Another entry in my occasional series of posts about local brew pubs and beer bars…

Miller’s Rockville Ale House

Where it’s Located: 1471 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852 – 5.3 miles northwest of my home base in Kensington

When Visited: February 24, 2013

Occasion: Our house is on the market and we had an open house on Sunday, so we had to clear the premises. We used it as an excuse to go out for lunch and try a new beer place.

A few weeks ago, we drove past the new Miller’s Rockville Ale House and the big sign out front shouting “Ale House” caught my attention. Big surprise, right? We decided to give it a try, and when we drove up for lunch on Sunday, that same big sign was the first thing my daughter Emily saw before blurting out, “We’re going to another ale house!?!”

Emily may not have liked it, but this was definitely my kind of place. There were huge TVs showing all manner of sports lining the entire wall of the large open restaurant. Below the TVs, the walls were filled with signed jerseys and pictures of DC and Baltimore sports icons – Cal, Johnny U, and Ray Ray to name a few. It was museum-like, and I actually took some time to walk around the restaurant to check out all the stuff on the walls.

I loved the food menu too – it was huge! After the long list of classic pub grub starters, the menu was filled with different soups and salads, burgers and sandwiches, fajitas, seafood dishes, house specialties, and Zingers. What are Zingers? Zingers are Miller’s Ale House’s “World Famous Boneless Chicken Wings.” You can order them tossed in one of 12 different sauces, and they serve them every way imaginable. You can order a Zingers Melt, Zingers Salad, Zingers Quesadilla, Zingers Pizza, or Zingers Tacos. I had to try them, so I got an order of Hot Zingers. Tasty!

And I can’t forget the beer! Miller’s Rockville Ale House beer menu boasts more than 75 beers. The tap list includes a lot of macros, but there were enough local and regional micros to make it hard to decide what to order, especially since I only had two pints.

Beers Sampled:

• IPA, Southern Tier Brewing Company, Lakewood, NY (6.9%), an IPA for fans of IPAs – citrusy hops, excellent bitterness, and a pleasant malt finish.
  
• Allagash White, Allagash Brewing Company, Portland, ME (5.0%), an exceptional interpretation of a traditional Belgian wheat beer.

I was most impressed with: The neighborhood sports bar vibe. There are 57 Miller’s Ale House locations nationwide, but the Rockville Ale House felt comfortably local. I hope to get back there soon.

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