Triumph Brewing Co
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Late Night
- Alcohol: Full Bar
30 Reviews for Triumph Brewing Co
The food is ok, I think a lot of the stuff is overpriced for what it is. The beer is good, though I'm not a beer person, I do enjoy their fall seasonal offerings, like the Honey Wheat and the Framboise when they have it. It's always busy around dinner time, and the wait can be up to an hour for a table. I prefer going later for drinks and late night food. Sometimes they have live music, but it gets way too loud when they play (which sucks when its a band that isn't very good). Despite it being overpriced, I always have fun when I go here.
Its better than 3 stars, not quite 4, but i'll give 4.
Most def better than your average microbrewery (most of them suck). The place is huge and has a really great energy to it, which is totally unexpected from its tiny unassuming entryway. The beers are actually pretty good (although i wish they also offered regular beer for those who dont do the microbrew thing).
And the food? Its really good. We loved everything we had, including the superlong stringbeans. And as the night went on, the live music went on, and we just never wanted to leave. Good fun, good for large groups or small. If it gets too crowded there is tons of room upstairs.
I'd go back.
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Dinner/Bar Review
Came here on a coworker's recommendation. Located right next to Panera Bread on Nassau (Small "storefront" with two "Triumph" banners/flags in the front -- I missed it the first time past the street).
Ordered:
Steamed Littleneck [clams] in a honey wheat broth
Hanger Steak sandwich: lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, house fries
Refreshments:
House Irish stout and the Scottish Ale
The littlenecks were Tasty. I almost drank the broth it came in, but refrained because I figured it was probably butter-based... but I thought about it.
The hanger steak sandwich was tasty... the bartender asked me if there was something wrong with it... because I was looking at it funny. I said no, but what I was really thinking was, "Where's the meat?" It was tasty, but for the size of the roll, I was hoping for a higher meat:roll ratio.
The beers... were good. The stout wasn't as tasty as The Stout Standard... and I've never had "scottish ale" before -- which is served at a 'certain' temperature that I don't remember (but it does come out of a separate tap... so I can't really compare the ale to anything else.
Can't really tell how the atmosphere of the place was, since I sat at the bar the whole time. But it is a size-able place... that you definitely wouldn't expect with the 10x10 storefront.
I'd come back.. if I ever stay in Princeton again.
Oh, price was reasonable: $9-12 (I think) for both the clams and the sandwich. Beer was reasonable too.
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We came here about 3 times and I can't say I had a very good meal here. I typically went for the fish and chips because I liked the way they came out to the table in the cone thing but was never that impressed with them. Other people that I would eat with would give it so so reviews and so I think that unless you are micro brew type of person this is a check it out if you want, but you won't miss anything if you don't.
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Adam R summed it up really well: Triumph is a good spot, but the fact that it is the best Princeton has to offer is really sad.
I can't vouch for the food, but the beer is pretty good. Triumph can't compete with any Denver brewpubs, but I won't hold that against it.
Lastly, the architect who designed Triumph has this really cute step daughter (you kow who you are), who was my 8th grade girlfriend. Call me sentimental but that counts for something...
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Great for food and a beer. Triumph has a great selection of fresh brews - the Oatmeal Stout is my favorite. Princeton isn't a place for nightlife - go to Philly instead. They actually just opened up a second Triumph location in Olde City, Philly, less than a year ago, and it's a little more nightclub-esque.
Really good beer, some good menu items, pretty pricey but above average.
This is probably the most regularly packed place in town. It's not the place to get a 'taste of the college life'- I'm not sure where other reviewers are getting that- this is totally a yuppie hangout, and the manufactured 'atmosphere' serves that.
The staff is, at best, nonchalant. They've been anywhere from completely oblivious (not coming over to our table at all within 10 minutes of seating) to straight up rude (I once left a bag of rental videos at my table, guy acted like he was doing me a HUGE favor actually retrieving them 5 minutes later).
Along with being insanely packed, it's often insanely loud- a problem made much worse when they used to have bad local music.
