For the last few weeks, we have been helping my mother move into her new house in Helena. That meant several trips as we helped her purge her house of sixteen years, and carried around a whole bunch of furniture. But amid much sorting, hauling, and numerous trips to the dump and/or Good Samaritan’s, we still managed to take some breaks to enjoy a few of our favorite things–namely burgers and beer.
Burgers
Eating out is a fairly established part of the moving process. It’s just easier, particularly when all the dishes and utensils are boxed up and the kitchen table is already loaded in the trailer. While pizza is probably the food most people associate with moving (and we did indeed chow down on a fair amount of that as well), for the sake of our own sanity we went out a few times to somewhere we could sit down and escape the mess.
Hwy 55
Our first stop was Hwy 55, a 50s-style diner specializing in burgers, milkshakes, and fries. The restaurant is actually part of an East Coast chain, and this is the only one west of the Mississippi. I’m still not 100% sure how it ended up in Helena (I asked the waitress, but she didn’t know either), but it was still a fun place to go and eat.
The decor was pink, teal, and vintage 50s, complete with neon lights, pictures of 1950s celebrities, and oldies playing in the background. I half expected our waitress to glide up to our table on roller skates, but no such luck.
They have a number of specialty burgers with a hint of Southern flair. I had the John Boy and Billy BBQ Bacon Burger, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Beyond the basic burgers and fries, they also offer cheesesteaks, chicken sandwiches, and salads, so you can go enjoy the ambiance even if you aren’t really into burgers. And whatever you order, you can wash it down with a chocolate milkshake (other flavors are available, but I always stick with the classic).
The Brewhouse
The only thing better than a milkshake for washing down a burger is, in my humble opinion, a beer! Which brings us to our other stop, Helena’s Brewhouse.
Located near the Great Northern, the Brewhouse Pub and Grille has long been one of my family’s favorites. As bastion of local pride with sports bar leanings, this is where my dad and I came for several years running to watch Helena’s local catholic college, the Carroll College Saints, compete in their national championship.
The Brewhouse serves your basic Americana food with a little gourmet flare. They have a nice variety of excellent burgers (my favorite is the Smokehouse; I’m a sucker for bbq bacon cheeseburgers) as well as pizza and dinner options including steak, ribs, and pasta dishes. They also have a lot of healthier options among their salads and sandwiches. I confess that while I usually get a burger, this time I had a yummy pesto chicken wrap with red peppers and cashews. A burger would have put me to sleep. Don’t worry, though. Pete had a burger, so we are still living up to our reputation.
For drinks, the Brewhouse has a full bar, and serves a number of local beers on tap. Their non-alcoholic selection is also quite wide, including tea, coffee and a variety of regular and fancy sodas.
One more important note: it does matter at the Brewhouse whether you sit upstairs or down, as they have entirely different menus. The upstairs (where I usually head) is pretty much your classic bar. The downstairs (not open when we visited) is a little quieter and fancier, for people looking to up their game on occasion. Both options are great, but make sure you pick the one best suited to your mood on any particular day.
Breweries
As I have mentioned in my Christmas post, Helena has five breweries: Blackfoot, Lewis and Clark, Ten Mile Creek, Crooked Furrow, and Snow Hop. Last time, we were able to visit Snow Hop and the Blackfoot (which still reigns as my favorite). As promised, we visited a couple more this time around.
Lewis and Clark
The previously mentioned downstairs of the Brewhouse was the original home of the Lewis and Clark Brewery, Helena’s second oldest brewery (Blackfoot is the oldest). It was originally named Sleeping Giant Brewery after a nearby mountain, but as its beers became more popular and widely available, the name was changed to the more recognizably Montanan Lewis and Clark.
It has since moved to the Helena’s old Columbia Paint factory (it was actually a complex of buildings, including an old smokehouse dating back to 1887). This new location is spacious and full of historical character, with plenty of room for sports TVs, pool tables, shuffle board, a food stand serving pizza and brats, and a stage for live music. Lewis and Clark also has space available to rent for parties (my mom’s retirement party was here). This brewery is always a happening place.
Better yet, Lewis and Clark has a full liquor license, which allows them to stay open later–10pm Sunday-Tuesday and 11pm Wednesday-Saturday–and to serve a number of additional options such as cider and gluten-free wine and beer.
Of course, none of this would matter if the brewery didn’t make good beer. Happily, they do. They have a very drinkable amber and their tasty Back Country Scottish Ale is my favorite of their darker options. But my main shout out has to go to their Prickly Pear Pale Ale, which is one of my very favorite beers to drink in the summer. It is smooth and light but still flavorful, and available in cans all over Montana, making it convenient for boating and camping excursions.
Ten Mile Creek
Ten Mile Creek Brewery (the third brewery to open in Helena, for anyone keeping track) probably has the best location of them all. It is sandwiched between a wine shop and Helena’s famous candy store, the Parrot, in a historic building on the charming walking mall. Hard to beat that.
Ten Mile is smaller than Lewis and Clark or the Blackfoot, but they use that to their advantage. They brew beer in small batches, and experiment with a wide array flavors. I was intrigued, and tried a couple beers outside my normal range. The Easy Company tart cherry sour was interesting but a little too sour for my taste, but I was pleasantly surprised by the Grass ginger lemongrass wheat ale. Scrolling through lists of past seasonals, I also found a Smoky Moon imperial pumpkin ale and a Krampus peppermint mocha stoat. These guys are not afraid to experiment!
Not into the experimental beers. Don’t worry. They also have some very tasty choices in a more traditional vein. Their Wood Knocker New England style IPA was quite good (Pete’s choice), and my favorite was their No Mine copper ale.
While the brewery itself is small, the taproom makes good use of the space, creating a light and open atmosphere. They do not serve food, but there were complimentary pretzels and I’m told they occasionally have guest food trucks from local vendors. They also have space for live music and local art displayed on the walls.
Aside: the pictures on the walls were by local photographer Kevin League, with whom I was very impressed. You should check him out here.
In Conclusion:
All in all, we were able to take some very pleasant breaks from our labors to go out and explore some of what Helena has to offer, and when it comes to burgers and beers, we have yet to be disappointed.
Nor were we the only ones to enjoy our breaks. Our poor boys probably spent more time cooped up out from under foot with their new nyalite bones than they would have liked, but they still got their daily walk in their favorite haunts in the South Hills.
Know of anything else in Helena we should try? Let us know below.