This will be my go to bar when visiting Burlington. Shout out to Margo my bartender! Pool tables cold good beer. Friendly staff and people what an awesome dive bar! I didn't get any pizza this trip. read more

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Over the Fourth of July weekend, a friend and I stopped by Three Needs around 1:00 a.m. We ordered drinks and planned to grab some pizza before heading home. As we were leaving, my friend told me that the bartender had called him a "Nazi" and a "racist" because of the shirt he was wearing. It was simply a black shirt that said "Happy 250 Years" with an American flag behind the text. I turned around to ask why she felt that way. Before I could even finish speaking, she immediately became confrontational. I asked how his shirt made him a racist or a Nazi, especially considering he's friends with me, a Hispanic male. Instead of having a conversation, she told me to leave, took the beer that I had already paid for, and refused to let me finish it. She then called over a bouncer and, from my perspective, falsely told him that I had said, "You don't have any colored friends." I never made that statement and immediately told the bouncer it wasn't true. The one positive part of the experience was the bouncer. He remained calm, listened to both sides, and professionally de-escalated the situation. I handed him my beer and left peacefully. It's unfortunate because the rest of our Fourth of July was great, and this was a disappointing way to end the night. I used to enjoy going to Three Needs, but after being treated this way and seeing my friend labeled with such serious accusations over a T-shirt, I won't be returning. I hope management takes the time to look into what happened that night, because no customer should be treated this way for simply asking a question or wearing a shirt celebrating the Fourth of July. After we left and were standing outside, several other customers came over to us and apologized for what had happened. They also told us that, in their experience, this bartender has a reputation for treating customers this way. Whether that's accurate is for management to determine, but based on my own experience that night, I was extremely disappointed. read more

Egotistic bouncer denied me. Let everyone in but me because "I was waddling". Everyone else behind me was let in drunk if not more drunk than me. What a joke, check your boys. Loser. read more

Got some late night beers and pizzas from this crazy place in Burlington. It basically is like a dive bar, popular with the drunk ass college crowd. Three Needs is better than it sounds though. Four sure there's a better beer selection than a crap bar would have. You can also get stuff from the pizza window. Came here and it was loud and crowded. It's hard to get any seats at the bar to be honest. There were a few tables open though. Basically it's got lots of local beers. It's not much of a brewery anymore, just a regular bar it seems. Get some of the other local beers. It's about $5 for a pint of the Green Mountain Lager. As for the food, get some at the pizza window by the entrance. Pay for it at the bar or at the window. It's $7 for the Vegan Pizza. This is a personal size one with no cheese, and vegetables. Basic looking. There's also salads. Has quite a few local beers on tap, and good prices on a lot. It's also known for the pizza. There's something on the menu, that says ask them about their options for vegans and vegetarians. read more

Three Needs Taproom & Brewery - Green Mountain Lager And Vegan Pizza - Breweries Near Me - Burlington, Vermont

Mixed experience at Three Needs. The female staff were friendly, professional, and pleasant. Unfortunately, interactions with male staff were condescending and included insulting remarks toward customers. Poor service seems to be a recurring issue here, and my experience reflected that. Instead of basic hospitality, the tone was dismissive and unnecessary. I came for a drink--not to be talked down to or made to feel like I was inconveniencing the staff by being there. If you're looking for a place where male staff insult customers and act like they're doing you a favor by showing up, this might be your spot. For everyone else, it's disappointing. Some basic customer-service standards and clearer management expectations around respectful communication could greatly improve the experience. read more

I had a really bad experience with staff here, and i'd advise staying away. I came in here with 2 friends to get pizza (not drinks, we just came in and joined the pizza line). I was standing there on my phone, and the indoor bouncer came up and started screaming in my face. Not the guy watching the door or the guy checking IDs inside, another staff member. Very aggressively, and slurring his words as well. This bar tolerates shocking levels of drunkenness and aggressive behavior among the staff whose job it is to enforce safety. I would stay away from here. read more

Needs has some major ups and some major downs. We'll do the pros first: Pros: -the pizza is good, with a very diverse array of toppings choices that make it manageable for dietary restrictions. -in the same vein of pizza, I am celiac, and they offer gluten free crust personal pizzas there. -I like that they have a pizza order window for under-21 people. I think that's fun and it's a unique facet that I've never seen a bar do before. -they have a lot of seating at tables, booths, and a separate/more private room of tables as well. They also have a back deck outside. -I like that they have a self serve water cooler with cups out. You don't have to ask for a cup of water Cons: -the bartenders are not swift. It takes a lot of work to get their attention as well, even when it's not busy. -the bartenders do not know how to pour a mixed drink. I have never seen them measure shots in drinks. This is dangerous because you don't really know how many drinks you've had-- sometimes the drinks advertised to have only one shot in them clearly have at least two if not more. It's dangerous! -it's really dirty in there. -needs bouncer is mostly effective at not letting in underage college students, but isn't the friendly type, which is a bummer I think. -the bar attracts a lot of people from a very specific crowd. Like frat boys and dude bros. I don't love that. -finally, the bathrooms are.... Kinda gross lol. read more

