Chicago & Philly Brewpubs???

Williams 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Managed to get a tour of Two Brothers Brewing last Sunday, had a few beers and some wings. The wings were good, but be sure to give the owner **** about them not being spicy enough and they will promptly deliver you a tin of their homemade habenaro sauce :D Very tasty stuff! I will also be brining a couple 6 packs of their beer home with me too!

Been to the Bavarian lodge twice this week and I LOVE that place! Great beer and the food was great too, assuming you like german food which I do, though I did see burgers and steaks on the menu if too.

Also visited Lunar Brewing, which was fantastic. The bartender recommended a good local pizza shop and we got some amazing Chicago style deep dish delivered to us at the bar, at which point the bartender set the parmesan, hot pepper flakes, napkins, and siracha sauce down for us(excellent service). We also got a tour of the "brewery", AKA: the back room/kitchen, where they had a few SS conicals and they are basically just a large scale homebrewer(sorta, little bigger but same concept).

I got pics of 2 bros brewery and lunar, but I forgot my usb cable at home so you will have to wait til I get back this coming weekend before I can post any pics.

Thanks again for the tips!! Will be looking forward to checking out the recommendations in Philly when I get there. That trip has been delayed to January now.
 
dummkauf said:
Thinking about it now. I just had my first DFH Burton Baton at the Bavarian lodge last night, that is one TASTY beer! :mug:
Click to expand...

there are SOOO many other breweries in the general area I'd consider driving too be fore DFH... that part of MD is a hike from Philly.

If you want to drive... go to Victory.
 
dummkauf said:
that looks like its an hour from the hotel, might be a bit of a drive.
Click to expand...

sorry i responded so late you are probably on a plane already, but they have this amazing coffee stout on tap right now that I picked up a growler of today. It's a really small place but has some really great beer. if you are still in the city try a grocery store chain they might have some of their year round stuff
 
Jaysus said:
there are SOOO many other breweries in the general area I'd consider driving too be fore DFH... that part of MD is a hike from Philly.

If you want to drive... go to Victory.
Click to expand...

FWIW, DFH is in DE, but you are right, it is a hike. I live real close to Victory, and definitely can't go wrong. My son is going there for dinner tonight and I have given him my growler--I want to try that seasonal Yakima.
 
Nodding Head brewpub its on 16th and samson. Very good beer they have this beer its the grog de'jeur sooooo good.
 
jturie said:
FWIW, DFH is in DE, but you are right, it is a hike. I live real close to Victory, and definitely can't go wrong. My son is going there for dinner tonight and I have given him my growler--I want to try that seasonal Yakima.
Click to expand...


lol, yeah - DE... don't know what I was thinking there. Derp.

I am due for another victory trip... I just wish it was a little bit closer to the train station! It is not always an easy sell to the wife to be my DD.
 
There is also Earth Bread and Brewery in Mt. Airy (Philadelphia). They usually have 4 house beers on tap (plus other good commercial beers) but I don't believe the newish brewer is making the same level beer as the owner was making. Victory is worth the trip, I try to go every 3 or 4 weeks and it's close to an hour drive for us.
 
Thanks for the tips, I'm heading out to Philly the week after next(trip got delayed til after the holidays) and will try to hit nodding head, monks, iron hill, and Earth Bread. We'll see how many I can squeeze in :D

I just have one more question for those of you from Philly, where would you recommend I go to get a philly cheese steak? I can't leave philly without trying the real deal!
 
All of the above are good suggestions.

If you are in Philly and want a good beer bar (it is not a brew pub) go to Monk's. The best selection of Belgian beers ever. Huge selection, lots of good beer on tap and their beer bible is good reading. Worth the visit. 16th. and Locust.

The Philly cheesesteak battle is an ongoing debate. Geno's or Pat's. Both have their followers.
 
Well I wont be in downtown Philly, I'll be in the burbs, Wayne to be specific, but I'm flying in Sunday afternoon and plan on spending the day exporing the city since it's my first trip out there.

I've heard of Geno's but not Pat's, I might have to try both :D
 
I have lived in south philadelphia my whole life.... Do not goto genos or pats unless you want a slab of grade F meat on a roll. Goto Jim's steaks on 5th and south street. They even have some beer you can buy not good beer but at least they have it.

Also if you like pricey belgian beers goto this place on 2nd and chestnut ... I forget the name for some reason right now but if I remember it I will post it.

P.S nodding head is an awesome brew pub.
 
jonbomb said:
I have lived in south philadelphia my whole life.... Do not goto genos or pats unless you want a slab of grade F meat on a roll. Goto Jim's steaks on 5th and south street. They even have some beer you can buy not good beer but at least they have it.

Also if you like pricey belgian beers goto this place on 2nd and chestnut ... I forget the name for some reason right now but if I remember it I will post it.

