Happy hour is so much better when there is good food to accompany it.

Friday Happy Hour.  It's a very important tradition in the working world.  I particularly enjoy when happy hour is followed by baseball.  On a beautiful Friday evening, L & I upheld this time-honored tradition by snagging an outside table at Columbia's local brew pub, The Hunter Gatherer.


This was a pretty quick trip, since we only had about an hour before we had to head to the baseball game.  But it worked out well for us, as we were only after a couple of beers and some dinner.  The H-G doesn't have a wide beer selection, but I would imagine that's because they brew all of their own beer.  Both L & I ordered the Wheat Beer - light, tasty, and exactly what we wanted.  When I have the time, I definitely want to go back and try their other beers.  There are three that are always on tap, plus a couple of seasonal selections.


I had a hard time deciding what I wanted from the menu.  L, on the other hand, knew exactly what she wanted before we even sat down.  She ordered the Main Street Pizza - tomato, feta, and pesto.  Could pizza toppings possibly be any better?  I didn't try any, but it looked awesome.  As a big fan of all three ingredients, I'm sure I'd love it.  The crust looked pretty crispy too.

Yep.  Definitely trying this one at some point.

I finally decided that I was going to be boring and order a cheeseburger.  As a basic cheeseburger, this one was great.  It was no frills, just lettuce, tomato, cheese, and red onion.  The only concession to "fancy" burgers that this one made was to offer a variety of cheeses.  I chose the horseradish cheddar.  Imagine really good sharp cheddar cheese.  Now add some horseradish....not too much, but just enough to get a hint of flavor as an aftertaste.  Now put that on top of a perfectly cooked burger.  Sounds good, yeah?  Let me assure you that it was.  And, instead of serving it with french fries, H-G serves their burgers with hashbrowns. I was in heaven.

Burgers shouldn't need "extras."  Meat and cheese do pretty well on their own.

I know I've mentioned before that I've been in Columbia for the better part of 10 years.  I'm ashamed to say that, in all of that time, I had never been to the H-G prior to last Friday.  Of course, now that I know what I'm missing, I don't know that I'll be able to stay away.  The best part?  H-G is open for lunch....and is right across from my office.


Now, for those of you who are afraid of entering places that don't have a pristine exterior...fear not.  The H-G doesn't necessarily look like much from the outside, but inside it has two levels of dark wood tables and a huge bar.  It's the kind of darker interior that always seems to describe British brew pubs in the movies.  The entire place has a character that matches it's unique food combinations and home-brewed beer.

Final Rating

You can find the Hunter-Gatherer on Facebook or on the web.