Second District Brewing Co.

Stopped here after a recommendation from the folks at Monks Cafe (high praise)

Long room with bar seating and large open doors along the side. Great on a day with nice weather.

I checked out a few of their IPAs and loved the quality. Didn't get nearly enough time here to go in depth, but it certainly is promising. I got some good recommendations from the bartender on what to order.

Lots of exposed brick and wood, cool light fixtures that leave the room just dark enough. Good crowd on a rainy night and everyone seemed to be having fun. Apparently they've reined in the adjuncts, as there was only one beer with vanilla and cinnamon in it. Good variety, a few pales, IPAs, a couple light lagers, a schwarzbier, a saison. Beer was solid. Service was OK, a little indifferent.

Nicely renovated space, easily accessible, walkable from my brother's place. Good beer and good food . Vibrant and lively. Enjoyed the beer and place immensly. Last visit I couldn't get in it was so crowded. Plan accordingly.

Saturday fact finding Philly Saturday with the talls. Naturally, I landed a sweet slander spot on S. Bancroft, and I mean, damn, I’ll be leaving the wheels here all day and make Ben drive. Looking to get my beer on but 20 feet from the door, I took a call from that guy in the Carolinas looking to apologize for that social media thing gone wrong on his part, and somehow, I did the penance letting him mend that while I stood outside thirsty. No good deed, I tell you…

Corner joint, you enter around the block where the logo 2D be. Long narrow room, plank & wood rafter ceilings, and well worn black wood slat floors that have seen many days. An ancient brick inner wall, a concrete & brick outer wall with a garage door trio and horizontal windows alternating opening over side street Bancroft, and an olive wood slat wall to the rear.

Move past the front kitcheny corner and head for the sprawling bar; ‘L’ shaped pebbley concrete topped, horizontal plank base, & phat piping foot rail. Seating for 20 on wood with fabric round top and black metal squared stools. Witz and I are to be seated midway down, as to take it all in. Barback wall is done up vertical alt colored slat wood pieces; olivey, blue, & brown, and shades of, adorned with 17 mix & match mirrors mounted of all sizes and shapes, a single mounted flat screen showing soccer just now, and 5 bulb mounted lantern pieces on the ends. Horizontal piping piece runs the length of the wall midway, from wherest 5 non-descript handles pour at 2 points along the way. 1L & 2L growls resting on the pipe and some slight booze shelved just above, as well. Barback counter holds glassware countered and shelved below.

Baby fridge sitting on one end of the bar, and a crowler crimper on the other end. Drop suction cup lamps tracing the bar and a trio of spinny fans over the bar. Swag displayed on a wall piece, and a 4x6 horizontal board to the rear listing tap selections; beer, style, ABV, pricing for 4oz, 10oz, 16oz, and crowler indications. Some bar counter space on the outer walls between windows and a half dozen small raised tables to the side and back, too. Oh, and there’s a brewery to the rear of the rear.

10 beers on tap (Bancroft Beer, Mosaic Pale Ale, 4.2%; Synchronoise, Brut(ish) IPA w/Mosaic & Citra, 7.2%; Entwife, Rye Dark Mild, 3.9%; Western Wind, IPA w/Simcoe, Amarillo, & Columbus, 7%; Rockefeller, Scandinavian Porter, 5.6%; Lo Leaf, Seltzer inspired ale w/lemon verbena, 6%; Smoater, Smoked Porter w/oats & rye, 5%; Regional AF, Mixed ferm beer/wine hybrid, 6%; Simple Simcoe, Simcoe Pale Ale, 5.6%; Huy (Nitro), Vietnamese Coffee Stout, 6%). it's a good mix of hop, roast, and things that are Mild, Wild, and otherwise.

The Synchronoise was mad dry; Entwife, Rye Dark Mild, toffee, caramel, easy drinker; Western Wind, IPA, heavy Amarillo, real resiny & sappy; Regional AF, a lovely sweet tart; Simple Simcoe, Simcoe Pale Ale, fruity, earthy, a solid Pale Ale. You know what? The beers here are really good. Ben Potts with his DFH & Tired Hands pedigree and whatnot.

I spied just now a kegerator at the end of the bar with 3 draft wines & Big Hill Ciderworks Standard (PA cider), so there’s that. Food, yes, they have bites and boards and sandwich type things. Bacon on a stick was a good choice and I would like 4 more of them, please. And fried pickles happened, too. CD juke but we’re getting music from elsewhere. Good tunes; Cure, Morrissey, Pixies, Clash. It’s a good house, I could do some time here. Someone said this was a sister bar to SPTR, our next destination. Don’t know if that’s so, but our departure was very well timed as they were just putting up Blind Pig when we got over there. We are WIN!

Easy to miss from the outside (the giant painted SD let’s you know you’re at the right place). It’s on a corner but has a narrow storefront. The neighborhood could be better. Surely there are worse in the city but I would probably not be walking the neighborhood at night if I didn’t have to.

Inside is small but has a proper brewpub feel. Long bar with a decent amount of tables. Only one bathroom (as far as I know). Small plate food items and a few burgers. Food was tasty.

The issue I have with SD comes down to beer menu selection. I recognize that I am probably in the minority here, but I enjoy when a place offers a majority of beers that are true or as close to true to style as possible. I’m a simple, not adventurous, beer drinker (and home brewer).

