miss it. I still wear my JP gear with pride. I have visited their TC location which I think is loosely based on this place. Same beer, same theme but different owners maybe. The food up there was good, better than this location. It seemed like a different menu. Be weary of the menu unless you are VERY adventurous but, their beer is totally legit stuff! Especially if you like Sour ales. Noel De Cabaza is my fav! Fruitcake Christmas Ale and very seasonal!
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A Private User
Oh, Jolly Pumpkin. Should I compare thee to a Summers... Shandy? Just kidding. (Especially since a shandy would be a waste at this bar!). The beer here is fantastic, very complex, and always varied. Im not a big fan of their stouts, which I consider my favorite style of beer, but have been won over by their sour beers, and even their IO Saoison. In other words, their beer is so varied and good, I dont even order my usual style when I go there. Their food is fantastic (theres a reason you see so many servers carrying the truffle fry appetizer... get it!) and complex. Service is ALWAYS great; we have had incredible waiters, and the staff in general are just solidly good people (which is a big difference from some of the stoic hipster staffers of other places in Ann Arbor). GO HERE. NOW.
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Darleen Petrosky
No place to rate Food so rated Decor and Service poor but really excellent. Drove 45 minutes March 29, 2013 Food sub-standard/ disappointing as if restaurant cutting corners before going out of business. Signature Romaine Salad was not grilled, and came out limp and OILY, sent back came back with half the usual amount of lettuce and no crunch. Walnuts not roasted--how hard is that? Did not finish $13 salad and ordered Mediterranean Pizza. Which was just as sad. Less than one slice of onion on whole pizza, 6 dots of goat cheese, 6 olives < 2 TBS egg plant, leaving 1/3 pizza naked! Paid for both dont know why. Jolly Pumpkin WHATs UP?
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Annette H.
Ann Arbor is definitely a college town, so many of the restaurants have that sports bar feel. Which isnt my favorite, but this menu made up for it. Their truffle pizza was divine! The gorgonzola was generous, as was the arugula on top. I must admit I ate the leftovers the next day COLD. It was that good. We ordered a basket of fries beforehand. They are the fresh, crispy kind, yes! Meanwhile, Ive always been a little repulsed by the English who eat mayo with their fries... until now haha. Whatever the side of seasoned mayonnaise is that comes with the fries - well, you NEED to get on board with eating this and the fries together.
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Justin Dorazio
Food and the drinks here are unique. I usually get the truffle pizza when I come here. I havent gotten to try their beers yet, but they have an interesting assortment of mixed drinks all made with their own spirits. I got a drink which had rye whiskey, grapefruit juice and maple syrup. It went together really well. I wouldnt suggest their dark and stormy though. I suspect when I got it the bartender didnt put any rum in it. I didnt taste it, and if there was any rum in it, then it was the least dark and stormy dark and stormy that Ive ever had.
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Lindsey Scheer
Always a favorite with top notch service! The mug club is super fun, you get a cool mug for your beer & collect points, if you ever wondered about all the sweet mugs on the wall ask! Weve had just about everything on the menu at some point, the specials are always fun, our favorites tend the be the farmers frito (fried veggies) & market pizza. We cant wait for the roof top deck to open back up, its a wonderful summer hiding spot. This is another popular place so we like to come for an earlier dinner so we dont have to wait :)