P.S nodding head is an awesome brew pub.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip! I will probably check out Ginos & Pats just for the tourist factor, but I need to grab dinner someplace all week and could drive into Philly, so I think I'll check out Jim's too.
 
dummkauf said:
I just have one more question for those of you from Philly, where would you recommend I go to get a philly cheese steak? I can't leave philly without trying the real deal!
Click to expand...

You never heard of Pat's?? It's arguably the most famous one in the city. Pat's Geno's, Jim's, Tony Luke's, and dozens more, all are good. Cheese steaks in Philly are like pizzas in New York - there really aren't any bad ones. If you can't make a decent one, you are out of business. And for those who say the big name places are just for tourists, I will say that they are mistaken. Personally, I think that Pat's makes the best one among them, and the meat in particular is awesome. But you need to eat them hot off the grill.

But favorites are like religion - it's what you grow up with. My family and neighborhood were all about Pat's. We would never even consider wandering across the square to try a Geno's.

And by the way, NEVER eat a cheese steak at any place that shows them on the menu (or wall) as a "Philly cheese steak," We know what they are and where they are from. If they have to be described by having "Philly" in front, it's not going to be good.

PS - Wayne is pretty far from the city and all those places you mentioned going to. If you can't make it all the way there, try McKenzie's Pub in Frazer and Iron Hill Brewery (a couple of locations). Both make great beers, as evidenced by a number of GABF medals among them. They are easily reachable from Wayne.
 
jonbomb said:
I have lived in south philadelphia my whole life.... Do not goto genos or pats unless you want a slab of grade F meat on a roll. Goto Jim's steaks on 5th and south street. They even have some beer you can buy not good beer but at least they have it.

Also if you like pricey belgian beers goto this place on 2nd and chestnut ... I forget the name for some reason right now but if I remember it I will post it.

P.S nodding head is an awesome brew pub.
Click to expand...

Its called Eulogy and I frequent it quite often, got to the 2nd floor bar on a Friday or Saturday and if Andrew is bartending tell him youre a homebrewer and you may get a free beer. I actually just brewed with him in his apt directly across the st from the bar.
 
SteveM said:
You never heard of Pat's?? It's arguably the most famous one in the city. Pat's Geno's, Jim's, Tony Luke's, and dozens more, all are good. Cheese steaks in Philly are like pizzas in New York - there really aren't any bad ones. If you can't make a decent one, you are out of business. And for those who say the big name places are just for tourists, I will say that they are mistaken. Personally, I think that Pat's makes the best one among them, and the meat in particular is awesome. But you need to eat them hot off the grill.

But favorites are like religion - it's what you grow up with. My family and neighborhood were all about Pat's. We would never even consider wandering across the square to try a Geno's.

And by the way, NEVER eat a cheese steak at any place that shows them on the menu (or wall) as a "Philly cheese steak," We know what they are and where they are from. If they have to be described by having "Philly" in front, it's not going to be good.

PS - Wayne is pretty far from the city and all those places you mentioned going to. If you can't make it all the way there, try McKenzie's Pub in Frazer and Iron Hill Brewery (a couple of locations). Both make great beers, as evidenced by a number of GABF medals among them. They are easily reachable from Wayne.
Click to expand...

I was born here in Philly and Pat's and Geno's steaks are disgusting. Those places are just tourist traps so is Jim's but Jim's is the best out of all three. If you want to goto Geno's or pat's just to say you were there go ahead but I don't think you will get the best possible cheese steak in the city.
 
To answer some of the posts so far.

No I had really never heard of Pat or Geno's until now since I've never been to Philly before and pretty much all I know about the city is the bell and stuff learned during history class....oh and the Rocky stairs!

As far as the pricey belgians go, I'm not too concerned here as all of my meals and drinks will be getting expensed anyway, plus I do have to work so it's not as if I'll be racking up a $$$ bar tab either, so I'm not too concerned about the pricing(note they may question it if I'm spending several hundred $$$ on one meal, but as long as I keep it somewhat reasonable I'm good).

Yes, I know Wayne is a little bit of a drive, but looking at google maps it looks like it's only about a 30 min drive which isn't so bad. Keep in mind my only options after 4 or 5pm is to go sit in a hotel or go do something, so a little bit of driving isn't an issue either.

I'll be flying in Sunday early afternoon and plan on doing most of the touristy stuff Sunday, but I will need food after work each day(lunch will usually be at work and breakfast at the hotel).
 
Driving from Wayne to center city will most likely never take you 30 minutes, especially if its after 5pm. You'll be taking 76 which is the worst road in the area as far as traffic goes, in rush herb that drive could take no less than an hr. Obviously off hours you can do it a bit quicker.
 
