Local Craft Kitchen & Bar

BLT shrimp taco and fries were good! Would have liked another shrimp or 2. Spice was hot but not too kicky!. The bar tenders , friendly AND efficient. I was there stalling before an event. But think this would be a great place to hang with friends. 🥳

Ambiance was great! Super awesome vibe good crowd went for brunch and actually a good chunk of people were there. Food was not really good. Burger i mean you can’t mess up with, fries were very crunchy perfect, breakfast potatoes were good. Oh and fried calamari was delicious! Steak was like a frozen warmed up one not good, pasta not the best, and rice bowl wasn’t either. Waitress was really kind great service. Please is two floors so there’s lots of space. More then anything the inside was really cool and the building in general was very cool. And the price for the mimosas you really can’t beat! Definitely worth it for that.

Had a nice bar. Thought it might become our new go to spot. Not happening. The food was extremely disappointing. I ordered the Mexicali Bowl. It was just a bowl of rice (slop). So disappointing. My husband ordered the Jambalaya Bowl which was slightly better but not much. Poor food presentation as well.

Driving by on our way from NJ to RI and found this spot. The grilled cheese with tomato soup was amazing, home made tomato soup! My fiancé got a burger Cali style that was delicious. We will be back! 3/21/25: Update; stopped here again on my way to RI got the burger and it was great! Stopped on my way home on 3/23, got the grilled cheese with tomato soup again. Still a great spot.

We came to Local Craft and had a great time. The drinks were amazing, and our server Gio was awesome – super friendly and attentive. The food was okay, nothing special, but we’ll definitely be coming back for the drinks and the great service from Gio!

Excellent service, great selection, set in a tastefully restored old DuPont rubber (tire) factory.

The food and service here was great. The warm goat cheese salad was my favorite.

We love chicken wings. After reading about how Local Kitchen prepares it, we had to try. We were not disappointed. It's as claimed, the double frying technique gave the wings a crispy texture outside but still moist and tender within. The small portions were generous enough for 2 to share. The bang bang shrimps had a crispy, fluffy skin, tossed in a nice tangy sauce. The choices for beer was more of the eclectic types but the regular Amber ale available went fine with the food. The pho was good with a clever mix of ingredients including crispy pork belly. Look forward to trying other items on the menu.

The inside look of this place is very cool. Super high ceilings. Industrial feeling. Great. Good sized bar, lots of tvs and friendly service. I usually wait to go a couple of time to write a review, but, I know all the food will be good. I saw it and I'm here to write about the boneless wings, bbq style. The ranch! Both are my favorites in town. I need them in my fridge and belly!! Go and enjoy, you'll be back!

We ordered a burger and the Tuna bowl. The burger was good, little messy to eat. The bowl was anything but, it came in a bowl but not at all what I was expecting, taste was alright. Ordered a Guinness on tap, guy did not pour it right, he poured it straight into the glass and let it foam up and then settle.

Food was not very good for basic wings and fries. Drinks were ok but not worth it the price. Server was very nice and attentive which is the 2 stars. I was excited to try here but it's definitely a miss. It was way too expensive for bad food and mid cocktails.

Collectively and consistently the rudest/most unfriendly staff at any restaurant I've been to in Fairfield County. Only seems to get worse over time. Went for the last time a couple months ago after ~3 years of repeated patronage. Food and general experience not even close to making it worth it. Go elsewhere in Fairfield.

