Brewhouse Sneak Peek

We received an invitation to a Sneak Peek at the new BJ's Brewhouse during the week of Feb 21-25th and so we made reservations for President's Day-seemed appropriate.
Anticipation on being one of the few hundred to see the place first I went online and did my research on what to expect menu wise and all that jazz.
Well nothing prepared me for the stunning bar view as I walked in, bright and shiney bottles made walls and a tv screen so large they can break it down into 24 different views, it had 4 on it last night and I was in awe.  There are TV's spread out thru the whole restaurant, unobtrusive but viewable. 
The wood is beautiful and the tables are marble top.  I think the layout is a little crowded, not a lot of room for people to walk between the tables including the wait staff.
We were seated shortly after walking in even tho we were early for our reserved time.  We got a 2-seater below the bar area, not a bad people watching spot.  The bar is raised.  Of course we were given a limited menu for the evening and encoraged to try one of their brewed beers.  We could have and appetizer or finish with a dessert.  All but the liquor was complimentary and a donation was requested for their charity.
We decided to try the Pale Ale and the Blonde and finished off with thier Amber.  Blonde was my favorite, but I like em light!  John liked the Amber.  Pale Ale had a bit of an after taste.
Mac&Cheese was the appetizer and one of their "Spoozies" (warm cookie with ice cream and such) was dessert so we decided it was a Mac&Cheese night-GOOD CHOICE!  It has ham and bacon mixed in  and then baked.
We were then encourage to each try something different for "training" purposes.  So we got a Southwest Pizza in Mini size and the Pot Roast.  They are famous for thier pizzas and this one was good, deep dish and piled high.  The Pot Roast is served on white cheddar mashed potatos on top of garlic bread with carrots, celery and onions.  Pot Roast was a tad dry but the gravy was real good, the carrots were a bit too crunchy still for me, the celery was celery and the onions were awesome in the gravy.
The Pizza and Pot Roast were over $10 each.
We let one of the trainers know the Pot Roast was a bit dry and of course they offered to get us something else.  We declined and just told them we wanted to let them know for "training" purposes.
We saw and were greeted by 3 managers and several different wait staff refilled our drinks or cleared our dishes.
John and I each took a turn of walking thru the bar and I stopped and chatted with one of the off-duty managers about the bar and such. Super nice.  The bar is awesome.
Ok the beers are nearly $5 and the Amber was neary $6 for I would guess a 16oz?  John is use to paying that for his beer, but I am cheap beer drinker so I was bit taken aback.  I think I am splurging when I pay $3.75 for a Corona!  $2 drafts are my kind of beer!  That being said-their DRAFT selection is like none other in Tyler, TX.  I could not take it all in!  I lost count of Taps and the different beers I had not heard of.
They do have the Flights so you can taste the different brews.
One other plus, I didn't see a lot of "recycled" wait staff.  You know the ones you avoid sitting in their section if you see them first!  I saw one or two waiters I recognized from other places.
All this week is Sneak Peek.  The opening date is February 28th.  I'll wait awhile to go back until all of Tyler can get their feet wet.  The nice thing about it is it is close to home and they do have a patio!
That's my 2 cents!