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Moksa Barrel House is a taproom combined with a restaurant, and a venture between Moksa Brewing Company of Rocklin, and Hawks Restaurant of Granite Bay.  This fine restaurant/taproom combines artisan crafted beer with casual, delicious comfort food... which creates the best of both worlds!  It's Moksa Brewing Company, located on Foothills Blvd. in Roseville CA.

As with all of reviews that I publish, I have no affiliation with the restaurant reviewed, and there is no monetary gain on my part, as I am simply a person who likes to eat, and I love to write-up, and publish my dining experiences.

Photo:  It's a little past 11:00 in the morning, Thursday, August 13, 2026 and I've arrived at Moksa Barrel House, located on Foothills Blvd. in Roseville, CA to enjoy a cheeseburger, fries, and a craft beer from the tap.  This fine restaurant/taphouse opens every morning of the week at 07:00 for breakfast, with lunch and dinner beginning at 11:00.  Artisan crafted beer, brewed at Moksa Brewing Company, located in neighboring Rocklin, is on tap anytime the restaurant is open.  Craft beer for breakfast!

You can enjoy your fine meal, along with a pint of craft beer, or a glass of wine inside their spacious dining room, or outside on the patio, in front of the restaurant. Mid-August is known to be scorching hot in Roseville, but on this late morning in mid-August, the temperature was in the upper 60's - very unusual - along with a delta breeze, so I opted to dine inside.  The patio is dog-friendly, and if your dog is a certified service dog, it's welcome to accompany you inside.

Photo:  The dining room could best be described as GIGANTIC and furnished with all shapes and sizes of tables.  It's spotlessly clean, well-lighted and very comfortable.  There are floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides, which let in plenty of natural light.  As a photographer, I appreciated the mostly natural lighting, as it made for great photos.

You place your order, and pick it up at the huge counter, at the rear of the dining room.

Photo:  There are two stations for orders, the one to the left is for beer and wine only, and the station to the right is for food orders, along with beer and wine. Video boards list the selections, with a television monitor separating the beer and wine from the food.  At first I felt this was a little odd, but it makes sense, as during late afternoons and evenings, especially on weekends, the majority of the orders are for beer and wine.

Since I was going for food, in addition to a pint of ale, I went to the right side of the order counter.  The food menu is displayed on the large video monitor above the counter and there are smaller video monitors on the counter that list the beer and wine choices... hint, hint.  You make your selection, pay for it, and you're given a little, round pager-like gadget that looks like something out of the 1960's television series Star Trek.  When your food order is ready, it will light up, shake, rattle and roll, which will grab your attention, even if you've had a couple to many beers.  Then, you walk up to the counter, and your meal will be waiting for you to pick up and bring back to your table.

It's different when you order beer or wine to go with your meal, as one of the staff will pour your choice of beer from the tap, and place it on the counter at the bar, so you can enjoy it while your food is being prepared.

Note the taps to the left of the photo, which pour craft beer, ale and seltzer brewed by Moksa Brewing Company, one of the parents of this fine restaurant.  

Photo:  One page of the lunch/dinner menu with lists burgers, buttermilk fried chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, along with a single hot dog and grilled cheese.  Today, the restaurant was running one-day-only of fish tacos, which really tugged on my taste buds, but I came for a burger and fries, and that's what I ordered.

The complete menu is listed on the video monitors above the counter, on a printed menu, and on the restaurant's website, which I have listed at the end of this article.  Online, phone and to-go orders are encouraged, as the year is 2026 and seems that's the preference of many 21st century diners.

Photo:  The somewhat open kitchen is located behind the food order counter, and it's visible when you place your food order.  I always enjoy watching talented chefs creating their magic, and this gentleman is no exception, as he has talent.

Photo:  From the "Light Beers" section of the beer section of the menu, I went with a pint of "Barrel House Blonde," a refreshing blonde ale.  Like all the beer, ale and seltzer, it's on tap, and locally brewed by Moksa Brewing Company, located in nearby Rocklin.  "Barrel House Blonde" really hit the spot!