Local Kitchen and Beer Bar is a New American restaurant and craft beer bar that opened in Fairfield, Connecticut in December 2013. It was founded by the SBC Group (formerly Southport Brewing Company), under the direction of restaurateur Greg Pettinella. No stranger to the restaurant business, Pettinella grew up in Derby where his family owned a pizzeria with multiple locations. After studying hospitality at SCSU, he worked as a consultant in more than 100 restaurant ventures around the country. He joined the SBC Group in 2012. The restaurant group secured the boiler building of the historic Fairprene Rubber Factory complex in Fairfield. This new venture "Local" launched a New American menu paired with an excellent selection of craft beer on draught. Additional locations opened in South Norwalk in 2014 (Closed 2020) and Branford in 2016. My family and I recently visited the original Local location in Fairfield. We were meeting some members of our extended family for brunch and Local came highly recommended. We really liked the old exposed brick of the building as well as its lofty layout and industrial decor. The menu features an excellent selection of craft beer with at least 30 offerings on draught and another 20+ available in bottles and cans. The menu also features an extensive selection of wines, spirits and signature cocktails. I decided to order a delicious draught pour of Maine Beer Company's "Lunch" IPA, which I'm always happy to see on a beer menu. My wife and I ordered and shared the "Breakfast Bomb" (giant stuffed burrito with scrambled eggs, sausage, cheddar, pico de gallo, served with breakfast potatoes) and the "Shrimp BLT Tacos" (lettuce, slaw, cilantro lime marinated shrimp, bacon, charred salsa and kickn' crema, soft flour tortillas, served with fries). They were both great but we liked the latter the best. Our older son was happy with his delicious "Chicken Bites" (all natural, all white meat crispy fried chicken bites served with fries) from the Kids Menu. The rest of our family ordered the "Street Pho" (Pad Thai noodles, jalapeño, sprouts, snap peas, mushroom, pho broth, shrimp), "Warm Goat Salad" (warm crusted goat cheese, greens, tomato, cucumber, candied walnuts, honey white balsamic), "Mexicali Bowl" (rice, chicken, roasted corn, black beans, charred salsa, cilantro, avocado mash), and "Southwestern Ranch Salad" (mixed greens, roasted corn & black bean, cheddar blend, roasted chicken, pick de gallo, chipotle ranch, crispy tortilla chips). Everyone was very happy with their choices! Overall, we had an excellent brunch experience at Local and would definitely stop there again!

I love Local because its a great spot for a casual dinner with friends or for drinks on a weeknight. Tuesday night trivia here is the best and you can't go wrong with a marg here. Usually I order a turkey burger, and the pretzel bites are not to be missed! Service is always great here

Rustic vibes at this spot. Big bar with a lot of tvs. Staff was super friendly and helpful. Burger was super juicy, bursting with flavor. Fries had a nice crunch.

Very good beer and burger bar. Actually their entire menu is good...salads, burgers, fish and chips and great apps. Among the countless beers they serve, they've made room for the Champagne of Beers which makes this Milwaukee-boy happy! (And adds a star) Trivia on Tuesday night is great fun. Staff is great and scene is good. Worth the visit.

Ordered through Uber eats. Over cooked burgers and they didn't put cheese on either burger. They had no option to put cheese. Other restaurants include the option for cheese. Most people want cheese on a cheese burger! Figure out how to add the option to Uber eats. I won't order again. I hate when I have to "fix" delivery food when I'm trying to have an easy night.

Interesting to see the negative reviews here because I've only had good experiences and have been here several times. I usually get a chicken sandwich of some sort but this time I went with the twin phillys because I was intrigued. They were so good! The buns are the kind you get lobster rolls on. So buttery and toasted. Sandwiches weren't overpacked, just the right amount.

Sunday, 2/18/2024 we decided to try "The Local". Since we weren't very hungry, we decided to eat at the bar. TJ was the bartender and quickly took our drink order and asked if we wanted a menu. After a few minutes perusing the menu, he was back with our drinks and offered several suggestions. We settled on the Classic burger, added cheddar cheese, bacon (extra crispy) and pickles as well as a side of hot sauce and side of mustard. For our side, we chose fries. We took a walk around the entire restaurant and on the 2nd floor which overlooks the bar, there was a large party of men. Seems like a wonderful spot to have any type of get together, privately. The restaurant has several TVs at the bar and would be a fun place to catch a game. Our food arrived timely, and the burger was cooked to order and very tasty. The fries weren't very hot, and TJ quickly replaced them with fresh ones. We noticed walking in that in the warmer months, there is outdoor seating available. It was our first visit, and we will definitely go back. I didn't give 5 stars for the simple reason the fries weren't fresh, and we had a limited meal, so need more information, but go with confidence. I did leanr that the owners also own the Sitting Duck in Trumbull which is also tasty, however read my previous reviews on them. HH at Local is 3-6 M-F and Tuesday looks like a really good night for tacos.

