Recently I posted a request for beer recommendations for New York, well having been there and tried a few I thought I'd report back.
Midtown Chophouse - Busy bar area so we went for the food option (got a quiet and draughty corner table, main course arrived whilst still eating the starters but were left anyway and were only warm when they arrived so you can guess the rest). The beer however was excellent, I tried the pumpkin despite my reservations about beer and fruit and loved it! Sharp refreshing and clean just what was needed after a hard day sightseeing, also between us we had the Oatmeal Stout, the Oktoberfest and the Wheat beer all of which were excellent - Have to say the food let the place down. ($120 for two starters, two Main and 4 pints was a bit OTT - but I was warned)
Heartland Brewery South Street Seaport - walked over to South Street Seaport after doing the Ellis Island stuff, with a quick foray up Wall Street on the way. We dropped in mid afternoon so the bar was quiet and we got to sample the Stumpkin (sorry Lew, but I prefer both the Porter and Pumpkin on their own ;-)) as well as trying the Indian River Ale and a resample of the Oktoberfest.
Ginger Man - We walked down after visiting the Empire State Building and what an ace bar! I have never seen such a choice of beers and as I wanted to try the 'local' beers we tried our best. Brooklyn Indian Pale Ale, Blue Point Oktoberfest, Stone Brewing's Arrogant Bastard and Rogue Dead Guy were all enjoyed as was the Victory Hop Devil. The only low point was that my wife ordered a pint of the Blue Point Pale Ale on hand pump which was decidedly disappointing. The bartender changed it for us but did ask us "if we had had cask ale before?" - our reply was to the effect that in the UK we didn't drink anything else.
Heartland Radio City - popped in on the way back to our hotel just in time to catch the early evening rush couple of pints of Pumpkin - I really got a taste for this and a quick masterclass on the basic rules of baseball from the barman, still don't understand the game but I now know more than I did. If I worked near here I'd become a regular.
Blind Tiger - Again visited during the afternoon when it was quiet probably a bit too quiet but we were able to sit at the bar and choose a beer from the extensive selection, tried the Dogfish Head Pumpkin Ale (yeah I know fruit again) as well as the Brooklyner Hefe Weisse and Brooklyn Pennant Pale Ale.
Virgils Barbecue - Beer was fine (pitchers of Brooklyn Lager as I recall) but the food, service and atmosphere were all absolutely excellent! Even though the bar was busy we were served quickly and got tables in the restaurant after a short wait. It was the only venue we visited twice and comes highly recommended. The barbecued lamb looked and smelled good and I can testify that the Wednesday night special Fiery Shrimp is superb.
All in all really enjoyed tasting something different and thanks for the recommendations from Dan, Lew, Steve and Phil. Anyone who says that the only good beers in the US are in the North West should visit some of the places above.
Dave Bradshaw