This place has potential. It's a nice setting in the perfect downtown Eau Claire location. Could…read morebe a lot of fun for groups and couples alike. But there are problems to be worked out. GOOD: The overall concept is well-executed. Wine selections are clearly displayed on the overhead menu, with options for glasses or sample flights. Pricing is transparent and reasonable (more on that in a moment), and easy enough to follow along even if you've already had a drink elsewhere. I also like that you can choose a bottle of beer from the fridge if you don't want any of the wine selections. For me, this made the overall experience more approachable. The lounge area is warm and inviting. Relaxing club seats up front, with some tables next to the bar, and a small store in the back. The feel is late-middle aged cool. Service was very warm. NEEDS IMPROVEMENT: * The wine... was nothing special. While the prices were reasonable, even the "premium" wine was not all that noteworthy. If the Rev is going to succeed as a wine bar, I would recommend better selections. (The beer fridge, however, was very nice - and that saved it for me.) * The food menu situation is completely hosed. And to me there is nothing more discouraging than walking into a bar and being presented with a food menu... and an apology that the menu is completely out of date. Our host was apologetic and promised a new menu in the future. We hope so. Overall the Rev is definitely worth a visit for Eau Claire locals and visitors alike. It's grown-up cool, laid back atmosphere is good for a group of fun seekers out on the town. I'd only like to see improvements in wine quality and consistent food offerings.

I want to give a shout-out to the The Rev for being such an AMAZING host for our 20-year Memorial…read moreHigh School reunion, which was held July 20, 2019. To preface: I work in international education, and was planning our reunion from China of all places. As you might imagine, planning an event for 100+ people from abroad is no easy task. Combine this with the extra challenge of trying to communicate with a virtual Firewall in the way, and you can understand what an undertaking this was. The first issue was getting a venue. With the reunion being held during the same weekend as Country Jam and Rock Fest, our planning committee was a little bit nervous about the different venue options available. We were relieved to find that The Rev had availability for that weekend and would happily accommodate our group. We had a limited budget to work with for this event. Working directly with us, the fabulous Kate Haas, owner/manager, went about putting together a catering plan (heavy apps) that went under budget (and more importantly) appeased the diverse pallets of 100+. B/C of budget limitations, we opted to do a cash-bar w/ a complimentary champagne toast at 8:00 (which, by the way, was perfectly organized). A great offering of craft/domestic beers and wine + spirits gave everyone great beverage options. Bartending staff throughout the night were FANTASTIC! Being that we were celebrating our 20-year reunion, music nostalgia was KEY. Kate hooked us up with one of her specially-picked DJs for the night. Let me say: He was the star of the show! Non-obtrusive, but also knew EXACTLY what needed to be played at the EXACT moment. Many said afterwards that they had never experienced a better DJ. Get that man a raise! The Rev, itself, is amazing for hosting a group of 100 ppl or less. Great ambiance, an outdoor space out back - even a small room in back to use as central operations and/or additional space. Best of all, with The Rev being in the heart of DT Eau Claire, attendees can do some bar-crawling in after-event hours. All-in-all, this was an event for the ages. My HUGE thanks to Kate and her staff at the Rev for making this such a wonderfully positive experience. Got a group you're trying to plan an event for? Look no further than The Rev!

One of the larger Wine, Beer and Spirit stores you will encounter in WI. The grocery store is…read moreoutstanding, and the connected Liquor Store is right next door - actually attached. Great Bourbon set, I ended up buying Calumet Farms Small Batch and the Calumet Farm 10-year-old. Great price on both. The Small Batch was outstanding, but the 10 year was my favorite. I will be back to shop the other aisles soon, but those Bourbons are now my favorite.

First time in woodmans today. We enjoyed walking the store…read moreand checking everything out. Prices are good, store is clean and folks are nice. We were totally surprised when we got to the cashier and we couldn't use the credit card we had with us. Thank goodness we had enough cash. Probably won't make this place our monthly shopping spot.

