One Great City Brewing Co.

One Great City Brewing Co.
1596 Ness Ave

204-779-2337

ogcbrewingco.com

info@ogcbrewingco.com

Facebook:  @ogcbrewingco

Twitter:  @ogcbrewingco

March, 2023

One Great City (OGC) was one of the first brewpubs to arrive in this city, and it was also one of the first to serve food on site.  From day one, they consistently produced excellent beer and superb food.  In summer, they have an excellent patio.  Even though it's in the middle of a parking lot, the welcoming of dogs makes it more than pleasant.  For winter, they feature the open kitchen, where you can see the chefs and cooks working frantically to bring food to your table.  The remainder of the dining room bursts with energy and spirit.  There aren't enough screens to call it "a sports bar" but there's a good chance the "popular" game runs on one of the screens.  

On the wall adjacent to the kitchen, a large glass pane allows you a view of some of the brewing vats.  The delicious smell of brewing beer permeates the entire establishment, engaging your nose as soon as you enter the doors.

As with any brewpub, they offer a large assortment of site-brewed beers, handcrafted according to the brewmaster's whims.  I have my favourites but it's always fun to start with a sampler--you get choice of what you want to sample.

I'm a strong IPA fan (usually the more bitter, the better) and the Mad Scientist is the hoppiest they offer.  It has some heft to it--it's not as punchy as a purist IPA lover wants, but it's still a nice quaff.

Way back when, they used to offer a beef brisket meal.  As a certified Pit Master, I'll tell you that the beef brisket is one of the hardest meats to keep delicious once it leaves the pit.  Fresh off the pit, it oozes with fat and moisture, deliciously smooth and tender (if smoked right).  Once it cools, it sucks all that fat in and quickly becomes dry and papery.  Witness the effect below:

In their latest menu, they no longer serve the brisket as a meat main.  Instead, the brisket goes into the Brisket Tacos.  Shredded and augmented by a blistered pepper sauce, chimichurri aioli, pickled cabbage, with charred onions and Manchego, this sound like a much better option that its predecessor.  

I am truly saddened to see one of my favourite cuts of steak, and one of my favourite meals here, also off the menu now (below).

You rarely see the flatiron cut of steak anywhere (neither grocery store nor restaurant).  Every time I came here, I looked forward to the flatiron, which was grilled to perfection.  This cut of steak--very finicky because it would taste very tough if not done right--is one of the most flavourful on the beef.  There is no steak substitute for this discontinued dish, which is cause for mourning.

One of the few items that remains from the very first, original menu, is their burger, simply titled "The Burger."  It comes with a solidly thick beef patty, with bacon, pickled onions, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, catsup and aioli.  

There is no other way to eat this burger than to bear down and prepare to end up with a goopy mess all over your mouth, down your sleeves, and perhaps on your lap--and that's what makes a good burger (photo credit to One Great City Brewing Co.).  

The beefy patty measures a thick two-centimetres, perfectly grilled, charred on the outside and moist, almost pink on the inside.  The usual burger vegetables are fresh enough to add crunchy texture to the sammich and the bacon injects some smoke.  I'm not normally a fan of pickled onions (or pickled anything) but it's subtle enough and the basic flavour of the burger is robust enough, that they complement each other well.

Another long-standing favourite, the Brewpub Lambwich comes with shaved slow roasted leg of lamb, arugula, lemon sambal aioli, Swiss cheese and red pepper spread on house made French bread.  The lamb isn't shaved so much as cubed because there are fair-sized chunks in here.

Lots of gooey cheese smother the lamb, and cheese makes almost anything taste better.  However, I think I prefer a bit less cheese here, and more of the jus that came from the lamb roast.  The lamb tastes so good, I can't get enough of the flavour and jus enveloping the bread would have kept the taste going.

Fat = flavour and there's no shortage of fat on the bread.  Just from holding the samich, my hands ended up soaked in grease.  Either they buttered the wrong side of the bread or there is enough butter that it oozes right through the toast.

I can barely taste the red pepper spread but arugula is the perfect vegetable accompaniment, spicy and rich in taste.

You can pick your sides and the house-cut kennebec fries has nice crispiness on the outside, with good "meat" on the inside.  Kennebec potatoes are known for solid starch and thin skin, so you barely notice that these are not peeled.  The optional gravy has deep beef flavour and goes wonderfully with the fries.

Even though the bread looks so heavily charred, it should taste burnt, but it doesn't have a hint of burn at all.  This is perfect searing/grilling.  

Today, I go with the Roasted Brussels Sprouts side, which comes with apples, toasted walnuts, queso fresco, bacon and fresh nutmeg.  So many people have a phobia with Brussels sprouts and I cannot understand why.  They are so easy to make (correctly) and when they are, they taste divine, as these do.  Each head comes perfectly seared, leaving a caramelised flavour, coupled with soft texture, augmented by the great flavour of the supporting cast.  Delicious.

It seems they completely wiped the dessert menu and all that remain are the Peanut Butter Square and Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake.  Since they no longer offer it, I won't bother talking about the delicious Chocolate Mousse Cake.

I've been to One Great City Brewing Company a lot, and through all my visits, I have never been disappointed by the beer, the food nor the service.  This is a true Winnipeg gem.

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As usual, thanks for reading and good food to you!

Ray Yuen, Pit Master / Grill Master
Certified Kansas City Barbecue Society Judge – Badge #97736
Certified Steak Cook-off Association Judge – Badge #7788
Canadian Barbecue Society Member