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The Triumph Brewing Company is an acceptable bar. It has good beers they brew themselves and good food, all a little expensive. Unfortunately, it may be the best Princeton has to offer, which is a tragedy. This place would be great as an alternative to many other good bars, but as the best Princeton has, it's just not good enough.
The first thing is that it's crowded. I went on a Tuesday night and couldn't find a seat and had to wait half an hour for a table. Most good college bars are crowded, but the layout of this place doesn't make the crowd feel like a communal experience. Its bar area is long and narrow, which makes it difficult to mingle. The restaurant is broken up into levels, so that you feel alone. Feeling alone in a large crowd is not easy, but Triumph makes it happen.
There's a good selection of liquor and wine. I'm a beer man, so I went straight for the beer. The wheat beer was recommended by people on this site. I tried it and found it good. The Irish Stout was okay, but I'm not a stout guy. The Irish Red was a little too heavy for me. I like Killian's Irish Red, but this was darker and heavier. The beers were a little expensive, more than $6 per. Frankly, this is a lot for a beer and especially a lot for beers that are just good. I would not go out of my way to drink any of these three beers again and if I went back to Triumph, I would only order the honey wheat.
The food was good. Much better than the beer. I had the vegetarian chili and found it surprisingly hearty. I also sampled the roast arctic char and the pumpkin ravioli. All were good. They were sophisticated dishes, cooked well with high quality ingredients. Let's be frank, though. They were the cheapest entrees on the menu and overpriced at that. We ordered them because the real dishes were a lot more. I don't look for expensive foods at a bar. I look for greasy food that goes well with beer. However, if you want expensive food, this place is not bad.
Overall, I liked Triumph okay. If I was in Princeton again, I would go there. Its environment is not good, its beer is okay, its food is good and everything is slightly overpriced.
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Triumph in P-town is always popping on Thursday, Friday & Saturdays nights. You usually have to wait to get a seat anywhere near the bar. Speaking of the bar, it has a cool atmosphere, and all the amenities one might want. I recommend trying their sampler, which features 5oz samples of all seven of their beers on tap. This way you can taste all their local brews. I like honey wheat and oatmeal! There is usually live music to enjoy while you taste test your brew-ski.
The food is okay... it's not my favorite place to eat in Princeton but it's a good stand by. The menu is what I would call Fusion Pub Food... a mix of the standards and some twists. In the past I have tried the pumpkin raviolis, the veggie burger, & the spice Caesar. The great part is they have different lunch, dinner, and late night menus. I recommend going late night, ordering a bunch of beers and apps, and sharing.
I've also been to the New Hope location and have similar feelings about it. Cool atmosphere, good beer, decent food. There is also one in Phili.
So I went here a few years ago and didn't enjoy it at all. They refuse to let you split the bill. The group was a table of 20 and we wanted to split just one person separate cause they had to pay separately. Not to mention it was only $20 something dollars, that was being taken onto a diff bill, not like it was gonna make a huge dent to the bigger bills total(i.e. included tip). During the same meal I had a waitress spill half my chocolate martini on me and still made me pay the full price for the drink(refused to remove it, even though half was now on my shirt), luckily I was wearing a brown shirt. The food is okay nothing to write home about. and I'm not a fan of beer so there was nothing at this place that I enjoyed. I know people like to come here especially if you like beer cause they brew there own, but I think it's a little overrated and the service sucks here, very snobby and rude. I would never come here again. Two thumbs down.
Triumph Brewery is a nice change of pace from the dives I usually like to frequent. It has beautiful interior design, and more importantly, yummy beer. (I personally like the amber ale)--There's a reason more Triumph's are sprouting up in New Hope and Philly. For those that don't like beer they also have a full dinner menu & full bar. And they usually have live music on weekend that gets folks dancin'.
For a fun night, come in a small group & order beer samplers all around.
The sampler gives you 5oz. of each of the 7 beers on tap, a nice way for first-timers to determine their favorite brew. My top-pick was the Oatmeal Stout, and of the 7 the only I disliked was called "Rauchbock" (to me and my friends, it had a strange bacon flavor).
As far as food goes, I'll agree with others - it's a bit pricey considering the portion size. With that said, do try the calamari with its borderline addictive aioli sauce.