I fully recognize that the name of the game in craft brewing is the more unique the offerings, the better. That’s all well and good when you have 10-15 beers on tap. When you only have 6-7 like SD does, you can’t have only one beer that closely resembles its stated style. I LOVE Vienna lagers but I don’t need them to have honey nor chamomile flowers. I don’t need Apple or pear purée either. I just want a selection of simple, common ingredients and processes. Their flagship (Bancroft beer) is as normal as their offerings get, but it’s not great enough (IMO) to be the reason I would go often enough.

Long story short, nice place, good atmosphere and food. Just not enough basic, true to style brews if you aren’t into the off the wall, experimental beers.

I really like it here. The bar has TVs, cool bartenders, a unique look and a great jukebox. Like a chill punk rock vibe that makes me feel comfortable.

The food menu is small and I've only had a few of the apps like the crudité and hummus, and the candied bacon (yum!). Vegetarians/vegans and meat eaters can find something to eat on the menu. Small amount of liquor, not sure about wine.

Beer selection is ok. A few are quite good, but I don't like saisons and they brew a lot of them.

Parking stinks!

A smaller, but cool taproom. They seems to put something a little different in every style they brew. That's fine by me, but I'm sure they can put some people off with that. Service was not great. I hate when I feel like I'm bothering someone when I ask for a beer. I think I hit on a bad day. I'd go again, just to see if anyone wants to pour me a beer.

An awesome place in S Phillllllllaaaaay! Check it out. Eat and drink!

J

 

I came on a Tuesday around lunch. I was alone for most of the tasting. The place seemed pleasant enough with brick walls, an exposed ceiling and aging barrels in the back room.

With nine beers available, there isn't a large selection. But what's here is good and a bit on the creative side. This place is willing to mix styles and user unusual recipes for "typical" beers.

An example was a blended sour from three different barrels (red wine, white wine, and Bourbon). It tasted like a Flanders Red but was pale gold. It tasted closest to a Lambic but didn't use Belgian yeast. So, I chose Berliner Weisse at the bartenders suggestion.

Which brings me to service, the bartender understood the complexity of the beers and was able to describe each one with intelligent accuracy.

This brewery is easy to miss. Nestled in South Philly, this was a great visit. They had a good variety of beers on tap, from Stout to Saison, to Barleywine, to Flemish Sour. The bartender was exceeding friendly and professional, with a great knowledge of the beer and food. They offer most of their brews in 3 different size pours. Only open for a year, they seem to be doing a great job thus far. A great spot to check out.

 

A few blocks off Passayunk Ave, in a mostly residential block. Converted auto garage building. There is long bar, and then a few small tables along the walls as well. 10 beers on tap - good variety of styles. 10 oz or 16 oz pours. Enjoyed the beers I drank. They've got cider, cocktails, and wine for the non-beer drinkers. They serve food too, but I didn't have any.

Located in a mixed-use section of Philly, this small brewpub has 9 house-brewed beers on tap. The facility includes a long concrete bar, additional tables with bar stools and a small back room. Very friendly service. They do small pours but at a price. Entrance is at the intersection with Bancroft.

Sweet venue, renovated using only items from the previous business. Great and knowledgeable staff, and just enough hype that the beers turn over so you get to try new things every time you come in. Their production team is on the forefront of new trends and is trying all sorts of fun experimental brews. Can't wait to go back

The neighborhood's a little sketchy, but SDB is pretty cool. It's a small place, but there's ample room...I'm not sure what kind of crowd they can possibly get in this area, but the bar seats about 20 people, and there are some side tables. Basic corner bar vibe, everything is simple. Standard stuff on tap. I tried a sample of pretty much everything, and there was nothing I didn't like, though nothing really blew me away. 4, 8, 16 ounce options for most things, and grenades (growlers) for taking home. Service was fine, the bartender was friendly. I didn't sample the food menu, but it was all pretty basic stuff, ranging from snacks to sandwiches. Good enough for a bite if you need some absorbance. Worth checking out, and not too far from Tap Room on 19th, if you feel like taking a stroll.

 

i was so stoked on this place! random drive out of downtown to a brewery pinned on a google map or something, absolutely no prior knowledge or expectations going on. the drive brought us through a kind of neighborhood we dont have here in colorado, where all the houses are connected, the streets are chaotically narrow, and its about as old school and blue collar (in appearance anyway) as could be. my lady was even getting a little nervous about it. we walk in just after opening time to a beautifully quaint little taproom, oriented the narrow way, with lots of old reclaimed wood features, vintage mirrors behind the bar, a small open kitchen, barrels and tanks in the back, a chalkboard beer list, and some garage doors that would be open if the weather was warmer. the guy behind the operation greeted us warmly, chatted about his beers, and was real friendly the whole time. we loved the beers, and were really pleasantly surprised. they had a killer vanilla barleywine, a bizarre smoked porter with pineapple, and even a rye saison, well hopped, that was a collaboration with the lost abbey folks from what i understand. all were excellent, super far ahead of expectations, and just on their way to greatness, this will not be under the radar for long. the vibe is humble and amazing, and the beer matches. of all our brewery stops in philly and beyond, this was hands down my favorite. get in here before it blows up!

 

New jawn in the neighborhood that both recently opened up and also happens to rule. If fact, there's not really a bad thing I can say about Second District Brewing, which makes zero sense 'cause I think almost everything sucks.

The three beers I has were all enjoyable and worth getting again.

The staff was friendly, helpful and chatty when they needed to be, which is exactly what they needed to be.

For lunch, I had the vegan Italian sausage sandwich, which was friggin' delicious. The bread, the sausage, the pickles...all wonderful.

I cannot wait to walk five minutes from my front door and visit this dope brewpub again.

Heck yes, Newbold.
Rejoice!