Old Brewery Hostel

What a nice surprise! The beds were extremely comfortable, and having a basic kitchen made reheating food easy. We saw pans but no cooktop, just a fridge and microwave at the moment. We had two pups, and it was sweet of them to give guests a little “doggie bag” with treats and bags. The one small downside was that the beds could use a proper blanket along with the sheets, though each room has its own AC/heater.

My stay at the Hostel was absolutely terrible. We were there in January, and had no heat and freezing cold shower water. The place was dirty, and it seemed like only one person was covering the front desk for the entire hotel and hostel, so there was no real help with problems and no maintenance in the hostel. Their response after I complained at checkout was as pathetic as the service. The heater didn't work. We called the desk and were told maintenance would come shortly, but nobody showed. When we called again 30 minutes later, they said they didn't know where the maintenance guys were and could only offer blankets. It was below 30 outside. We had to ask whether they had a portable heater. The guy at the desk said they did, but we had to pick it up ourselves. The hostel is in a separate building from the front desk, across the street at the hotel, and it was snowing. I went to get the heater for the night, which had been the desk guy's own heater. There were hairs in the pillowcases. The hostel kitchen had no soap, sponge, or kitchen towels for washing dishes, everything was dirty, and the shared trash bins were almost overflowing. Both showers, in both bathrooms, had freezing water. One bathroom had no toilet paper, and the other had just enough for me and the next person. One sink was full of hair. Absolutely disgusting. At checkout I described what happened. A different staff member seemed understanding and surprised, and said we'd get a partial refund of 10-20%, then she'd ask her supervisor later that day whether they could do better. A few hours later, they sent a bill with just a 10% discount off the total. Possibly my worst hostel stay ever, and I've stayed in hostels in more than 20 countries. I'd give them zero stars if I could. Avoid at all costs.

For an affordable night in town, this worked well. We arrived late, got our hostel keys from the neighboring Mizpah Hotel, and were shown a floor plan so we could get into the building quietly. Our room was minimalist, clean, and new, and the bathrooms were nice. The bed was fairly hard and nothing special, but fine for crashing for a night. The next morning we had breakfast at the Mizpah and got to experience a bit of the historic hotel.

I booked the hostel at the last minute while traveling with my dog, using a hotel booking site. I'm a guy with simple needs, but only after booking did I find out the room I had was specifically the one that allowed pups. The front desk guy understood the situation and helped me get settled without making me feel like I was out of luck. Kudos to him! Check-in is at the Mizpah. The place felt like a little house with several rooms, and it was clean and quiet. It's close to the brewery for good brews and grub.