Photo:  Meet the friendly staff, who handed my meal to me with a smile at the pickup counter.  These folks were super friendly and treated me like a rock star.  I think I made them smile because of the comments I made about the little beeper gadget, as it really jolted me when it went off.

Photo:  I was a happy guy when my little beeper began to shake, rattle and beep, as I knew it was time to enjoy an amazing lunch.  I smile, and toast the friendly staff at Moksa Barrel House with a pint of "Barrel House Blonde" pale ale.  Cheers!

Photo:  From the "Burgers" section of the menu, I went with a "Cheeseburger," with a regular size order of "French Fries" as an optional side dish.  Yes, the kid in me added a couple little cups of ketchup to dip the fries into.  How can you eat a burger without a side of fries?  The menu describes this delicious cheeseburger as, "American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, dill pickle and burger sauce."  I describe this cheeseburger as one of the best burgers in western Placer County.

My cheeseburger, like all of the burgers at Moksa Barrel House was sourced from Double R Ranch in Idaho, which raises premium, grain-fed northwest beef, well-known to burger lovers for it's juicy, bold flavor.  The burger was quite large, probably a third of a pound, which was just right for my taste.  The chef grilled the burger on a flat-top griddle, using the "smash" technique, to make a perfect burger.  A large, thick slab of perfectly melted American cheese topped the meat, and the cheese added a rich, juicy taste to the beef patty.  

The beef and cheese sat on top of layers of fresh, crisp vegetables to balance out the taste of the burger.  This cheeseburger had it all when it came to veggies, including fancy lettuce, tomato, red onion and dill pickle.  The meat, cheese and veggies were sandwiched between a buttered, lightly grilled, fresh potato bun, and garnished with a modest amount of house burger sauce.  What an amazing cheeseburger!

The fries were medium size of varying length, deep fried to a beautiful golden brown on the outside, and white and tender inside, with just the right amount of salt on the outside to enhance the fries and give them character.  I added a couple of cups of ketchup for my dipping enjoyment.  Great fries!

When I bit into my cheeseburger, it was love at first bite!  The beef was juicy, tender, and perfectly cooked, the cheese was creamy, delicious, and draped over the meat like a velvety blanket, topped by the tangy burger sauce, and held together by the lightly grilled roll.  The veggies added contrasting flavor along with a refreshing "crunch!"  This is an old school cheeseburger, and finger lickin' good, and I was happy that I picked up plenty of napkins from the counter.

Here's another great thing about this amazing cheeseburger:  The bun, cheese and beef were warm, and the veggies were chilled, and the combination of warm and chilled added another dimension to this fine burger.

Over the last year or so since this fine restaurant opened, many Placer County foodies have raved about the burgers at Moksa Barrel House... and now I know why.

Photo:  Isn't this a beautiful burger?  It's almost too pretty to bite into.  Look at that perfectly melted slab of American cheese.  It was interesting to notice both halves of the bun were connected and were open like a clam shell, which is rarity, as most burgers sport separate buns.

Photo:  After taking a couple bites into my cheese burger, I hold it open to show all of the layers of goodness. I loved the contrast between the warm meat, cheese and bun and the chilled dill pickle, onion, tomato and lettuce.  The burger sauce added a touch of sweet tang, which I loved.  This was an old school burger, and reminded me of the countless amount of burger I enjoyed back in high school, in the late 1960's.  The fries matched the cheeseburger in retro goodness.

What an amazing combination!  Rocklin-local artisan crafted beer along with delicious, Americana-casual cuisine, in a spacious, comfortable dining room.  You get the best of both worlds at Moksa Barrel House, located in Roseville, CA.

Moksa Barrel House
10007 Foothills Blvd. Ste #180
Roseville, CA 95747
916 783-1444
https://moksabarrelhouse.com

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