Three Needs Taproom & Brewery - Bathroom. Holding a dark and stormy - Breweries Near Me - Burlington, Vermont

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The two men tending the bar last night treated me horribly, and scoffed in my face when I asked them to remake my drink that they had left unattended on the bar. They made no effort to tell me my drink was ready, or to hand it to me, or even slide it towards me. They left it about two feet away, unattended, for at least 3-5 minutes as I waited for my drink. I asked them to please remake it, and they argued with me. Their dismissive tone and attitude was incredibly damaging, inconsiderate, and out of touch. Who scoffs in a woman's face after making a request so simple and NECESSARY? The two men bartending last night do. read more

My favorite place in Burlington, hands down!! Gluten free pizza gluten free pizza gluten free pizza!! Gluten free friends- it's literally $8 for your own gluten free pizza...need I say more... My favorite pizza has always been the Sweet Caroline. When they took it off the menu for a while, they would still make it special for me :) Best place to meet friends, but I always had fun on my own too read more

This place looks like a cult and pitches itself as...a brewery? As far as I can tell: it's neither. It is, however, a fantastic dive bar. It's a dive bar like they used to make them. A darkened tavern where friends and future friends meet to quaff cheap beer and maybe play some pool. They also have pizza but I can't comment on it either way. Beer selection is shocking good for this style of bar but, I guess that is explained by its being in Vermont. read more

This is just simply my favorite bar I think Cheap beer good pizza great ambiance in and out read more

Love a local pub but lets be honest sometimes the service can be a little slow. Great pizza tho!

Vermont where memories are truly attached- 3 Needs. I have chosen my 3 needs, have you? The bar and customer service were outstanding - the staff were friendly and attentive, and they made the experience truly enjoyable. Every time I visit Vermont, a stop at this restaurant is a must. The pizzas are by far some of the best in town - the toppings are fresh and the crust is cooked to perfection. The local taproom is also a great feature, offering a variety of local beers to try. Overall, the food and atmosphere at this restaurant are fantastic, and the people are amazing. I highly recommend it to anyone visiting Vermont. Their pesto is besto! read more

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Brunette bartender w glasses bitched me out after grabbing my drink from the bar? Something about not paying for it (which I did?!) While getting the second round another bartender spilled my drink all over me and then cussed me out saying it didn't happen?! It's like I entered a different world where reality is what the bitchy bartender makes it. Hate it here. read more

Delicious pizza for a decent price! Specially for a drinking night, bar is in the same establishment so it works perfectly. read more

Three Needs Taproom & Brewery - a pizza in a box - Breweries Near Me - Burlington, Vermont

went here tonight and received extremely poor service. Drinks were cheap which was the attraction, but don't expect any type of service. We had this bartender, ungroomed looking, hippie appearance having the nerve to come over to complain about his tip for the poor service. He caused a scene due to his greed. It was completely unprofessional and immature. This individual raised gis voice, disrespected and unnecessarily used profanity. He tried to take advantage of the drunk person closing out the bill by attempting to manipulate him into increasing his tip. Management needs to reevaluate this employee for his poor customer service and inappropriate behavior. This is completely unacceptable. read more

Classic dive. Standard service. Pizza is not bad, but mine was too salty, I did not add salt! Pool tables, a few pinball machines. Outdoor patio is very nice, shaded from too much sun in summer. Could smell better inside. read more

Lost my father during this time and the bartender was so sweet. Kept the drinks flowing and the pizza was fire. Use to live around the corner 7 years ago so swinging in was a treat. read more

I love this place in the afternoon. Lots of pool tables and good beers and prices. It's a dive bar but relatively clean. Good bartenders too. Wouldn't come in here after 10 pm if not in college though. This place gets rowdy with beer pong seeking binge drinkers! read more

Casual pool players meet serious players here, but everyone is drinking hard cider on up and the vibe is friendly. Just write your name on the chalk board if you want to play. Have 3 quarters at the ready. You'll feel enough like cool hand Luke to make the evening worth the trip. read more

