What the hell happened to double nickel?
I've been a regular at Double Nickel the past few years, and nowadays it feels like Double Nickel doesn't even want to be a brewery anymore.
First, let me say they have some really solid IPAs, and their fan fave hot honey pizza is absolutely fantastic when done right. However, ever since they got their liquor license things feel like they've been going downhill.
The past few times I've been there, the place has been overrun by kids that aren't being supervised by their parents. Those same parents are ordering cocktails that the bartenders clearly aren't prepared to make with any level of efficiency, making lines build up. The food is taking way too long to be ready, and they've lost a lot of their mainstay bartenders to other breweries.
The last time i bought cans on site, i checked the dates when i got home and realized their beer had been canned over 4 months ago. With the price of NJ craft beer nowadays that's unacceptable.
They also got rid of trivia and completely killed their Monday business and turned off a bunch of regulsrs in the process (my understanding is that it was a result of ownership trying to penny pinch the trivia company).
The place went from being a solid brewery hangout to a weird hybrid brewery/family-restuarant-that-serves-cocktails spot that seems like it resents its own status as a brewery.
They're always busy, so maybe that's a winning business strategy, but as fan of local breweries at this point I can only recommend it if you're looking for a brewery that also serves food. Even then, the quality of their chicken wings/tenders, and basically everything other than their pizza (which even that has been burnt on a couple occasions recently) has drastically fallen off.
Does anybody else familiar with the brewery feel similarly?
Finally, this isnt a shot at a brewery for "getting to mainstream." Tonewood continues to crush it, and Cape May and Kane continue to keep their quality and brewery experience up despite their growth.