Firetrucker Brewery

Stopped by Firetrucker Brewery since they hosted the Cajun Cray Crawfish Boil. The place is very cool with alot of art on the wall. It took me awhile to get my first beer but that was probably due to everyone showing up for the boil. I tried the brigade beer first, which was one of their lighter beers. It tasted refreshing in the hot sun. I tried the Cat Dragon next which was their super strong ginger beer. It was really good with a slap to the face due to the 12% alcohol content. I definitely felt it afterwards! I don’t live near Ankeny but I’ll be back if I’m in the area!

Great beers, very cool atmosphere and awesome staff! So glad we stopped in on our way home to KC — cheers!

Great beer here, but not so sure about the service. Had a hard time getting my first beer, and the second took awhile too. No food here, and the taco truck stopped at 7:30, so ran to the local pizza spot.
They are bike friendly which makes me give them another star.
Recommend the 2 Alarm Red beer. Probably worth the drive if you are in Des Moines.

Solid beer. Very flavorful and great staff. They are very involved in the Ankeny community and have dinners there, group bike rides, themed parties, and ART. Not to mention great beer. It keeps on getting better too. I would like to comment on a preview review. This is a brewery, not a restaurant. If you expected food and didn’t try the beer, why are you reviewing this business?

First, Firetrucker is the COOLEST brewery in the Des Moines area. 1) It’s in an old firehouse — AWESOME! 2) The décor and art is amazing (one of the owners is an artist so…)! This place is worth a visit simply to SEE. And while you’re there you might as well have a beer!
Like several other breweries in the area (Confluence, 515), Firetrucker caters to the cyclist (right at the start/​end of the High Trestle Trail). They have a nice, large patio for the warmer months and a cozy taproom for the cooler months. Firetrucker has done a GREAT job of bringing in a wide variety of local musicians to play almost every single Friday and Saturday night. I haven’t even gotten to the beer!
Firetrucker might be most famous for their super-​clear (like water) Cat in the Tree Ginger Beer. It’s tasty and very refreshing! Firetrucker’s beers are all top-​notch. I usually lean towards their seasonals (Black Walnut Ale or Tropical Burn IPA), all of which have great accompanying artwork. This place is a great experience from start to finish!

Sponsored our. Iowa MS bike ride and it was great had over300 people and he and staff was on it. Good beer at a good price.
Bring a driver this beer can kick your butt.

No food besides food trucks. Wanted beer and food.
Didn’t stay to try the beer.
Really cool décor.

It’s a cool place. I like their core beers. My fav is the porter. It’s creamy, yet not flat. I hate flat beer. I like the food trucks too. We had Hal and Al’s caterer last Friday. Their prices are comparable to other local breweries. I wish they’d extent their happy hour deal (Currently only Friday and Sunday afternoons). City of Ankeny started construction in the north entrance to the brewery, so parking is a pain. There’s plenty of parking on Third St so you’ll be alright.
Stop in for a beer (or more) and support the local business.
(Don’t leave your credit card behind. They add 20% to your bill. It happened to me last Friday. Ha)

Great craft brews cool atmosphere and patio is very inviting. Caters to bicyclists but we didn’t feel out of place. The staff is friendly and all are welcomed warmly.

What makes a good brewery? Well naturally the beer itself is 85% of the score, but the environment and staff makes up the rest. Firetrucker Brewery offers everything you are looking for. This place offers a very pleasant atmosphere that has a great décor, friendly staff and most importantly — a terrific variety of beer. My wife and I shared a flight of beer (4 samples for $ 6), and it was so reasonable, we flighted the entire menu with two bags of chips and tip — $ 26.
If you are ever in the Ankeny area and want to have a fun time, definitely make a pit stop at this brewery.

This place is on fire! No seriously… someone put it out. Before knowing anything about this place I had a feeling I knew where it would be. Where better than an old fire station? This place is awesome and the beer is even better.
You can’t miss it, they have the garage door all painted with their name on it and… well…it’s a fire station. The inside has about ¼ taken up by an almost separate room with comfy chairs and tables, there was even some acoustic guy playing here when we left. The other ¾ is the bar, some taller tables and seats, and the brewery itself. They also have a great looking patio out back!
The girls working here were awesome and joked around with us and everyone else in the bar. They made it a really fun experience. They offer a flight of all 11 beers they offer so I couldn’t pass that up. WOW these guys make awesome beer. Some really unique stuff and everything is related to fire fighting in some way! I really enjoyed my stop here and the theme of this brewery. It will only keep getting better.

Fun place, great beer, courteous staff and it’s in Ankeny! A hidden gem in a town of chain bars and restaurants.