Ended our night at Three Needs Taproom & Brewery. A dive bar that caters to the college town needs, cheap-ish beers and drunk pizza avaliable. Quality: Decent dive bar with pizza at the front. Pizza is made for the end of a sloppy evening, I would go Kale Pesto over Bubba. The beer list is small and local. A lot of Vermont choices and okay deals. Quantity: Fair pours and decent size slices. Value: $3-$7 for a Draft Beer. $3-$5 for a Pizza Slice. Ambiance: Threes Needs Taproom & Brewery is located in Burlington. Not really sure if brewery is the correct title for this dive bar and pizza spot, but maybe sometimes they have their own brews. When you enter they have a small pizza ordering setup, then up some steps is the actual bar. They have televisions around the space and pool tables in the back. The seating is sporadic, but it may have been pushed to the side for the busy weekend. Crowd: Very busy on Halloween weekend nights. One of the more popular bars in town, which formed a line each night. Crowd quickly got rowdy and you saw an exodus of patrons when it happened. Service: Pizza guy was great, bartenders were super friendly. Parking: Limited street parking. read more

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Great spot! Great beer prices and friendly staff. Great local bar for sure. I'll definitely be back to visit this place

Love this place. Literally a bar tender cleaned our table for us, what other bar has that type of service ⁉ I will say, the bouncer reprimanded us but it was in a very respectful and kind way and we were in the wrong read more

This was more of a chill laid back college bar vibe. It's close to the college which brings in a young crowd. There's were foosball tables and pool tables as well, music playing hut not too loud where you had to scream to be heard. They do check for Covid vaccinations cards as well as ID's at the door. They carry beers from surrounding breweries. Didn't try the food since I just wanted a quick drink. Clean bathrooms. There was street parking but it's was full since it was Saturday afternoon. Bartenders were nice and you can tell they had a regular crowd there. Would come back here again. read more

Best late night pizza! Nice sized slices, great cheese blend, and incredibly creative special pizzas. Duff hour $1 slices, too! Shazam

I've always loved needs because of their gluten free pizza, but this evening I was really disappointed with their service. I asked to have a gluten free pizza and the server rolled his eyes and gave me a hard time about it. I then informed him I had celiac and really was gluten free and he said there's flour everywhere so I can't be. I was so upset he decided to make the choice for me about whether or not I can have cross contamination and he yelled that I'm not allowed to be half celiac. Just wanted some pizza :.( read more

Had a great time here! Really good Pizza and a strong selection of beer choices, with a beautiful and spacious Pub atmosphere

Great ambience, great drinks. But for the love of god please stop playing the Beatles.

I'll preface this review by saying that there may be some nostalgia influencing my rating. I started going to Three Needs when it was on College St, in a much smaller and in my opinion much cooler space. The new space is huge and at first detracted from the experience, but they have since grown into it and actually expanded into another room and added a nice back patio. Three Needs IS a college dive bar and has been for a while, so if that isn't the experience you are looking for, I would strongly recommend looking elsewhere. What Three Needs does, they do well. The beer selection, while not that of a beer bar, is pretty good. Mostly local microbrews from the bigger area breweries. They have brought back some of their old recipes from the College St location when Three Needs was actually a brewery. Not every bar in Burlington has an ESB, so I thought this was a nice improvement. Oh, and the beers are wicked cheap, mostly $5 and under. $4.50 for a Backseat Berner from Otter Creek is a steal. While they do attract a fairly raucous crowd, this is not the kind of bar where people come to get smashed on Coors Light and cheap well drinks while listening to blaring pop tunes. Reggae and pool are the primary activities other than drinking. A few years back, they added a pizza window that has since expanded their menu offerings to more than just cheese and pepperoni. While its not the best pizza in the world, its pretty good for a bar and certainly hits the spot after a beer or two. read more

Went in here for a break from the outside. The interior was dark and pretty much like all regular bars that have been around with a few posters on the wall and dark green paint. The bar had some Simpsons paraphernalia which I thought was cool. On the bar they had some bottles with some custom labels and the bartender told me how they made some of their own stuff. The bartender was very nice and pleasant to talk to. The bathroom was clean was well lit. I would definitely come back, very chill place to just hang out. read more

3 Needs is a fantastically divey taproom only about a block away from the madness of Church St, but you'd walk right past it and never know what you missed. They've got a weird airlock double-door thing going on which makes it awkward to casually stroll in while wielding photo gear, but I eventually made it. It was 7pm on a Saturday, and dead. Three others, a couple and one other solo gent, were in watching a soccer game, and not saying much. I'm assuming it gets busier later on in the night. The reviews on Yelp say this is a "love it or hate it" kind of place, and describe the normal crowd as "Phishy." Perhaps it's better that we were there while it was quiet. The bartender was very friendly, and told me they brew in the basement, and I'm kicking myself for not taking a peek at their setup. The decor of the place is very 18-35 year old male demographic, with a pool table, punk rock stickers, liberated street signs and license plates, and a plethora of Family Guy and Simpsons cutouts. I went with the Citra IPA, which was fantastic... hoppy bitter bite, but with enough smoothness to balance it out. The best beer I had on the whole trip. My companion went with the Helles Boch, and enjoyed it... medium dark and malty sweet. After that she was feeling adventurous and got a (free!) flight of the four house beers. I'm not sure if that is standard, or if it was just quiet that evening, but free beer always tastes better. The Belgian wit, Helles boch and Paul's pils were all pretty standard and drinkable, but the IPA was by far the star of the show. Excellent. It was definitely a dive, but with that "neighborhood-bar-where-the-locals-go" sort of vibe. I wouldn't be surprised if I was sitting in somebody's "saved" seat. While we were there, a few others wandered in, and casually strolled behind the bar to get their personal pool cues before settling down for a couple games. My thoughts might change if I saw the usual crowd, but I loved it. Good, solid place to sit down, shut up, and have a good beer. read more

