NYC Recomendations

Hello. This is a great thread.

I'll be in NYC with my wife for our anniversary next weekend. We lived in NYC until 2017 and haven't really been back since. Reading this thread, it looks like a lot of places we used to go to either closed down or aren't the same any more. Are any of the following places that used to be our favorites still worth checking out or even still open?

Rattle n Hum (appears to be closed)
Ginger Man (appears to be closed)
Blind Tiger (mostly college aged and always packed?)
The Jeffrey
As Is
Torst
Owl Farm
Pony Bar (appears to be closed)
Haymaker
DBA (appears to be closed but maybe not all the locations?)

Are there any other newer beer bars/places that I didn't list above that would be a must visit for someone visiting? Also, it looks like Grimm and Evil Twin both opened new brew pubs in recent years? Are those worth heading out there to visit?

Open to any other thoughts or recommendations.

 

As Is is still worth checking out. They had 3-4 Hill Farmstead brews on tap last Saturday when I was there.
Owl Farm is the same, eclectic but good quality draft selection. If you go there you should hit up Queue Beer on Smith St. (right around the corner from Centre St. Other Half).
Queue probably consistently has the best draft list in Brooklyn at this point.
Törst also still the same but I rarely make it out there.

 

Grimm recently upgraded their taproom with a roof deck and pizza place, very good.

The Evil Twin taprooms are worth it if you're into heavily fruited/smoothie sours, though their lagers are actually real good.

If you're interested in Fidens, Harlem Hops always has them around, and if getting all the way up there isn't easy they have a spot at the Pier 57 Market, which is all around a nice spot to hang and get a bite/drink.

 

Pony Bar on the west side closed. East side is still open.
DBA Brooklyn closed. Village spot appears to be open still but I'm actually surprised by this.
Rattle N Hum (both locations) and Ginger Man are closed.

Last time I was at Blind Tiger it was totally empty but it was also during daylight hours. I think the time before that there were maybe 2 middle aged tourists and that's it. So the crowd will depend on day and time.

I'm guessing that if you went to most of the above they'll feel like basically the bars you were used to. The smell on the sidewalks will feel like the biggest difference from the past. Of course circumstances can lead to anything though. I think in general you might feel like the NYC beer geeks have fled to the taprooms (as this mirrors the general trend in craft beer today).

It's probably been mentioned a lot in this thread already, but the new kid on the beer bar block is The Grand Delancey. The atmosphere is colder than a place like Rattle N Hum, but these days I'm typically heading to The Grand Delancey 99% of the time if I want to go to a beer bar. It's tunnel vision.

Enjoy your trip.

 

Any opinions on Craft + Carry? My wife and I will be visiting friends who lives within a block of the Gramercy location. The friends are not beer drinkers so just want to grab something to bring. The convenience will likely outweigh any other options unless it's not worth my time. Thanks.

 

If it's the most convenient option, you can do way worse. But they do have a very generic chain-y vibe, the prices are still on the higher end even with what I'd assume is a decent economy of scale, and the knowledge of the staff is very hit/miss. It's very rare I'll see one with an all around awesome taplist, but there's usually a couple things I'll be interested in, and you'll usually be able to find good cans, though at least on the UWS location they do tend to sit around so check dates.

 

Any notable events or happenings this upcoming weekend? Staying in East Village Friday - Sunday. Pumped to be in town!

 

Great bar and great pizza across the street.

 

Second on Queue Beer - great beer selection and run by great people as well.

 

Has '23 Bourbon County and/or any of the variants popped up on tap around the city? Staying in Midtown the next few nights and hoping NYC might have had better luck than Boston.

 

Regular 23, Backyard, Bananas Foster are currently on tap at Queue Beer in Brooklyn right off the G or F. Also right near OH Centre St.
Queue also currently has 2014 Regular BCBS on tap.
They had a ton of random bottles for onsite too but I’m not sure if they’re still available.

 

I am from 2005 and I suggest the following: Ginger Man, Mugs Ale House, Blind Tiger, Burp Castle, Standings, Jimmys No 43, Hop Devil Grill (but look out for that mike guy,) Barcade, DBA, Heartland Brewery, Liberty Heights Taproom, Telephone Bar, and Spuyten Duyvil. Happy time traveling! Cheers!

 

Thanks for the heads up! Unfortunately I just didn't have the bandwidth to get out of Midtown for an extended period. I did manage to find Bananas Foster on tap at JRB for lunch today before I left the city...entirely different on tap than in the bottle.

 

Went to Blind Tiger last Saturday for the first time in many years. It's exactly the same as I remembered it to be on a Saturday early evening. It was wall-to-wall people with an excellent tap list and underrated food. The food is a minor selling point as getting a seat is still a rarity. My wife and I got lucky and sat at the bar for our second drink and a bite.

Still an all-time favorite for me.

 

How is the scene in/around Midtown these days? Went to The Three Monkeys on my last trip in December and was pleasantly surprised by the large tap list. Also hit As Is for the first time and enjoyed the diversity of styles. Open to any and all suggestions!

 

Just chiming in with my obligatory Haymaker input.

 

Another good one! Haymaker was always a staple when I was in town pre-pandemic. Might need to revisit on this trip.

 

Three Monkeys definitely always has good stuff on tap, but I think it kinda flies under the radar craft beer-wise just because it feels like such a generic midtown businessbro bar.

I'd agree that As Is and Haymaker are probably the two best. Further east near Grand Central there's City Beer who always has a pretty stacked selection and taplist, but they are reallly pricey, even for NYC craft beer.

 

on my visits, it seems like locals tend to drink out of the coolers, which is a decent option for keeping costs lower

 

It kinda goes both ways in terms of being cost-efficient. It does usually work out to be about the same if not less in terms of $/oz than a draft pour, even with the few extra bucks most places charge to drink a can on-site, but then you're committing to a full 16oz, and the unit itself is probably more expensive than the 10-12oz pour you'd get otherwise.

The real sweet spot is having somebody to split cans with, especially if you're looking to sample a handful of things.