Attached to the Lismore hotel by Doubletree makes this restaurant super accessible to…read moreout-of-towners. Service 5/5: we did not make a reservation, but staff did everything to accommodate us and get us seated. I really appreciate how kind they were and once we were seated, our server was attentive, making sure our drinks were always filled and that we were enjoying our meal. Ambiance 5/5: stunning environment. I highly recommend you take a peek and look at the bar because it's a bunch of little pennies and it is the coolest sight to see (I believe I heard them call it the penny bar too). I really enjoy that you could see into the kitchen while the chefs worked and how fluid they all seemed to be in their craft. Food 3/5: I was really disappointed by the food. I ordered the roasted lamb as a big fan of lamb and it was overcooked and very salty. Also, the mint gelée coupled with the root beer glacé de viande was overwhelmingly sweet. The dish was lacking a balance of acid and spice. My fiancé ordered the tater tot hot dish and I am thankful that he ordered that because we ended up sharing that the rest of the meal. Even he could not eat the Lamb and he is must less picky about flavor profiles. The hotdish was a cheesy parmesan dream with sweet corn, peas, mushrooms and I liked the textural mixture of pork and veal. Overall, I'm not sure if I would come back for a meal here. I have seen that their pizzas are really popular because they are woodfired and I wish we would've checked that first, but I wanted a cozy elevated dinner and I'm still really bummed that we did not get that.

Been here before, but it's been a very long time. We were passing through the area and looking for…read morea place to eat. It happened to be a very busy weekend, and the Informalist was one of the few places that did not have a long line to get seated. Got in right away and seated for some brunch. The restaurant is spacious and well designed. It's a bit upscale, but perfectly capable of making people feel relaxed and welcome. We got greeted right away by the server and settled in with menus and waters. Our order wasn't complicated: some of the Custard Battered French Toast, a short stack of pancakes, and two eggs. I also ordered a London Fog Tea Latte (a little lavender, a little vanilla, and extra foam). It didn't take long for the food to come, but the London Fog took a while longer. The French Toast was amazingly good, and the pancakes and eggs were also very good. I was half done with my meal by the time my London Fog arrived, and the server was very apologetic (saying that the coffee shop was very busy). I might have been satisfied with that, but the London Fog was just okay. While there was some extra foam, the drink itself was flat, as if they just heated up the milk and mixed it with the tea. (They need to do a better job with polishing the steamed milk so that it creates a creamy texture, especially if they ar charging $8) Overall, a good experience, and a few tweaks would have made it excellent. Would stop again if I was in the mood for the French Toast.

Overall a nice place to visit, though a little pricey for what they offer…read more Many of the wines are flavored (and delicious), but may not please a purist's wine pallete. (The apple pue sangria is a must try!) The distillery aspect is small, with only 2 whiskeys, 1 vodka, and 2 flavored versions of the vodka available. The $12 flight for three 3/4oz pours left us feeling lacking. The atmosphere is nice with lots of seating options. There are tables with chairs, bar searing, and a pit group of leather couches around a coffee table in front of the fire. The service was chipper and friendly, ready with recommendations based on what you like.

I had gone with my mother and we did the build your own wine tasting. When you first go in you get…read moreto choose where you sit (which they have a diverse selection), after they had taken our list of drinks all of the tastings came out pretty fast! Wish there were more food options but the wine selection was great!

Small liquor store in the middle of water street. I have a little bit of everything. The prices…read moreare decent. It's near a lot of student housing., Beer, wine, seltzer, cider.

Came here on a Saturday night and had a great time with friends. Parking was easy (there's a big…read morelot) and the staff were kind. I love breweries, but I'm gluten free and don't always feel like drinking alcohol, so sometimes my options are very limited. That was not the case here. There were several different options for cocktails-all of which could be made without alcohol. I ordered the cranberry mule and other members of my party enjoyed the NA beer and some of the sours. The space itself is nice and perfect for catching up with friends and playing a card game or two. I can't wait to visit in the summer and sit on the patio overlooking the river.