Our server was friendly enough but unfortunately all the beers were lukewarm, so none of them tasted very good. The beer selection looked promising but execution fell well short. Food-wise, I'd recommend picking a grilled or fried food item; the rare items (ahi tuna, etc) were also lukewarm and not worth ordering. Sadly, this is both the first and last time our family will eat here.

I was hoping the recent reviews were wrong. We've been here before and it was good and service was fine. This Sunday we had a group of 8 for dinner around 6:00. I alled to see if they take reservations for 8 and they said no. Tried our luck and went anyway. When we arrived there were several groups waiting at the hostess stand and there was no hostess. More people came in behind us and we all waited about 5 minutes for someone to come over. We got lucky and were seated right away. It was fairly busy with a lot of families with small kids. Once seated we waited about 10 minutes for the waitress to come over. We put in our drink order and a few appetizers. 20 minutes later the appetizers came, but we still didn't have our drinks. I asked the food runner to check on them and she brought them right back. They had been sitting on the bar waiting for the waitresses to serve them. The food came out about 30 minutes later. Everyone loved their meals, so that was a bright side and brought the rating up. The Brussel Sprouts were delicious with a maple bacon flavor. The steak tips were cooked perfectly and the guys raves about the 50/50 burger. Desserts all looked fabulous as well. I'm going to guess that they need more staff, which seems to be happening everywhere. We were there for over two hours in total by the time we received the bill. If we weren't with good friends and enjoying the conversation, it would have been way too long!

Had a great lunch here. Love the lofty look and feel of the restaurant. Their drink menu was large with fun options. I had the peach rosemary fizz, which was light and refreshing. My friend and I shared the Buffalo Mac and cheese, which was cheesy and had a nice kick from the chicken. I also had a chicken sandwich, which had good flavor and even better French fries! Service was friendly and fast and prices were fair as well. I'd come back!

Perfect burger, delivered medium rare as ordered, plus great beer. Can't go wrong here!

The food was very good - steak tips were tender and very well marinated (I compliment them in that the teriyaki flavor was subtle and still noticeable but not overpowering). Rest of the food was good ... probably would not order the grilled cheese with tomato soup again. Seemed like they tried to do too much and it just didn't work. Building is very nice and has a good ambiance to it. Service was decent ... friendly and kitchen was quick.

Only reason giving two stars is amaze g service from Our waitress and fabulous cocktails even though they were very small and over priced. Went for brunch with our family and showed up fifteen minutes early was told ample times that they can seat us but not serve for fifteen minutes even though there was people already seated. We ordered two kid meal burgers which the rolls were burnt fires were minuscule snd they didn't have lids for the kid cups. I got the spicy crunchy tuna bowl (I ordered the large) and it was the size of two tuna rolls. The rest of my family ordered From the brunch menu (hangover burger and bomb burrito) as Wells as the crab cake tater tots. The best part was the breakfast potatoes. Best part is drinks and service Doubt we will be back They do take credit card and have ample parking

My first time going to this place was to watch the Super Bowl. The service was great and the drink selection was ideal. Our bartender, Nick, was great all night, always seemed happy and was great to talk with. This place had a unique interior design, I will be coming back again. I highly recommend the nachos with the chicken.

I have been to Local in Fairfield and Norwalk before, and I admit I had low expectations coming here again, based on my original experiences. But I really enjoyed my meal here! The location for the restaurant is great, right off exit 21 and right next to my rock gym. There are cathedral ceilings making the space feel larger than it is, with a huge bar at the center. I came with some friends, and while we drank, we ate. We began with the Crispy Brussels Sprouts. Brussels Sprouts are something very easy to mess up, because they need to be cooked a long time. But these were fried to perfection with a sweet sauce covering the veggies. For my meal, I enjoyed the Birdhouse, a crispy chicken sandwich (on a wrap). It was tied together with delicious hot honey (wasn't spicy), bacon, cheese, caramelized onions all tied together with a delicious aioli. I wasn't expecting much, but it really was worth every bite. I will be back!

Stopped by at 1:30 on a Wednesday for lunch before dropping the kids off at Fairfield Univ. one of the kids had Uber Eats from here, and wanted to come and actually eat in-house. The waitress, Emma, was beyond excellent: helpful, kind, super sweet. When asked about the history of the building, she responded as if she had a vested interest in its origins. When asked about one of the appetizers, she gave us what she thought was right, but then returned and corrected herself. The food? Excellent. We had a range of sandwiches and bowls, and all were very tasty. Good stuff.