Overall a nice place for a good conversation over a couple beers.
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Nice atmosphere, quick and friendly service. The food is a bit overpriced - but it's nice for a happy hour.
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beer is good.. get the honey wheat. only thing is they use to have a really good bar menu but they changed it.. nothing is good.. i hope they realize this and bring back some of the old items. At least they didn't get rid of the Triumph Burger which is pretty good.
Good burgers and beers. I drank the Winter Wonder and it kicked my ass... it really snuck up on me. I describe their lunch menu as eclectic pub food - all very good. Fine for families with kids during the day... at night, I imagine you see more of the corporate and hoity toity set. There's also live music regularly. The waitresses are attentive and friendly. The space is large with a lot of exposed brick and artwork that can be purchased.
Nice place to experience the Princeton college life. The pub was packed w/ students on a Thursday night. I went there on a business trip w/ some co-workers.
Food was decent and pricey. They had some very unique beers as well.
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I'm really into micro-brews, but this place is just a bit more trendy than most. Oh, and the beer is less than good. I've sampled several of them over the years and have yet to be impressed by most of them; however, I do enjoy their Pale Ale (hint - please brew more often - not the IPA, just the Pale Ale) and the Honey Wheat. Not in the mood for beer, order a glass of the Petite Syrah, it's really wonderful.
The food is average. I was particularly fond of a certain appetizer involving refried beans and apples (I can't remember its name), but they took it off the menu. This fall (2007), I got hooked on an item off yet another new menu - the Cremini Mushroom Pizza (zucchini, caciocavallo, and truffle oil). The crust was very thin and well done and the toppings really attributed to the delicious taste. This Winter (2008), I've really enjoyed the Tofu club sandwich, but I'm sure they'll be switching to yet another menu very soon. That's the problem with this place - they should stick with one menu with all the favorites from their last five or so menus and then just change up a tapas menu regularly for some variety at the bar.
I frequent Triumph, but my wallet screams each and every time. But hey, I guess you gotta pay for trendiness.
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Triumph is.........a packed-out, college town, place-to-b-seen pub house with 2 levels for viewing prospects. I've attended several corporate after work socials here and I suppose it makes the middle aged executives feel younger. Sigh.... I had one of Triumph's red ales and being from a micro brew haven, I wasn't that impressed. However, I've had much worse. The pub food here is quite awful however. The burgers and finger food are dry, and not much care had been taken with making certain that we got our orders fulfilled in a timely fasion. I have found the bartenders to be consistently apathetic and the chemistry of the place to be pretentious. I'm still trying to figure out why?
Food is above average, but in a bitter (literally) twist of irony, the beer is awful. And curse that echo!
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I've heard this place has a reputation for having slightly overpriced food, but why would you go there for the food when you're at a microbrew?
I had a seasonal stout that was fantastic, so all four stars are for that delicious stout.
Jeeesh, tough crowd! These guys butchered the Triumph! Not me,this place is a little bit of all right.
It's basically your every-day-brew-pub experience.Don't know what i mean? OK,if your primary goal is to sample all their beers,and then some :),they have a sampler deal which consists of a dozen or so beers in a small portion .For me,i found them pretty run-of-the mill home brews,nothing special,but good.One criticism i agree with is slacker staff.Man,these guys are sampling too much of their own product.
Food is also nothing extraordinary,but not bad.
(Please note: I've only had drinks and desserts here, so my review may leave something to be desired...)
Speaking of leaving something to be desired, there is Triumph Brewing Co. in Princeton, NJ. I'm not quite sure what the big draw is. It's a sort of trendy-ish place (and Princeton, with all of its stodginess, could use some trendiness), but urghhh. I just don't know.
First of all -- it's ALWAYS crowded. My wife, her cousin, and I walked in one evening at around 9:00 and were told that there would be a one and a half hour wait. Yikes!
Second -- if you are lucky enough to be seated in a timely manner, you must contend with the service. At points, I have been tempted to trip our waiter/waitress or throw something at them in order to get a refill on my drink.
