zarza brewing co.

I always like to try the local brew whenever I visit a new city so my wife, friend and I tried Zarza last night. The pub has a nice atmosphere and a very attentive staff. The beer was very good by Ecuadorian standards, but only average compared to North American standards. Good beer is hard to come by in Ecuador and it is nice to see a few microbreweries starting to show up. I appreciate the effort and will always prefer them over the standard pilseners that are most prevalent. The food was good and I will return.

Zarza is listed in Trip Advisor as an attraction. It certainly is an attraction for beer lovers but probably would be better listed as a restaurant.Finding a brew pub in Loja, Ecuador was one of the last things we expected, but this great little town in the south of Ecuador has a lot of pleasant surprises. Here is a tip on finding the brewery. If your Spanish is a wee bit challenged like mine write this down on a piece of paper and give it to your taxi driver: Zarza Brewing Company – Cerveceria en Loja -- Direccion Esmeraldes y Puerto Bolivar, Barrio El Valle. A dos cuadras de la piscine nadando (two blocks from the swimming pool). Addresses here are referenced by the cross streets and Puerto Bolivar is only one block long and not well known to the taxi drivers.I went to Zarza to do a takeout dinner. I ordered the meat lovers pizza & quesadillas and had a very tasty, hand crafted IPA while I waited. They have several beer choices and also serve margaritas. The bartender, Paulo, is bi-lingual and he told me about the history of the place. They have been open one year this September. The owner is from Texas and is married to an Ecuadorian and decided to give a brew pub a try. I was there very early, 6 PM, and the place was not crowded. I suspect later in the evening is when it comes to life. The menu is what you would expect for a brew pub – burgers, fries, BBQ, nachos, tacos, quesadillas and several varieties of pizza... Our meat lover’s pizza & quesadillias were very good. They feature live music from time to time. We will definitely go back and recommend you drop by for a brew if you visit Loja. My only critique is that I was looking forward to taking home a growler of beer to enjoy later. Paulo said that for my next visit to bring a container and he would gladly oblige. Enjoy the great beer & food.

I have been to Zarza a couple of times. I journey there for one reason...great tasting beer.Everything else they offer, ( nice staff, great atmosphere, interesting location) are pluses as well...

We visited Zarza on a lethargic Monday evening and were fortunate to meet one of the owners, Gregory, who's been brewing for 8 years. He's a former backpacker from Dallas, TX who lived in Vilcabamba, Ecuador for 3 years running an acupuncture clinic while desperately missing craft beer. He married a Lojano woman, taught himself to brew, and now serves delicious stouts, dunkels, IPAs, ESBs, and (if you're as lucky as we were) you can sample his special Belgian Sour. Greg has learned to produce his own yeast, and combined with imported malts and grains, brews some fabulous, true to style craft beer. Look out for the expanding menu as well--currently they serve mini burgers with BBQ sauce and tacos. We'll be sure to make our way back to Loja in the near future to indulge in some of their new creations.

Para un amante de la cerveza un lugar como Zarza es un pequeño paraíso. En mi fugaz paso por Loja tuve la suerte de disfrutar sus cervezas y una gran atención. No dudaría en volver si tuviese la ocasión.