Hartford area suggestions

I am rather new to the area, so I would absolutely defer to more seasoned CT folks. That said....

-Eli Cannon's in Middletown isn't terribly far from Hartford (maybe 20 minutes or so)...awesome beer bar, pretty solid food.
-McLadden's in West Hartford has a huge beer list. I've only been once. Must have been right after a Founders tap takeover...there were at least a dozen taps devoted to Founders. I stuffed my face on nachos and a burger, which I remember being awesome.
-Plan B in West Hartford....really good burgers and a very solid tap list.
-The Corner Pug in West Hartford....tap list is nothing to get too excited about, but I think as far as pub food goes, it's fantastic.

I just visited Harvest Wine in West Hartford the other day for the first time....very cool bottle shop, check it out!

 

I'll second Eli Cannon's if you don't mind the drive--excellent place with one of the coolest bar patios anywhere. A short walk from Eli Cannon's, there's a really solid vegetarian place called It's Only Natural. Closer to Hartford, I'd especially recommend Plan B and Max's Burger Bar, both good places for beer and burgers in West Hartford. The Half Door on the Hartford/West Hartford line has a good, mostly European beer list as well.

 

Corey is on the right track...you definitely want to check out Plan B. There are a few of them not too far from Hartford, I would suggest going to the Glastonbury or Simsbury one though because the West Hartford one is tiny and can get super crowded. Good tap list most of the time and best burgers i've ever had! Eli Cannons is a must too, great beer bar...and while you're there, there's a brewery open right near them now, Stubborn Beauty. Only open saturdays though.

As far as other breweries - check out Firefly Hollow in Bristol...good stuff there, and Relic in Plainville is nearby also, they make some unique stuff...hit and miss at times but usually solid.

 

I've walked by It's Only Natural several times now....I'll have to check it out. Oh, if you do go to Eli's, across the street is the NoRA cupcake shop. If you don't go, it's because you hate cupcakes and life. Mind-altering stuff in there.

The Half Door is very high on my list of places to check out!

I never thought to get into brewery recommendations, but Firefly Hollow would get my #1 vote. Very cool vibe, awesome people, great beer.

I've also really enjoyed several visits to City Steam. Not the geekiest place going, but some of the beers are really good.

 

The Hartford area is ok... my two cents on the beers spots. Max Burger is probably the best spot in the area. It's on 6-8 taps, but the taps are usually solid. Was just there Friday and had Stone 4/20/14 and NEBCO Coup Beans. Max's uses Beermenus.com, but they haven't updated it in a week.

I don't particularly care for the West Hartford Plan B. Burgers are good (not nearly as good as Max Burger) and the tap list generally sucks, at least if they consider themselves a craft beer destination. Also, they make little to no effort to keep an updated tap list online. Once month, at best, they will update through facebook. The Glastonbury Plan B tends to have a better tap list.

McLaddens is pretty good... they tend to be very pricey (for example, the last time both had GBot on tap, Max Burger had 12oz pours for $6.50ish and McLaddens had 10oz pours for $8). McLaddens food is pretty good, especially since they added more food options to their menu. They do have 80 taps and they keep their web site tap list up to date.

The Birch Hill Tavern in Glastonbury was very cool. Only went once so far, but they had really solid food and a killer tap list. They don't have an online tap list, but they were more than happy to tell me the tap list over the phone.

A sleeper pick, if you want good burgers, is Corey's Catsup and Mustard in Manchester. The tap list will not blow you away (usually 1 or 2 solid IPAs), but the burgers are killer. Small joint, so call ahead to check wait times if you are going during prime time (don't recall if they do any type of call ahead). This is really a food destination.

As for bottle shops, Manchester Wine is Liquor is probably the best. Also very good is Harvest and The Wise Old Dog, both in West Hartford.

 

Or if you're looking for something a bit more "upscale", I highly recommend CW's Chops and Catch in Manchester...owned by the same dude as Catsup and Mustard but more fancy. Phenomenal food. I've probably been there 10 times and i've loved it every time...the lobster bisque is one of the best things ever.

 

Oh man, I've really wanted to check out Catsup and Mustard! I live in Newington....we have Goldburgers, which is nothing short of epic. No beer though.

 

Goldburgers is so damn good...although I haven't gotten a burger there in years because their other specials are always so intriguing. Pork Jowl Tacos, Pork Belly Sliders, Reuben Empenadas...yup.

 

I'm on the other side of that equation....so excited to try all the burgers I haven't gotten around to the specials yet. Though they do sound amazing...they had a banh mi the other week that sounded killer.

 

Seriously, try one of the asian fusion taco thingies they have up there fairly often and it'll blow your mind! I work nearby and to avoid becoming a 500lb monster I only eat there maybe once every 4-5 months or so but yeah...great place for lunch. How awesome would it be for them to pop open a bigger location with a craft beer bar? I'd move in next door.

 

first thing you do is leave Hartford. lol. no but seriously I like City Steam. food is good and the beer is well, you should be able to find something you like.

visit the mark twain house museum and the half door cafe is right around the corner. Lots of belgian and American craft offerings.

plan b, mcladdens and some other burger joint is in west Hartford and easily walkable with some of the best tap lists in CT.

I don't think the selection at eli cannons is all that great. but it is a fine local bar.

 

I agree with TheGator about Eli's I am often underwhelmed. I live about the same distance from Knuckleheads in Wallingford and 9 times out of 10 find myself there as opposed to Eli's. No ones mentioned Krust across the street from them, usually a few good offerings on tap, solid wood fired pizzas and an awesome bourbon selection.

J Timothy's Taverne is a fun place to go, great ambiance in an old building and some awesome wings.

Further south Mikro, Prime 16 are solid.

Make the half hour trip to Springfield, MA, food at the Student Prince, awesome German food without the lederhosen and a really sweet stein collection. Smith's Billiards is the oldest pool hall in America and has a nice taplist.

Table and Vine in West Springfield, MA has a great beer selection as well.

You could stop at Tree House, not too far to Monson from Hartford, under an hour.

 

If they are open, I would say hit the Polish National Home in Hartford for some fine Polski cuisine...Beer-wise, what everyone else said.

 

Long ago, yes. Now it is more so in New Britain, which may be about 20 minutes away. I think there is a strip in New Britain that I have heard referred to as "The Polish Mile". Google that, I'm sure you'll come up with something. Not following the not wanting to eat at a Polish joint because you can make Polish food at home, but...OK.

 

as Polishkaz suggested. Mikro in Hamden is pretty damn good. Theyre a couple exits up the Merritt (toward Hartford) from NEBCO. I went there for the first time on Sat and had delicious Poutine with Pork Carnitas and an awesome Banh Mi sandwich. Beer selection is very very good. Maybe not as good as Prime in NH (mostly burgers) or Eli's (can't find their current offerings online) but it is solid. I found the food to be way better than Eli's (more Gastropub where Eli's is more pubgrub).

Since you'll be stopping at NEBCO, Amity Liquors is pretty huge, right around the corner (literally) and should have just about everything distributed in CT. They're also your closest local spot to land NEBCO cans