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I used to frequent at the older location on college street and since the bar moved to its current location the clientele demographic has shifted considerably and now is more of a college dive bar type. Offering a new-ish enclosed back patio with tables and chairs (there are smokers out there), as well as pizza, billiards, pinball, an oldschool arcade, and fooseball, the Needs definitely is a fun night out on the town. The Needs also used to brew their own beer but I think this has been discontinued two years ago or so. Tip: Duff Hour. $1 draft beers starting at 4 on weekdays until the keg kicks. Another tip: the first 30 minutes after the Duff Hour keg kicks there a $1 slices of pizza! There seems to be enough of a following for Duff Hour so you will often see a line at the door before they open at 4. read more

Three Needs Taproom & Brewery - Duff Hour beers all lined up - Breweries Near Me - Burlington, Vermont

Went in they're restaurant orders 5 slices of pizza and tipped $2 75 then sat down and waited for the pizza and realized I had a piece of glass in my foot I took my shoe off and looked. And then realized I am in a restaurant and that's not very hygienic so I walked past the bouncer shown my ID went to the bathroom as I was trying to get the glass out of my foot there was someone that came and banged on the door very hard twice as I said someone was in here and I would be right out. As I came out of the bathroom the bouncer told me to leave,and that he knows what I was doing in there and I giggled and said yeah I figured doing it in the bathroom is probably better and hygienic than doing it on the bench and I mentioned how I had glass in my foot and he called me a liar and told me that's not what I was doing and that he knows what I was doing in there and told me to leave as I asked him when I was doing he wouldn't tell me. Insinuating I was doing drugs. I was super offended and embarrassed I can't believe the audacity this man had and how rude after buying five slices and tipping and being nothing but polite.and the bouncer that was rude and embarrassed me was a young skinny kid with brown hair. read more

We found Three Needs Taproom on the Untappd App and decided to check it out. It definitely has a dive-bar feel to the place. You walk in and everything feels a little dirty. Oh well, it's a bar and I can get over it. The craft beers that they had on tap were pretty good. The servers were knowledgeable and pretty friendly (they were also pretty busy on a Friday night). The bonus to this place is the little take-out pizza counter at the front door. EXCELLENT slices of pizza. I would go back just for the pizza! read more

To whomever the manger here is, I'd like to tell you that due to your poor selection in a particular (African American) bouncer at your fine establishment I will no longer be coming back. I was treated very poorly and all I wanted to do was go out for a celebratory drink and possibly play pool. However that never happened as I was not allowed in and the bouncer judged me by my nose if that matters lol. I asked to speak to anyone above him and he laughed at me and refused. Therefore I will spend my money else where. This post is not worthy of any star. Signing off- a customer who used to love that place. read more

I always like 3 needs, and the friendly crowd, fun atmosphere and down to earth feel always gives me the warm feeling of being in a happy place. Go, enjoy beer, and being your friends. read more

I always have such a great time here! Amazing beer list, great set up, friendly staff, and just a good overall vibe. They have a "Duff hour" which is a nice loophole to a happy hour where they sell a particular beer for cheap until it runs out. It's usually not the best one in their expansive collection of local brews, but it does the trick ;) I find the staff really knowledgeable and expanded me outside of my go-tos to try some new awesome beers! read more

Honestly a perplexing experience. I've never tried to make small talk and been shut down so rudely and quickly before. Was told I would not be served if I drank too much. Made no indication that I intended to "order 20 shots." Worst experience I've had with the bartender. Definitely never coming back and would not recommend to anyone. read more

Not really understanding why they're particularly loud on Sunday... the vibe is great and all, but coming from the apartment buildings all around this place, sundays are the literal worst. If Radio Bean was open (way better than this place. Classier too) they wouldn't be half as annoying. They close at 2, but keep the music full blast until WAY after the time they're supposed to be closed. And the music sucks. For an establishment that prides themselves on being respectful, they're far from it. read more

This dive needs to rethink a few things. The place was a dive and not in a good way. The bartender was a prima donna -- please see previous comment. Place was a dump, so no need to be condescending to your patrons. The bathroom was disgusting. Happy to never go back. read more