While my dad was in town, we also took a drive up to Fort Collins to visit both Odell and New Belgium Brewing Companies.  We stopped at Odell first where we sampled twelve different brews (all the regular beers and a flight of pilot brews as well) and then took a very nice tour of their facility.  Despite producing some of my favorite brews, I had never taken a tour and I was glad to finally check that off the list.  Our second stop was at New Belgium, where reservations are now accepted for tours.  I didn’t realize that before my dad’s visit, but we decided to stop anyway and have a few tastes.  The waitlist was pretty long for the tours, if there were even any no-shows, so we took the three free sample chips each and headed inside to taste some brews.  Next time I will have to plan ahead for any visitors who want to head up north for the tours.

The real highlight of this trip occurred on the way up as we took a small detour over to Lyons, Colorado for lunch at the Oskar Blues Grill & Brew.  I’ve driven past this restaurant numerous times on our way to and from Rocky Mountain National Park, and have always wanted to stop in.  I figured with my dad in town, this was a perfect opportunity to stop in.  We arrived on a quiet Wednesday afternoon and were immediately seated at a booth by the windows.  I had my dad sample Dale’s Pale Ale first (another of my favorites), while I opted for the One-Nut Brown Ale.  For lunch I decided to try the Turkey Reuben, while my dad picked the Pulled Pork Sandwich, and Kim opted for the Chicken Avocado.  The definite highlight was the Chicken Avocado served grilled with bacon, lettuce, tomato, swiss, and guacamole on naan bread.  Also delicious were the side of Texas Toothpicks, deep-fried slices of onions and jalapeno, along with the rest of the meals.  I didn’t hear any complaints as we nearly cleared all of our plates.  I definitely hope to stop again on our next trip through Lyons.

Fort Collins on Dwellable