need recommendations for NY city

Hey Everyone, I'll be in and around New York City from May 3rd-10th. I am looking for recommendations for breweries and pubs. the wife and I will be staying in Brooklyn and Chelsea. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I have purposely left the trip pretty loose so we will be looking for things to fill our time there. Thanks again in advance.

For beer selection, Blind Tiger

for good a time Hogs n Hefers or Red Rock saloon ...

ginger man, off of third (near 50th?) is one block south from the LHBS I used to go to.
in brooklyn, why dont you go to the brooklyn brewery? park slope.

theres a fun bar 2 blocks north of the south street seaport. ask around for the bar that has all the bras and ties hanging from the ceiling. and order a bucket of beer, then you can waddle down to the north star (AT the seaport)

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Oh, the checkered cab brewrey is in the big complex on the river - i forget the name, but theres a driving range there with tee-side service, so as long as you take a cab home you CAN drink and DRIVE.


ahhh - Chelsea Piers

Pubs:
Blind Tiger
Rattle N Hum
Hop Devil Grill
The Ginger Man
The Burp Castle

Breweries & Brew Pubs:
Brooklyn Brewery
SixPoint Craft Ales (in Brooklyn but don't think they have tours available)
Chelsea Brewing
McSorley's (only 2 beers available light or dark)

I think Sixpoint makes some really tasty beer. If you don't go, get some where you are. They used to be the 'house' tap beers of The Modern (bistro inside the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Not sure where else.

EDIT: Yeah, I just looked at their website and they are pouring 4 Sixpoints on draft. I think they are one of (if not only) place that serves Sixpoint on tap, but I think they told me that so....

Sixpoint is excellent and you should be able to find it no problem in Manhattan and especially Brooklyn. Try the Sweet Action!

Are they on tap elsewhere anywhere? Was the Modern giving me a load?

Sixpoint beers are on tap at a lot of places around the city, not too hard to find. Check beermenus.com to see who is pouring them. Pretty much everything they make is amazing Brownstone is a favorite, but you can't go wrong with Sweet Action (a blonde), Bengali Tiger (IPA), or Righteous Rye (Rye beer).

I can echo the Blind Tiger reccomendation, but if you can try to go early afternoon or at least arrive before everyone gets out of work, it's a tiny place and it tends to get packed.

McSorleys is a trip, oldest bar in the city, interesting vibe, but be warned - it's anarchy at night. Go for vibe, not for great beer.

Ginger Man has very nice choices, but it's in midtown and get's packed with the suit and tie crowd at happy hour.

Swift Hibernian Lounge has a great selection and very cool vibe.

Pony Bar - great spot - sometimes they'll give over all their taps to a single brewery.

Queens:
If you can get to Queens the Astoria Beer Garden is the last of the traditional German style beer gardens in NYC although apparently someone did open another one nearby that is also supposed to be nice.

In Brooklyn:

Spuytin Duyvil - quirky little beer bar with an epic selection of Belgian beers and good smattering of others, mostly bottles

Muggs Ale House - standard bar with great tap selection

Brooklyn Brewery - only open during happy hour on Fridays from 5-10 and Saturdays from 12-5. Tours on Saturdays, no appointment needed. Fun scene, they put out picnic tables and you can order takeout from local restaurants and gawk at the ridiculous hipsters. Best beer deal in the city 6 glasses for 20 bucks and you get one free with an AHA card if your a member.

Bierkraft - mostly a retail establishment, but they do have tables where you can sit down and enjoy a pint and one of their excellent sandwiches. They have somewhere around 700 different bottles from around the world plus a dozen beers on tap and 3 casks of real ale which they'll put in counterpressure filled growlers for you. My favorite business in the world.

In Brooklyn, Bar Great Harry. Smith Street is a great place to eat and drink in general.

i don't know how far away it is, but when I was in NYC last christmas, some local friends took me to The Pony Bar, which always has a nice selection of american craft brew on tap. And only $5 a pop, which is a steal in NYC from what I hear. I think it's in Manhattan in the old hell's kitchen area.

thanks for all quick responses. I am definitely going to hit up Brooklyn Brewery and now Sixpoint. sounds like Blind Tiger is on the list as well. how is Heartland Brewery? looks like they have several locations in NY.

onejdn said:

thanks for all quick responses. I am definitely going to hit up Brooklyn Brewery and now Sixpoint. sounds like Blind Tiger is on the list as well. how is Heartland Brewery? looks like they have several locations in NY.

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To clarify, you'll have to find sixpoint at local bars (shouldn't be hard) - I don't think they have a tasting room at the brewery.

Hearland is... Heartland. A few good beers on tap, I like the Oatmeal Stout. Kind of gimmicky though and the food is pretty bland and that's putting it charitably.

onejdn said:

how is Heartland Brewery? looks like they have several locations in NY.

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I wouldn't bother. Better to go to a bar that has great taps than this brew pub. Its $7 a pint and the food is expensive and not worth it The seasonal's are good but the regular offerings are just ok.

If you're a geek like me look at this website
http://www.beermenus.com/

You can search by beer name and they also list beer events in the city.

Check out these as well:

BXL (43rd street is better location for tourism) - Belgian Beer and Food
Petite Abeille - Belgian Beer and Food
Peculiar Pub - In the village which is always crazy. 22 on tap. over 300 in bottles.
House of Brews - on restaurant row (46th) near theater district/times square

chrispykid said:

Bierkraft - mostly a retail establishment, but they do have tables where you can sit down and enjoy a pint and one of their excellent sandwiches. They have somewhere around 700 different bottles from around the world plus a dozen beers on tap and 3 casks of real ale which they'll put in counterpressure filled growlers for you. My favorite business in the world.

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+1,000,000,000

This right here is the only thing that makes me sad I moved out of Brooklyn.

Ok, cool. I just saw that heartland had several locations but it sounds like its more of a restaurant that happens to brew beer. it sounds like another Bj's. I would rather stick to places that are more unique and have good beer.

You have to go to McSorelys for the history of it. Like said before. Beers are light and dark and ordered two at a time. Neither is mind blowing, but they're good enough and the place is just cool!!

and less than a block down from McSorleys is Burp Castle, run by the brewist monks. They always have something interesting on tap and a huge selection of bottled beers in their cellar which have to be specially sent up.

Don't bother with Heartland, they don't even brew their own beer anymore, lame. And it was never very good to begin with. Chelsea Brewing Co at Chelsea Piers is pretty cool, good beer, decent food, can sit outside on the river etc, but you can get their beer at Bierkraft and other good beer bars mentioned above.

go to mcsorleys and the burp castle, and HOPE that brother pat is still there ! (that dang ol' codger!)

I'll have to hit those up too. I've seen mcsorley's featured on a travel channel show, sounds pretty cool. I think chelsea brewing is relatively close to where I'm staying (near madison square gardens)

If you go down by the Seaport, the Heartland down there is good IMO. The other ones are nothing special. And as previously mentioned, their seasonals are good, but the everyday beers are lacking.