There are a few breweries that specialize in certain types of beer and this is one of them. They do…read morealmost exclusively "smoothie sour" type beers and they do them well. Normally the style can be much more "smoothie" than beer, but The Brewing Projekt gets the mix just right. Everything is well blended, not too sweet, and surprisingly light for what they are. Every beer we tried was great. The taproom is huge, their patio overlooks the River, and they allow dogs everywhere. What more do you want? It's a super chill atmosphere with board games and friendly staff. I would make a road trip here again and park a lunch or something. Just hang out, drink a couple beers and play board games.

The novelty of pouring your own beer from the many taps available is fun! The outside patio is nice…read moreand relaxing. There was a band playing the night we were there. There's not a huge variety of food choices. More a place to have a drink and relax.

Guess I didn't read the description before I came out to this place because I was very surprised…read morewhen I entered and the host wanted our credit card instead of seating us at a table first. You get a beer card which is linked to the credit card you provided upon check in and then you go to the wide range of taps on the wall and fill up your glass. There's a little variety in the sizes and types of glassware to choose from. You are charged by oz, and the price is clearly displayed on the signage. I thought it was going to cost us much more to do it this way instead of sitting down and ordering a drink but we think it actually ended up being cheaper to drink this way. We decided to take a seat outside on the patio. It's a large area with games and plenty of different types of seating. You order through the QR code on the menu and your food gets delivered to your table. It came out fairly quick and we were hungry so we ordered way too much food. We tried the Mediterranean Chicken Flatbread which was really good and I highly recommend just getting that! Had the Mediterranean Salad. A nice sized portion and very fresh. Tried the 12 pc boneless wings. I don't normally like boneless wings but that is all they had. So we tried them. Not impressed. Very thick breading, no outstanding flavor. These felt like bar food, which is okay. It is a bar but in comparison to our delicious flatbread I was disappointed. Lastly we tried the Garlic Parmesan Cheese Curds. These were unlike any cheese curd I've had before. They were huge squares which felt like hunks of bread. I though they were too big and too cheesy for my tastebuds. It was a nice place to stop in while we were traveling through and a great day to sit out on the patio.

Downtown staple, always a good experience. Food is good, service is always excellent and it's a…read moreregular stop in the downtown restaurant rotation.

The food hear is always solid without just relying on salt to cover mediocrity, and they will…read moreactually cook your burger to order instead of just giving you a medium/well done burger every time. It always feels loud inside, but the patio and upper level can help you escape. I ins supper time usually is busy, but it empties quickly. The Bob Jam was tasty with sweetness of the sauce and leaft arugula form the perfect opening for the punch of the gorgonzola. Salt levels were also good. 5/5 The sweet potato tots are always perfect - crispy outside, mushy inside - and that cinnamon sauce makes a knockout combo. 5/5 I'm guessing around 12 taps with a broad selection and not just the regulars. An 18% "living wage fee" is added to the bill. Burger, tots, and beer totalled $27.

Charming service all around. We arrived today (Friday) at 5:15 pm without a reservation, yet they…read morewere gracious and placed us at a lovely table. Our server, Gracie, was phenomenal in all regards, and from now on I'll always make reservations and request a table in her section. We weren't insanely hungry so we skipped appetizers, soup, salad. My husband order the Chicken Tchoupitoulas and I selected the medallions of beef with bernaise sauce. My guy's chicken was addictive; I only got a little nibble but I'd be hard-pressed not to order it from now on. The Chicken Chop was flavor-forward, with succulent chicken and veggies. The medallions I selected were cooked medium rare as requested, juicy and tender, but lacked seasoning. The mashed potatoes that were on my plate needed more butter and/or gravy. I think the big issue with this place would be parking, as it's in a high-traffic area and doesn't have it's own lot. Even going for dinner as early as we did, street parking was scarce.

I stopped in for a family dinner while on a business trip, and the experience was excellent from…read morestart to finish. Making a reservation was easy, and although we arrived a bit early, the reception staff was welcoming and accommodating. Everyone was friendly, attentive, and made us feel comfortable right away. My uncle and I ordered the ribeye, while my aunt had the cod sandwich. We also shared the shrimp cakes and seafood bake appetizers. Everything was delicious, and we didn't have any leftovers. I will definitely be coming back on my next trip.