The Showdown: Queens vs. Manhattan vs. BrooklynThe Best Beer Halls in NYC
QUEENS Brewery hub before Prohibition
Roaring back with new beer bars, shops, and makers
Centered in Astoria and Long Island City
The Strand Smokehouse Est. Nov. 2012; 9,000 sq. ft. space
The American, indoor answer to European inspired beer gardens
16 regional brews; offers BBQ-friendly (ie. smoky & refreshing) quaffs
All pints: $7, All pitchers: $21
Serves different types of BBQ (vinegary North Carolina, saucy Tennessee); specialty is rotating pastrami plate
Banjoists play on most nights
25-27 Broadway between Crescent and 29th Streets, Astoria, 718-440-3231
Astoria Bier and Cheese 1,100 sq. ft. curds and brew haven
Bathroom mural of Kim Jong-il milking a cow
Marble bar with 10 seasonal (mostly local) drafts
More than 200 bottles and cans can be purchased to go or opened on-site ($2 corking fee)
More than 100 types of cheese; some cheese is worked into a sit down menu
Aspire gourmands can get schooled with the pairing plate, which matches 4 5-oz. pours with cheeses
34-14 Broadway between 34th and 35th Streets, Astoria, 718-545-5588
Manhattan Downtown vs. Harlem
Downtown: grungy, but potentially pricy depending on where you do
Harlem: uptown’s once-legendary supper club scene has transformed into craft-beer halls
Proletariat Tight quarters; narrow bar with 12
stools and old-timey tattoo flash art
Specializes in rare, new, and unusual brews
11 rotating drafts ($7-$11) from cult brewers
View 60-item bottle list by scanning QR code on smartphone or scoping it on the barkeep’s iPad
Prices are steep; pours are short
102 St. Marks Pl. between First Ave. and Ave. A, 212-777-2017
Harlem Public Est. Sept. 2012; 60-seat saloon
Serves fizzy pints to a packed room of Hamilton Heights locals
Mostly American suds on the bar’s 16 taps; pours change multiple times a week
Wanna mack on someone?: Send a round his/her way and the bartender will put your names and the drink up on the “PDA” chalkboard as an introduction
If the chalkboard didn’t work, you can eat your feelings with gussied-up pub grub
3612 Broadway between 148th and 149th Streets, 212-939-9404, harlempublic.com
Brooklyn Don’t you live there?...You know what Brooklyn’s
like!
No explanation needed.
Greenwood Park 13,000 sq. ft. beer garden with 3 bocce courts;
onetime auto-body shop (still has roll-up garage doors and vintage car lift)
Welcomes everyone (toddler-toting yuppies, fixed-gear enthusiasts, neighborhood hop-heads)
60 draft lines dispense 20 local and international microbrews; commercial favorites are also on tap
24 suds are available in bottles
Bar bites for everyone (wings, sausage hero, etc.)
Fireplace and 6 flatscreen TVs show sporting events when it’s cold outside
Seventh Ave. at 19th Street, Park Slope, 718-499-7999
Rosamunde Sausage Grill Bay Area-style boozing in South
Williamsburg
More than 24 domestic and international craft drafts; revolving picks
Always 2 Nitrogen taps; nitrogen is added to CO2 in the keg to create a creamy head
24 sausages (all come on brioche rolls with house-made toppings)
‘Burg locals can order grub and growlers for delivery
Flannel-shirted lads line the zinc bar
285 Bedford Ave. between Grand and South 1st Streets, Williamsburg, 718-388-2170, rosamundesausagegrill.com
Honorable Mentions Queens:
Rockaway Brewing Company: 5-01 46th Ave. at 5th Street, Long Island City, rockawaybrewco.com
SingleCut Beersmiths: 19-33 37th Street between 19th and 20th Aves., Astoria, 718-606-0788, singlecutbeer.com
Manhattan: Alphabet City Beer Co.: 96 Ave. C between 6th and
7th Streets, 646-422-7103, abcbeer.co
If You Ever See These, Try Them…
Rogue Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple ale, 9.4 oz. bottle $16.99 Uses sweet porky doughnuts Available at Brooklyn Beer & Soda, 507 Flatbush Ave. at Lefferts Ave., Prospect-
Lefferts Gardens, 718-622-8800, bkbeerandsoda.com
Flying Dog Pearl Necklace stout, 12 oz. bottle $2.09 Uses raw oysters Available at Good Beer, 422 E. 9th Street between 1st Ave. and Ave. A, 212-677-4836,
goodbeernyc.com
Birreria Calabrona, 16 oz. bottle $10 Uses yeast from a hornet’s stomach Available at La Birreria, 200 5th Ave. at 23rd Street, 212-937-8910, eataly.com/birreria
Dogfish Head Birra Etrusca Bronze, 25 oz. bottle $14.99 Uses Etruscan tomb microbes Available at Whole Foods Bowery Beer Room, 95 E. Houston at Bowery, 212-420-1320
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