I recently spent a month in Philly and tried a lot of cheese steaks. If you want to see Pat's and Geno's and take some pics fine, but I wouldn't recommend waiting in the lines to eat there. I ate at them both and it's nothing special. Go to Jim's, my favorite was actually an Amish place in Reading Market.

As far as beer, I went to Victory (awesome), PBC (OK), Yards(a must visit), Dock Street (unique cool place) and Earth Bread(cool place worth a visit).
 
Coff said:
Driving from Wayne to center city will most likely never take you 30 minutes, especially if its after 5pm. You'll be taking 76 which is the worst road in the area as far as traffic goes, in rush herb that drive could take no less than an hr. Obviously off hours you can do it a bit quicker.
Click to expand...

How late does rush hour last out there? Would it be done by say 6 or 6:30? I probably wouldn't be heading straight from work into town, usually try to work out for a little bit in the hotel gym when traveling(especially since I usually eat like crap when I trave, eg: cheese steaks :D l). How late would I need to leave to avoid rush hour?

Plus, wouldn't rush hour be heading out of downtown, not in??? I'm used to Minneapolis and heading into dowtown isn't bad at 5, but heading out of downtown is another story.
 
If you're willing to drive to Wayne you may as well go to Capones in norristown. It's not a brewpub but is rated as the #25 beer destination in the world (according to ratebeer). 30+ hard to get craft beers on tap and even harder to get beers in the bottle shop.

And taking 76 has traffic into and out of the city 24/7.
 
timOD said:
If you're willing to drive to Wayne you may as well go to Capones in norristown. It's not a brewpub but is rated as the #25 beer destination in the world (according to ratebeer). 30+ hard to get craft beers on tap and even harder to get beers in the bottle shop.

And taking 76 has traffic into and out of the city 24/7.
Click to expand...

Not really willing, I will be staying in Wayne all week.
 
Ahh, I had it backwards. Then.... If you're willing to drive to Philly, then just jump on 202 and hit Capones from there. Probably 15-20 minute drive from Wayne.
 
jonbomb said:
I was born here in Philly and Pat's and Geno's steaks are disgusting. Those places are just tourist traps so is Jim's but Jim's is the best out of all three. If you want to goto Geno's or pat's just to say you were there go ahead but I don't think you will get the best possible cheese steak in the city.
Click to expand...

Phthp - I grew up here also, worked in South Philly for 20 years and I've had steaks all over the city and burbs. I don't care for Jim's - I think they went downhill over the years. Pat's was not so good maybe ten years ago but they improved the meat they use and they are back to being the best.
 
jonbomb said:
Nice to know there are still people in my area of south philly that were born and raised here! cheers!:mug:
Click to expand...

:D

...and arguing about which cheese steak is best is more likely to raise blood pressure than talking politics or which is the best beer city! :mug:
 
Anyone been to Teresa's Next Door Bar? Looks like they have an excellent selection of beer and got good reviews on Yelp? Plus google lists it as being 25 seconds from my hotel :D
 
dummkauf said:
Anyone been to Teresa's Next Door Bar? Looks like they have an excellent selection of beer and got good reviews on Yelp? Plus google lists it as being 25 seconds from my hotel :D
Click to expand...

Yup, great selection great food, service is awesome. They have all kinds of events there during the week. http://www.teresas-cafe.com/

Since you're close to Teresas, you're close to the train station. And if you want to get into the city, I'd take the train into Suburban Station; that's 2 blocks away from City Hall, here's the schedule into the city (http://www.septa.org/schedules/rail/w/PAO_1.html).

Here's the schedule out of the city (http://www.septa.org/schedules/rail/w/PAO_0.html)

You'll want to use Wayne and Suburban Station as your on/off. Those are Weekday schedules.
 
dummkauf said:
Anyone been to Teresa's Next Door Bar? Looks like they have an excellent selection of beer and got good reviews on Yelp? Plus google lists it as being 25 seconds from my hotel :D
Click to expand...

TND is excellent! I went there 2-3 times last year and I was never disappointed. Great food and the beer selection is always top notch. If it is that close to your hotel you will definitely have to go and I bet you go back too.
 
^^ agreed.

You also have the Great American pub on that corner. Then you have Christophers, the Boat house, and the Free House isn't that bad either. They are all on the same street as TND
 

Similar threads

H
Adding Philly Sour, to reduce oxidation in storage.
Replies
5
Views
263
DuncB
D
beren
New Jersey Another LHBS closed: Philly Homebrew Outlet
Replies
4
Views
414
BQ&W
BQ&W
S
Craft beer in Manchester, Liverpool & Blackpool - U.K.
Replies
0
Views
94
Stikius
S
brewED101
Hey from Chicago
Replies
5
Views
382
wallyLOZ
wallyLOZ
Whisky River
Turning off fermentation temp control
Replies
16
Views
679
Alan Reginato
Alan Reginato
Williams Brewing 300

Latest posts

Back
Top