Whenever Bangaloreans’ complain about the weather getting too warm, or too cold, the rest of India can’t help rolling their eyes upwards.

Nowhere else in the country could weather, location, quality of produce, variety of beer and atmosphere line up to give us a gem like the Geist Brewing Factory and Beer garden, located down the Old Madras Road in an area which is apparently technically outside Bengaluru’s municipal limits—or at least that is what we were told.

Large banyan trees provide shade for outdoor tables where you can sit and enjoy freshly brewed beer and a carefully curated menu. The entire front of house as well as kitchen staff used to work at The Smoke Co, which shut its doors recently and the food is a more Indian take on the same lines.

While the variety of beers on offer will give you plenty to choose from (you can make your choice by first ordering the taster portion, it is the food and the sun dappled shade under the huge banyan trees that will make this meal a memorable experience—If you choose to go in the afternoon and it’s a sunny day.

A confession at this point, me and my lunching companions are quite non-vegetarian centric, hence the food we had also tended to be meaty—something which goes will with beer. But there are a few vegetarian surprises which we loved, like the Madras Idli Chaat. We also thought the Bacon Thecha Kulcha had the right balance of bacon, bread, fat and spice.

Since we had arrived to enjoy our beer and get as much variety as far as food was concerned, a lot of the small plates were ordered.

The Mary Had a Little Beef for instance, was so good, that we had it twice, though given the current legal precedence in Karnataka, I’m not sure if this dish will be available.

The Coorgi Pork Belly was also a wonderful dish with just the right balance and the perfect cut of meat.

Now, here is something very important to note at this stage. While making reservations for your table, make sure you order your warm Goan poee bread from the bakery section. You need to order in advance and each portion gives you two poee bread. We had ordered only one portion and regretted not having asked for more—trust me when I say that they don’t have extras.

The drive to the location may take a bit of time, but it’s well worth it. One point to note, it’s good to have a totally sober designated driver because access is through a bit of a maze, thanks to the 200 metre rule.

There is also a brewery tour but that’s not available at the moment due to the Covid situation.

Meal for two: INR 3,000.