Food is ok. The onion soup was good. The goat cheese salad was decent. Just ok. Not brilliant not bad.

I've been coming here since it opened...always loved it... However...today I ordered one of there burgers with coleslaw. The order came out looking great! I went to the coleslaw first ...I touched the bowl it was in and could have almost burned my hand....obviously the bowl had JUST come out of the dishwasher....not a smart move in the kitchen....super hot bowl ...hummm let's put COLD coleslaw in it. It was taken back to the kitchen and a cold bowl with the slaw was brought back....excellent! However, I'm not going to say it was the worst slaw I've ever eaten but it was close....basically no flavor and almost dry.... In the grand scheme of things not a big problem but very disappointing.

Went to Local a couple of times and my friends and I loved going to trivia on Tuesday night. The guy who ran it was super fun and you even get a chance to win prizes! We won trivia and got a $50 giftcard to Local. Who doesn't love free trivia and better yet a chance to win a prize!!! Even better, is that the well margaritas are only $5. (Downside is that they said they cannot salt rims on trivia night due to all the margs they make). The food is pretty good but nothing too exciting and the service is very friendly, but slow which is fine when you're not in a rush. I would come here again for trivia but it probably wouldn't be my first place to choose if I was going out to eat.

I ended up here by accident as this establishment never seems to show up on my Yelp searches. Visited on a Tues night before the $5 majarita prices that begin at 7p.m. Taco special starts at 7 p.m. as well I believe. My excellent server helped me narrow down some draft beer choices based on my preferences and even brought a few to taste. There are 30 beers on tap! I chose the Show Pony which I appreciated more with each glass. Unique and spacious feel inside, with the industrialized decor of what the building had housed before. Nice wooden tables, high ceilings, second floor available for dining. Service was on point all night. Fish and chips were most satisfying, tasted fresh and moist with delicious batter perfectly seasoned and fried. Hit the spot. Ample parking, outdoor seating. Trivia night occurred but really only detracted from the enjoyable experience (acoustics not that great ). Will return on a night this is not happening as this seems a great local place.

Fabulous spot. Excellent food and beer in a fun and laid back setting. Plenty of TVs to serve as a sports bar. I had the Buffalo Chicken wrap and loved it but would have been happy with just about any selection folks at the table had and/or on menu. Fries were outstanding too as touted. Service was very on point and accommodating to our group - look forward to my return!

Solid place, good selection of bar food. Great beer list, great options for drinks if you are looking for a decent bar for a pint.

Great ambiance and drink options. Of the 8 meals ordered 6 were great. The other 2, both turkey burgers, were incredibly salty! Too salty to enjoy. I would definitely go back for other menu options. Great proximity to indoor golf which made Local a great option for meeting up with friends from out of state.

**UPDATE 2: General Manager never reached back out to refund the order. Does not seem like the staff care about the customers ***UPDATE: The general manager (who was out of town at time of incident) reached out to me with an apology for the acting managers behavior. I was told they would be sure this kind of service does not happen again and offered a refund. HORRIBLE customer service. I have ordered the Mac & Cheese with no bacon on multiple occasions and more than half of the time it has bacon. I am a vegetarian and for health reasons I cannot eat the bacon (the food was coated in it). I called to see if I could get a replacement after not noticing it had bacon until I returned home and they REFUSED to give one (have allowed exchanges in the past). As someone who comes here often, this does not make me ever want to return to this restaurant due to the horrible service.

Happy hour Friday... a few drink specials for well liquor and beer. No food specials. I ordered 2 specialty cocktails, one of which I did not care for. Waiter rectified by immediately replacing, at no charge. Had a few apps, which were tasty: bang bang chicken and calamari. I requested additional sauce when our tiny cup of sauce ran out- it was brought immediately. However, we were not informed that there was a one dollar charge for our tiny second sauce. I found the charge ridiculous, and we should have been informed. Nonetheless my friend and I stayed for more than a few hours and overall it was a good experience!