Fabulous!
I love how they turned an old fire house into a brewery & tap room. I adore the industrial feel, big windows, spacious seating areas, and their IPA!
The beer menus are displayed on huge TV screens so it’s very clear and easy to read. I recommend ordering a pizza and bringing it in, which they suggested.
Highly recommend for any craft beer lover!

Great location and accessible from the north or southSide of the building. Large parking lot for cars. Several bike racks. Large patio soon to be set up for warmer weather. Redone décor and locally made art on the walls. Open space brewery. comfortable setting. Staff are always friendly! Menus hang from the walls to let you know what the choices are. They are always brewing up something new. They have keg tappings, supper tastings, and special events. Food delivered from local restaurants. Stop by for a sampler or a pint and play a board game while you sip your brews.

I visited this place a couple weeks back for a group tour and tasting. The story of the building and the background of the owners makes this brewery appealing. Especially the women’s restroom — hellllo ladies, this is one nice restroom. All the amenities without someone in there trying to collect a tip (if you have ever been to a club that does this annoying thing) — anywho — back to the visit. They had a nice selection of beers, plus some guest beers that they rotate and that particular day they had a list of events with live music and Melts Without Borders selling their amazing grilled cheese. I was told from regulars that they do not sell food, but you can call nearby restaurants to deliver you some food while you sample the beers. They have a great indoor and outdoor space to spend a few hours catching up with friends. These guys definitely take pride in crafting their beers.

On the strength of a strong review in Juice (the social magazine of the Des Moines Register), Gayle, the Kid and I made the trip to Ankeny to try out Firetrucker Brewery. This place was a little hard to find, and a little out of the way (even for downtown Ankeny). Yet, our journey was well rewarded.
This is a very handsome taproom (in an old Fire House?) and the micro brews that we enjoyed were really tasty. There’s a main bar area, a separate seating area, and all the brew equipment behind the glass. Wi-​Fi was strong, plug ins were plentiful, and the Curbin’ Cuisine food truck was handily outside to help wash down the suds. We also enjoyed the wall art and had some nice conversations with an LSU Alumni group that had gathered near out door knob table. There’s also a nice patio outside. We had a great time and hope to repeat this experience soon.

Had the flight to give them all a try but ended up unable to choose. Like them all but loved the Steam Engine and, okay, Burnout Brown. And absolutely loved the atmosphere! Way to go Ankeny… it’s about time we got in something original!

Wonderful taproom and excellent beers! Staff was knowledgeable and friendly. THere was a grilled cheese food truck with great sandwiches, and I went up the street to pick up a pizza from Leaning Tower. Appreciated that the taproom had a stack of paper plates/​napkins/​silverware for outside food. We have family in Ankeny, and this will for sure be a regular stop on our visits!
As a new mom who also likes beer, I wish there was a changing table in the ladies room. I realize this is a pretty ridiculous request for a taproom, but there were a decent number of well-​behaved kiddos there (mine included) on an early Saturday night.

This is the metro’s newest brewery but with as fast as new ones keep popping up probably won’t be the newest for long. I heard the owner of El Bait Shop talking about them on the radio and I decided to head on up when I had the chance.
Compared to other brewery taprooms in town I would say Firetrucker is a combo between Confluence and 515 Brewery. It has a comfy, homey type atmosphere in part of the taproom as it has some couches and tables but the bar area is more industrial and you can see the brewing kettles and equipment much like confluence. The rail itself is really nice and the whole bar fixture is lighted with LEDs. Pretty slick. They did have a few TVs and at the time of my visit there was a decent amount of people there watching the World Cup finals.
At the time of my visit on Sunday they were offering four of their own beers plus three guest taps. They had a lager, red, brown, and ginger beer as their four beers on tap. I went ahead and ordered the flight and tried them all. The lager was so-​so. Pretty much their most comparable to a Bud for the less adventurous type. The red was decent but tasted like it was missing something. The brown was excellent and had a great roasted flavor, that is the beer that stood out to me. Last was the ginger beer, which I thought was kind of weird to have on a flight. It was OK for what it was but not my thing. I’m not sure if that is a regular brew but if it is I wonder if they will add vodka behind the bar and start serving their own Moscow Mules.
Prices were comparable to any other brewery/​taproom around here. They also have growlers and half growlers available as well as some T-​shirts and other merchandise.
Firetrucker is another great addition to the craft brew scene here in the Des Moines area. If not from Ankeny I would recommend taking the drive up to check them out.

Great local craft brewery with local appeal. Attention to quality. Staff is very friendly and knowledgeable about craft beer. No kitchen, but food is available from local food trucks and delivery. Huge beer garden/​patio. Caters to bicyclists, but all are welcomed. Rotating artists have artwork hanging inside and for sale. Beautiful and huge bar top. RECOMMENDED!