Worth the Trip: The Craftsman Ale House in Harrison
Sometimes you just need a craft beer and a burger. That’s the theme of The Craftsman Ale House in Harrison that opened last year. The setting is “unpretentious” and the menu is short: burgers, wings, Mac n’ cheese, chili, French onion soup, and salads. The craft beer menu is significantly longer and that’s what makes The Craftsman a notable newcomer that’s worth the trip.
The menu features eight fresh, constantly rotating, craft beers on tap and over 100 bottles and cans from some of the best small breweries in the world. Warning to beer hall neophytes you won’t find Budweiser or Blue Moon products here. But you will find every kind of beer, from pilsners to stouts, brewed across the globe from Belgium to Maui, with ABV counts from 3.8 (Narragansett Light) to 15 (Goose Island Bourbon County Stout.)
Many of their brews are notable for their additives like cinnamon, allspice, ginger, cherries, and chocolate. Others just have funny names. Here’s a random sample selected from their beer menu to convey just how esoteric it can get at The Craftsman: Breckenridge Vanilla Porter, Chatoe Rogue Pumpkin Patch Ale, Lake Placid Ubu Ale, Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat, Southern Tier Eurotrash Pilz, and Clown Shoes Clementine – a Belgian style White Ale brewed with Clementine, orange peel and a hint of coriander.
If you want to get deep into craft beer culture there are home brew nights, brewery take-over nights, and education classes. Best of all they will pour you a domestic draught for only $5 a pint. Saturday nights are “Kill the Keg” nights when you can get a pint for just $3. And you can get a 64 ounce growler for just $15 if you find a beer that must go home with you. (The Craftsman Ale House, 235 Harrison Ave., Harrison; 914.630.7484; www.the-craftsman-ale-house.com)
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