River City Brewing Co. | Wichita, KS
Beer Trip: River City Brewing Co. in Wichita, Kansas
Situated in the lively Old Town district of Wichita, River City Brewing is an excellent spot for good food and a great selection of craft beer. When Chris made his way to Wichita for a work trip, it only made sense that he pop in for a brew.
The Brewery
River City is a Wichita staple, having been around since 1993! It is located near the heart of downtown, which has plenty of other places within walking distance - you could easily fill an entire day if you wanted! The building itself gives off New Orleans vibes from the outside, with an old brick structure and large outdoor patios on both the first and second levels. Inside you find a structure supported by massive wooden beams along with a wooden floor that appears to be original to the building.
The space feels more like a restaurant than a brewery, but the whole brewing process is still very open - you’ll find it right behind the 12-person bar towards the center of the room. While there is plenty of seating between the indoor and outdoor spaces, the brewtender said it does get very busy on weekends.
The Beer
You likely can’t find a brewery in Wichita, or the whole state of Kansas for that matter, that has more beer options than River City - they have a whopping 16 taps! Six of their choices are their flagships consisting of an IPA, stout, brown, red, wit, and wheat. They then rotate the remaining 10 beers to constantly keep new things on draft. When we visited, the seasonals included multiple sours, IPAs, a blonde, and a Mexican lager. One fun option that they incorporate with a few of their beers is the ability to add a fruited flavor to the standard beer. For example, their Snow Cone was a basic (still really good!) Berliner Weisse, but you had the option to add in either mango, raspberry, or watermelon to it.
As vast as their selection is, the taste is equally impressive. Having visited several times before, we can honestly say we haven’t had a bad beer here. One of the more popular flagships is the Harvester Wheat. This one is very light with a crisp clove kick at the end, which compliments the wheat very well. Although it was warm outside, that didn’t stop us from trying the Emerald City Stout. Being an Irish dry stout it provided a nice, rich, roasty flavor - yet being a dry beer, it wasn’t heavy like many stouts tend to be.
Food, Merch, & More
River City Brewing is a full restaurant and offers some fantastic food and a wide-ranging menu. With everything from salad, burgers, tacos, and steak, you can certainly find everything from a quick lunch to a relaxed dinner perfect for a business meeting. We personally recommend their pizza!
In addition to serving their own beer, they also have a full bar complete with an extensive house-made drink menu. While we didn’t have a cocktail, they seemed to be popular judging by the number that were ordered around us. The merchandise section at River City was fairly basic, but they had some nice shirts and a good selection of ballcaps.
Downtown Wichita has tons of spots to visit and River City Brewing Co. should definitely be one of them!
Cheers!