Kim P.
Yelp
We stopped by BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse for happy hour. They offer a wide variety of well-priced appetizers to go along with their extensive beer list. Their happy hour runs until 7:00pm weekdays, which is more generous than other establishments.
The place was "hoppy" (groan!) when we arrived. Happy hour is available only in the bar area and we were lucky to grab an empty table. We saw the popularity of the place as a good sign, and we were proven right.
First decision: Beer! We selected from the list of a dozen of BJ's "handcrafted signature beers", which were priced at $5 during happy hour. We were impressed by the breadth of beer categories. A brew for every taste!
Next up: appetizers! The large selection of apps were 1/2 off. Great price!
One person had the pan-seared chicken pot stickers. A fried option was available as well. They were accompanied by rice sticks and a nice soy ginger sauce for dipping. Delightful!
Another person had the sliders, which included a generous portion of four mini-burgers and fries. They were tasty and slid right down the gullet (groan again!)
My husband & I shared the deep-dish nachos with chicken. Rather than being piled up high, the chips were spread across a deep pizza pan. We were happy to see that the multiple types of cheese, which was abundant, was layered throughout the nachos rather than being just on top. The guac, sour cream and salsa were all provided on the side, so we could add as much as we wanted. The server quickly provided some additional salsa when I requested it as there simply wasn't enough for the generous portion of nachos.
My husband also had a delicious wedge salad which had a terrific mix of blue cheese, bacon, and tomatoes atop the wedge of iceberg lettuce. He was quite pleased with the salad.
Finally: dessert! The only desserts on the menu are pizookies, which is BJ's speciality mix of a large, fresh baked cookie in a skilled topped with two scoops of ice cream (chocolate and/or vanilla) and various toppings based on the specific pizookie. They are perfect for sharing.
We had the cookies & cream pizookie, which includes a chocolate cookie and a large dollop of c & c mousse. Fabulous!
Our friends split a hot fudge pizookie, with a gooey brownie type cookie, whipped cream, pecans, and the aforementioned hot fudge. "To die for!" they exclaimed.
The service was decent although not exceptional. Our server was quite busy, so we were not overly concerned about the pace. After all, we were indulging in beer, apps and pizookies. What could be better than that?
We will be back ... and not wait as long between visits. So many pizookies to try!