Dining and drinking review: Black Kettle Bites and Brews

Black Kettle Bites and Brews is located at 744 Market Street

Review and photos by Ted Broussard

CAN-Do Attitude
In these days of craft everything -- craft cocktails, craft beer, craft wine, I think I’ve now heard the trendiest -- “craft cans." It takes a real can-do attitude to try and launch a new restaurant, but it takes a lot of guts to carve out a niche market of canned beer and wine in a section of town known for tap rooms and microbreweries.

With a breakfast menu starting at 7 a.m. on weekdays, a busy lunch crowd from downtown, a daily happy hour from 4-7, a limited selection of “bites,” and a list of over 40 cans of regional craft beer served till 10 p.m. on weekdays and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, Black Kettle Bites and Brews is trying to be several things all at one time. Because they are the new kid in town, I give them credit for trying a different concept. My best guess is they’ll continue to experiment and could probably look very different over the course of a year.

They are off to a good start though with breakfast. I was excited, when I first heard about Black Kettle coming to town, that the owners were from Texas and insisted on having breakfast burritos on the menu. I’m happy to report that they’re delicious. The eggs are fluffy and fresh and the fillings are tasty and well seasoned. We’ve tried the Sausage, Egg & Cheese ($3.50) and the Potato, Egg & Cheese burrito ($3) and both are winners. The salsa on the side is good without being overpowering and the fruit bowl ($3) consisted of fresh and tasty bananas, strawberries and blueberries the day we were there. We haven’t tried the lunch options yet but the server there says it’s their busiest time of the day. I’m hoping that holds them over for a while till the evening business catches on. We went on a Saturday night about 7:30 p.m. and the place was empty till a party of four came for coffee a bit later. 

The “bites” are house made and overall very good. I loved the Pigs In a Blanket (5 for $5) with a nice side of yellow mustard and the house made hummus plate ($5) with fresh vegetables was delicious with big flavor. The quesadilla ($6) with added chicken was a big hit with us. The chicken was particularly tasty and the black bean and cheese filling elevated this bar food standard a notch or two. The only miss for us was the nachos ($6). The cheese was not a far cry from the awful stuff one finds in movie theatres. It was pretty bland and there wasn’t much of it on our basket of crunchy tortilla chips with big slices of jalapeno. I would pass on that next time and try their house chicken potpie.

Considering our limitations as beer drinkers, we opted for a Blue Moon beer and a can of pinot noir. Yes, you heard me right. A CAN of wine!  And here I thought boxed wine was the end of civilization, as we know it. I have to admit that it wasn’t bad. You have to get past the visual of sipping from a warm can, but after that, the wine was pretty good. Turns out to be an Oregon company called Underwood and it keeps with the theme of local and regional sourcing.

The space itself is warm and friendly with a clear Northwest feel. I understand that it was a coffee shop in its most recent life and it still has the feel of a neighborhood daytime lunch/coffee spot more than a bar. There’s a nice, large outside patio space but it is not yet permitted for alcohol. Plans for the future could include music on weekends and expanded product lines with wine that actually comes in a glass. Orders are taken at the front counter and food is prepared just next to it in an open space by the front counter staff. Service was excellent and friendly on both of our recent visits. 

Black Kettle Bites and Brews is a good addition to downtown but still finding their identity. I’m encouraged by their delicious breakfast burritos and reports of a busy lunch business but I’m a little worried about the nightlife aspect. I’m not sure if the “craft can” concept will be a big hit with lots of other brew pubs around and I think the canned wine will be an even harder sell. While I admire a good “can-do” attitude to be several things at one time, Black Kettle has lots of promise but may need to lose some of the cans and focus on doing a few things well.