Andy Tullis / The BulletinSunriver Brewing Co.’s Gavelston Pub serves up fried avocado, foreground, and a farmer’s market salad in Bend.

If there’s a better place in Central Oregon to enjoy a beer and a casual outdoor meal than the Sunriver Brewing Company’s new Galveston Pub, I don’t know what it might be.

A broad back patio that opened last month, complete with a replica covered bridge and a river-rock fire pit, is oriented to catch the afternoon and early-evening sun. With seating for 60, including two dozen at a common table beneath the bridge in the beer garden, the patio is an outstanding place for a repast.

Inside the pub — a crowded neighborhood place with rustic industrial appeal — there is an equal amount of table seating and a dozen more bar seats. Edison lights dangle from pipe chandeliers beneath overhead air ducts. A garage door may be rolled up to bring more of the outside in during summer’s glorious weather.

Having established its flagship restaurant in Sunriver in 2012, the Sunriver Brewing Company moved into the west-side Bend space in mid-February of this year. Oblivion Brewing had vacated its half of a building that once was home to the Westside Bakery, and Versante Pizza, ensconced in the east side, was glad to welcome a new partner.

Whereas the Sunriver space is huge and lodgelike, with an extensive menu, food choices on Galveston are much more limited. They reflect a smaller kitchen. But enthusiastic service and quality food — more creative than one might expect — remain hallmarks of the pub.

Solo lunches

Two solo lunches and a dinner with my dining companion gave me a feel for the cuisine, as the menu is the same afternoon or evening.

My first meal was a turkey dip — a variation on a classic French dip sandwich. Sliced turkey breast and peppery smoked bacon were served on a hoagie roll with melted white cheddar and thinly sliced tomato, a sweet dill pickle on the side and a cup of turkey jus for dipping. I liked it better than beef.

The sandwich came with a cup of coleslaw — white cabbage mixed with dried cranberries. It had an excellent balance of flavors.

At my second midday meal, I began with the soup of the day. It was new to the menu, and I was the first to try it. Mushrooms (they appeared to be chopped portobellos) and artichoke hearts were steeped in a broth of coconut milk spiked with brandy. Red bell peppers and chopped onions, along with a sprinkle of basil, completed a dish that tasted like a sweet, mild Thai curry.

I also ordered a plate of eight chicken wings, doused in a house-made barbecue sauce. Perfectly cooked, they were sweet like the soup, although the sauce had a little more zip. The wings were served with a cup of ranch dressing, four thick celery sticks and at least 20 baby carrots.

Dinner time

When my companion and I returned for dinner, we started by sharing a falafel salad. Romaine hearts and other fresh field greens were piled high, tossed in a ranch dressing with thin cucumber and red onion slices, and sprinkled with crumbled feta cheese.

Beneath the pile was a single grilled chickpea patty, quite unlike the crispy deep-fried falafel I’ve had at other restaurants. I found it somewhat soggy, similar to a meatless hamburger. The salad was excellent, the patty not so much.

My fish-and-chips entree was made with Alaskan cod battered with the brewpub’s award-winning Fuzztail Hefeweizen. I was delighted: The breading was light and crispy, and the three nuggets contained plenty of fish. Too often, I’ve seen batter thicker than fish; this pub did it right. The dish was served with a lemongrass remoulade, like an aioli, and coleslaw.

My friend was equally pleased with her bacon cheeseburger. Grass-fed Northwest beef was served with pepper bacon and Tillamook cheddar on a roll of French telera bread spread with an aioli of roasted garlic. Tomato, lettuce and onion were garnishes. And the french fries, she said, were also excellent.

On each of my visits to Sunriver Brewing’s Galveston Pub, I found the service prompt and friendly. We were never offered water with our dinner, however, and delivery of our dinner wasn’t well-timed: We had barely begun eating our salad when the rest of our plates — the burger and the fish and chips — arrived.

Even if the kitchen’s pacing wasn’t good, I wish our server had kept the entrees warm for another five minutes before delivering them to the table.

— janderson@bendbulletin.com.