Third -- the beers (it is a microbrewery, after all). Yeah, they're ok. I am quite fond of their "Chocolate Stout" (which I think is a seasonal offering, so don't go there in hopes of getting it all of the time), but the other selections are just so-so.
I haven't eaten anything from the regular menu yet, although some of the offerings sound appetizing. The desserts were pretty good; some featuring unique little twists -- like a creme brulee made with rosemary!
On weekends, there are concerts (and a small cover charge) -- but they NEVER start on time. Probably because there are so many people still lingering around waiting for a table and there's simply not enough room!
Heck, if you don't mind crowds and if you want to inject a little trendiness into your lives, give Triumph Brewing Co. a try. You might just like it. I'm just not sure if I did.
Here's a link to their website: www.triumphbrew.com/
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Triumph. The great enigma. They just raised their prices 75 cents a pint. Which I find very curious since they seem to be making money hand-over-fist. At 4 dollars a pint it was an unbeatable deal. 4.75 a pint leaves you with a lonely quarter staring at you at the bar. What? Did they they think that the extra quarter would scare off customers? Doesn't' seem like it, but I'm sure it pissed some of them off. Left me scratching my head.
The Food? Well, it's average. Nothing extraordinary. In fact, they took the best sandwich they had on their menu off and when they put it back on the menu, they altered the breadd which left it nothing to right home about. For bar food, it's well above average, but for the price, go elsewhere to spend your good hard earned money. To save a bit, just order the smashed potatoes at the bar. They are amazing.
I don't know much (anything) about beer, but the reviewers here are being way too tough on the food! I think it's great and I've been to Triumph with a variety of different groups at least a dozen times over the years and am ALWAYS quite satisfied.
All the appetizers are super scrumptious, I have enjoyed the fried calamari and the little pizza thing (I forget what its called) many times. I've had pretty good burgers, and oh yes some truly excellent fancy-style mac and cheese! (I don't think it was on the menu, I was just hankerin' and I asked and they made my dreams come true.)
The service is ok, the place looks cool with towering ceilings, huge metal vats-o-brewin', and an extremely long narrow shape (it used to be a bowling alley). Once I'm 21 for a while I'll be able to assess the beer and barness of the place, but from the looks of it it's not the best place for meeting nice normal peoples.. just come for some good, moderately priced food and get the beer sampler, that thing looks like fun.
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Lost: dark blue blazer, with gold buttons
Food and microbrews aren't too bad tho' - plus it's pretty much the only place in Princeton you're going to get any food after 10 pm.
The chipotle mayonnaise is outstanding, and the beer is QUITE good. Honestly, some people would find a way to complain even if they had undergone a total complainectomy and six weeks' recovery.
ha--this place was found by my daughter--and when we went there, she tells me that they will cook a hamburger rare. and she was right. it is getting so hard to find a restaurant with enough guts as well as enough customer service savvy to do this. on top of it, the thing tasted great. of course i did butcher it up with bacon and cheddar cheese, and a hint of ground pepper.
the garlic fries are fantastic--just the right amount of garlic to let you know that there is garlic in them fries.
the coffee and cream stout went down very well. in fact, the second time we went there, two of them went down.
only reason for the lack of five stars--the place is noisy. the way it is built does not leave itself for absorbing sound.
maybe not fair to read other reviews and then comment, but here goes. i went after the lunch rush on a sunday for after-lunch snacks and beer with a friend. i had the calamari and the honey wheat brew. the beer was clean and sweet with a pleasant woodsy aftertaste. it reminded me a little of the victory lager. i enjoyed it well enough. the calamari was good, but nothing notable. the service was ok. it wasn't too crowded, though there was an echo, and i definately felt an overwhelming sense of "you are in the presence of rich kids and their parents out at school" type of thing. all in all it was a pleasant experience. i would love to try more of their beers, and the swill comment (see below of venue page) should be thrown out.
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Seems to be more of a hangout than anything else, yuppie type crowd, to be expected in Princeton, didn't eat there but the beer was above average; I only sampled the lights as I don't enjoy drinking motor oil. The place was jam packed and not easy to get service and LOUD.
The food's good, the beer is ok. The service and attitude of the waitstaff need improvement.
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