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D.B.G.B.

299 Bowery (at E. 1st St.) • New York, NY 10003 (212) 933-5300 • danielnyc.com/dbgb • Established: 2009

SCENE & STORY

The Bowery neighborhood gentrified years ago, but it wasn’t really a good beer lovers’ destination until restaurateur Daniel Boulud added the chic eatery DBGB to the mix. While Boulud jokes that the name stands for “Daniel Boulud Good Beer,” it’s actually an homage to rock promoter Hilly Kristal’s gone-but-not-forgotten downtown club CBGB & OMFUG, which stood for “Country Bluegrass Blues & Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers.” It’s got fourteen kinds of house-made sausage, twenty-two taps of some of New York’s best food-friendly beer (and an extensive bottle list) and three different burgers that might make you want to jump on the tables and scream like Joey Ramone.

True, with its glassy modern touches and copper cook pots hanging around there’s nothing punk about Boulud’s place, or the menu he’s put together, but it’s got mojo. The modern space bustles without getting deafening, and while it’s easier to get a table in the outer section, make a reservation in the main room adjacent to the small L-shaped kitchen. Then turn to the beer list, and look for a pale smoked lager from Bamberg, Germany, called Aecht Schlenkerla, which pairs nicely with a selection of the salads, house-made sausages (including the Viennoise, made with moist pork and Emmenthaler cheese), or the Piggie, a six-ounce patty topped with pulled pork, jalapeño mayo, and Boston lettuce on a cheddar bun. This is comfort food writ large.

PHILOSOPHY

Artists only, to borrow the song title from CBGB regular and former Talking Head David Byrne. Boulud’s beer list is packed with the best small-batch producers, including tiny Northeast startups and gems from southeastern Germany, among others.

KEY BEER

Collaboration beers between competing companies is all the rage in American craft brewing. Brooklyner-Schneider Hopfen-Weiss (8.5% ABV; $15 for 9 ounces) is one of the best examples so far. German brewmaster Hans-Peter Drexler came to Brooklyn and made this beer with Brooklyn Brewery’s Garrett Oliver; it is dry hopped, but with American Amarillo and Palisade hops, giving it a something of a grassy pollen aroma and a spicy finish.

SPITZER’S CORNER

101 Rivington St. (between Essex St. & Ludlow St.) New York, NY 10002 • (212) 228-0027 • spitzerscorner.com Established: 2007

SCENE & STORY

This trendy bar is smack in the epicenter of the Lower East Side, which means this sleek brushed steel and burnished wood gastropub with communal seating is at times besieged by twenty-somethings wearing at least one piece of hipster-approved attire. But get past the very thorough bouncers (don’t forget your ID, or forget coming), head to the back room and a seat by the window, and suddenly this place makes perfect sense. There are about eighty international and craft beers and a decadent list of treats including truffled mac-and-cheese and a Kobe beef cheeseburger (order the “fat fries,” too, which come topped with sea salt and herbs de Provence). As long as the crowds are manageable, service is quick and attentive, if not incredibly knowledgeable about beer.

PHILOSOPHY

Social, not snobby.

KEY BEER

There are forty beers on tap with an American craft focus running the gamut from brewed in New York to rarely seen in New York. There are many more selections in bottles, not a stinker in the bunch. The Two Brothers Bitter End pale ale, often on tap (5.2% ABV), would be the perfect accompaniment to the decadently delicious Kobe beef burger.

DETOUR

THE BLIND TIGER

ALEHOUSE

281 Bleecker St. • New York, NY 10014 • (212) 462-4682

blindtigerale

house.com • Established: 1995

Beer, the drink of the people! Few New Yorkers understand this better than the owners of the Blind Tiger, a legendary New York City tavern that was relocated not long ago to the West Village. Dave Brodrick, its co-owner, was forced to close shop in late 2006, weakened by a long-running licensing battle involving the State Liquor Commission,