Just okay: This is my third trip, but this review is based on the three trips combined. Last visit was just okay. We had a couple of beers and 2 appetizers. One of the beers tasted off, the others where fine. The calamari app was too well done and as a result, really not good. The bartender also had a bit of an attitude, like we were bothering him. In the past, we have enjoyed our meals and drinks. Could be better, but wasn't worth the price.

We love this place and miss the SONO location so much!!! We came on wing Wednesday - honestly some of the best wings I've ever had at a restaurant, we got the mild Buffalo and the lemon pepper and the flavors were spot on and the wings were so juicy. Finger licking good. We also got the Cadillac burger which was cooked perfectly and we scarfed it down in like 2 seconds. Aileen was our server, she's awesome! We'll absolutely be making the trip to Fairfield more often to come here

Ok, so I was there on Wednesday night with two friends. We sat upstairs, loved the ambiance, the food was very good, but uh...the service. The server was aware that everything was off, as she apologized several times, but what the heck? We waited over an hour for our food and we didn't get silverware or napkins until we asked (they ran out of forks?). I'm going to leave it here because our server really was very nice, but jeez, either she was new or they were REALLY short handed.

I love the ambiance of Local. My server Chelsea always makes sure I have the best experience.

Great atmosphere to watch a game or just hang out. They have trivia and music on different nights of the week. The burgers are the absolute best as they use Pineland Farms beef from Maine. I've visited Pineland Farms and have brought beef home with me. It is awesome! Great selection of wine, beer and drinks with happy hour as well. Enjoy!

Stopped into this place for a late lunch and was very pleased. The decor is very industrial but it was very nice. Very high ceilings and also kind of intimate as well. The hostess immediately seated us and took our orders. We had the New England clam chowder which was really thick(the way I like it) and we ordered two burgers-the black and blue burger and the Bison burger. Both were cooked just like we ordered. They were delicious. The bison burger had a bacon jam which was really good. For drinks we had a Sangria and a pumpkin spiced beer which was very good. The menu is varied and they give you the options to order small or large plates to share. Overall we really liked the place and will definitely come back.

Went here for happy hour since I'm always looking for some good deals. They only allow happy hour at the bar, I called ahead and they said that nearly all beers are $4. Great! BUT as I browsed the beer menu, nearly all of the beers or at least more than half had a star meaning not happy hour ( * picture attached) Sort of like lure you in for a good deal but you won't even be able to pick a beer you like. Happy hour food is okay, tiny portions. The popcorn chicken was 4 tiny pieces of chicken for $5. Only 2 wines to pick from for happy hour even though they make it sound like you'd have options. I just think there's better deals for happy hour elsewhere! Of note, a Friday night at 6:00 was dead there, totally quiet too, not even any music. Awkward!! Too bad because the beer selection was good, just not worth coming in for happy hour for.

I've been coming here for about a year. Between work happy hours, drinks with friends, sporting events, and date nights I absolutely love this place. The atmosphere is relaxing but fun, and the drinks are always great. All of the food is great that I've tried, even the (surprising) maple bacon Brussels sprouts. I went for brunch today and couldn't have been happier. Usually when a place does happy hour / dinner food so well, the breakfast food isn't as good.... well, not here. The breakfast tacos were amazing (I personally think because of the pico de gallo). Brunch is from 11:30-3 on weekends so don't miss it!! My friend and I were so happy and the waiter was so helpful telling us about all of the weekly specials they do all the time. Here's what he told us... Monday: craft beers night Tuesday: taco Tuesday, $5 margaritas, $3 draft, & trivia Wednesday: wing Wednesday Thursday: craft beer free pint night

How the mighty have fallen... Local used to be my top pick for eating out when visiting family back home. The location is great, right by the highway and with plenty of parking, and the space itself is wide open, with a comfortably casual vibe. There were options on the menu for everyone, which is no small feat for my clan of picky eaters and those of less adventurous tastes. Classic American staples fill out the bulk of the menu, focusing largely on burgers and fries but with plenty of attention paid to bigger plates and trendy grain bowls. To my great disappointment, the options have grown progressively less vegan-friendly over the years. There's still the Hippie Bowl, my go-to order including quinoa and greens, but even that has changed for the worse. Gone is the avocado, and the tofu (although well-cooked) has become depressingly scant. There's almost always something missing despite the paired down list of ingredients. I can tell there's a lot of thought that went into the food: It's always well seasoned, fresh, and visually appealing. Servers are genuinely kind, invested in getting straight answers from the kitchen when it comes to sensitivities. It's just that there's almost nothing left here for me to eat.

