Tuesday, November 15, 2005

New York City Pub Tour : Stop #6; Hop Devil Grill




OK, FINALLY.....I am going to finish this NYC Pub Tour series of postings. You would swear that it should not have taken me so long to post comments on 6 beer establishments in New York City. Afterall, it's been 10 weeks now since our trip to NYC for Matt and Kathleen's wedding.

Unfortunately, my note taking really died off by this time of the night, so I am relying mostly on my memory for this posting (don't worry I didn't drink that much ;-). Let's just start this off by saying that while Ginger Man and Burp Castle provided excellent competition on this pub tour, Hop Devil Grill ranked right there at the top of our experiences on this particular Friday.

I would probably give a nod to the neighborhood and the bar ambience, of course as well as the vast beer selection, as the factors pushing Hop Devil to the top of our list. Inside the bar is shaped like a 'U' (or a 'C', if you like!) with one side being devoted to a wide-ranging variety of beer that we skipped in favor of the "other side" comprised of mostly, if not all, Belgians. And, while we could have stayed inside, the weather was nice enough that we decided to take a sidewalk table in favor of the neighborhood street scene.

You may remember from a previous post that I mentioned Hop Devil Grill being located on Tompkins Square Park in the East Village. Being very residential lends the neighborhood to a lot of foot traffic. It's a diverse neighborhood....more so than even NYC as a whole. We were getting hungry for a full meal at this point, so we opted for only one beer.

So, how better to accomplish this than to order a large bottle of St. Feuillien Cuvee de Noel. Mm, Mm good. This is my simpleton's way of describing how perfect everything was from our server's friendliness, to our outdoor seats, to the smooth-drinking St. Feuillien. Refer to my tasting notes from the St. Feuillien dinner at Monk's Cafe in Philly later in September.

The experience with this beer was quite consistent between the two tastings. So, we reluctantly moved on from Hop Devil with every intention to return as soon as possible. It is not necessarily the easiest place to get to if you are taking the subway. You need to make an approximately 10 minute walk from the 6-train (Astor Place). But, come on now, everything in NYC is walkable, right?! Take a taxi if you wish, but if the weather is suitable, then make the walk and enjoy the scenery! Don't miss this stop when in New York City.


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