Amazing! I ordered catering from here for the rehearsal dinner for my wedding. My sister said the food was 11/10. Everyone could not stop talking about it. Everything was hot, nothing was smashed, everything looked really fresh. Highlights were: MAC AND CHEESE, brussel sprouts and sliders! They did forget the cheesecake in my order but called me back and had someone drive the cheesecake to where we were hosting our event. I really appreciated how they went out of their way to correct the mistake quickly. And the cheesecake was absolutely amazing.

I'm going to be brief and to the point here... Five stars for the Lobster Waffle! Good God! I had to get a to-go order, but Good LORD! *Heavenly!* As an aside - have always had great service here, attentive staff, good atmosphere. Thanks Daren & staff!

Me and my best friends who are over 21 came for taco Tuesday and we were denied drinks. We had real ids and are seniors at Fairfield university. In addition, we ordered fries and got up-charged for large fries. We were very disappointed with the night. They had no way to check if it was a real ID and claimed that the fake ids were too good these days! The service was giving attitude and we felt not heard, therefore we left.

I called to make a reservation for 11 people for a graduation dinner. I was put on hold for at least 10 minutes and then was asked for my phone number and name and so and so would call me back. No one called me back. That's a pretty big bill that they missed out on. Made a reservation elsewhere.

We usually love local but tonight was rough! They were extremely busy; however, we asked for a large order of wings and they were mostly raw. We each ate part of a wing and then left them unfinished. When we mentioned it to the server (who was lovely) they took the rest of the wings and replaced them with a small order of wings. They also delivered one meal to another table and mixed up our sides. Upon receiving the check, the large order of wings was still on the bill. We will be hesitant to come back.

Order online at 12:15. Went to pickup at 1:00pm. No one had even looked at the order. The bartender and a waitress witnessed this. They said come back in 15 minutes. So i did and then waited another 10 minutes. Then i get presented the full bill with nothing taken off for the inconvenience. Then i get home and part of the order is missing. Will never go back...you can do a lot better in Fairfield.

Good variety on the menu and cool atmosphere. The food was tasty too. But lunch took us almost 2 hours and we only ordered one course. No reason for it to have taken that long - there were only 3 of us and the place wasn't that busy. The tables were also sticky. Not ruling this place out, but the experience could've been better.

Food was just okay. Nothing to write home about. Wings were a little underdone. Service was not great. Our waiter, as well as the manager had an attitude with us. Wouldn't split the check for 4 ppl. They think they can treat college students poorly and rudely with the assumption that we wouldn't care. Other people from the surrounding schools felt the same. We are people too! Won't be going back.

I typically come here for an excellent burger. This Easter I came for brunch and had the steak tips and smashed potatoes. Omg. I took my first bite and was astonished with how good it was. It is now my go to spot for when I have a craving for excellent beef. What a surprise! Don't come to Local for "excellent" service. The service is slow. But the food is always great.

I honestly have never felt so "meh" about a restaurant before. It wasn't terrible, but it definitely wasn't great. We went in with a group of 5 for lunch on a Monday... the place was dead (which should have given us a hint... based on its location it should have been a lot busier). The service was absolutely awful. Took 15-20 minutes each time we ordered a round of drinks (remember, we were practically the only people there - it should have taken less Han 5), and the waitress had to be flagged down for our second round because after she gave us our food she just never came back. The best thing we had were the Brussel sprouts - and while they were good, they aren't differentiated at all from every other place that has them on the menu. I ordered a salad with the dressing on the side... it came drenched and was just okay. Honestly, I don't even remember what anyone else got because it was absolutely nothing special. It's sad because the menu LOOKS delicious, but in reality the food is completely subpar.

I saw the poor reviews and assumed it was for the food. Not so. The beer selection was large but weak. The service was really lacking. I'm not coming back. Heading to craft 260 instead.