The number of pubs in New York City serving cask-conditioned draught beer (or 'real ale') was static at less than ten for several years recently. Now, new emphasis on the importance, heritage, and superiority of 'real' beer - coupled with a new ease of obtaining cask ale thanks to local brewers and one distributor in particular - has started an upsurge of interest.
Currently there are over 30 bars and restaurants that regularly stock cask beer in New York City, with at a number of others doing occasional gravity casks. Here are the bars in the City to seek out for the real thing...
With thanks to The Malted Barley Appreciation Society.
Address: 76 4th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217-1908.
Telephone: 1 718 643 2273.
Nearest station: Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street (2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, M, N, Q, R trains).
Directions:
From the subway station, take the Pacific Street/4th Avenue exit, head south along 4th Avenue for three blocks.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: 24 taps, a diverse range of mostly craft beers.
Food:
Opening hours: From 4pm.
Address: 190 Avenue B, New York, NY 10009-3600.
Telephone: 1 212 388 1990.
Nearest station: 1st Avenue (L trains).
Directions:
From the subway, head east for two blocks and south for two blocks.
Cask ales: One.
Other ales: Several.
Food: Yes, it is a high quality restaurant-bar.
Opening hours: Mondays to Wednesdays 6pm to midnight, Thursdays and Fridays 6pm to 2am, Saturdays 11am to 4pm, 6pm to 2am, Sundays 11am to 4pm, 6pm to midnight.
Address: 281 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10014-4106.
Telephone:
Nearest station: West 4th Street (A, B, C, D, E, F, V trains).
Directions:
From the South 4th Street subway station, exit at the south end, turn right at the first junction, and immediately turn right again into Bleecker Street. Keep going for about three or four short blocks, The Blind Tiger is on the corner of Jones Street.
Cask ales: Three.
Other ales: Yes, lots - including plenty of rare stuff!
Food: Yes - tasty bar food is available.
Opening hours: 11.30am until 4am.
Address: 103 Berry Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211-2824.
Telephone: 1 718 302 9811.
Nearest stations: Bedford Avenue (L train),
3-4 minutes walk; Nassau Avenue (G train),
8-10 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the L train, head north up Bedford Avenue for one blocks, then turn left for one block. From the G train, head south along Nassau Avenue and Berry Street.
Cask ales: Up to two.
Other ales: Several craft beers on tap.
Food:
Opening hours: 3pm to 4am.
Address: 65 4th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217-1925.
Telephone: 1 718 399 1353.
Nearest station: Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street (2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, M, N, Q, R trains).
Directions:
From the subway station, take the Pacific Street/4th Avenue exit, head south along 4th Avenue for three blocks.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability - beer engine being installed November 2007.
Other ales: Several craft beers on tap and in bottle.
Food:
Opening hours:
Address: 28 Avenue B, New York, NY 10009-8417.
Telephone: 1 212 253 6140.
Nearest stations: 1st Avenue (F / V train), 6-8 minutes walk; or Delancey - Essex Streets (J / M / Z trains), 10-12 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the F / V train, head east on East Houston Street, and turn left on Avenue B. From the J / M / Z train, head north on Essex Street, turn right (eastbound) on East Houston Street, and turn left on Avenue B.
Cask ales: One.
Other ales: Around 20 taps.
Food: Full menu available.
Opening hours: 11am to 1am.
Address: 317 Avenue X, Brooklyn, NY 11223-5933.
Telephone: n/a.
Nearest station: Avenue X (F train), 3-4 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the F train, head east along Avenue X about 3 blocks.
Cask ales: One.
Other ales: Around 15 taps and many unusual bottles for the area, mainly European.
Food: Yes - there's a sausage factory on the premises.
Opening hours: 2.00pm-late Tuesdays to Sundays, closed Mondays.
Address: 211 Avenue A, New York, NY 10009-3413.
Telephone: 1 212 260 2914.
Nearest stations: 1st Avenue (L train), 2-3 minutes walk; or 1st Avenue (F / V trains), 12-15 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the L train, head east along East 14th Street one block, turn right on Avenue A. From the F / V train, head north on 1st Avenue, and left along East 13th Street. Turn left on Avenue A.
Cask ales: One.
Other ales: Around 20 taps.
Food: Hot pies only.
Opening hours: 3.00pm-late Monday to Friday, 1.00pm-late weekends.
Address: 76 West 3rd Street, New York, NY 10012-1026.
Telephone: 1 212 260 1088.
Nearest station: West 4th Street (A, B, C, D, F, V trains).
Directions:
From the subway, head east along West 3rd Street for three blocks.
Cask ales: One.
Other ales: A fair selection on tap and in bottle.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours:
Address: 363 West 46th Street, New York, NY 10036-3818.
Telephone: 1 212 245 0551.
Nearest station: 42nd Street (A, C, E, N, Q, R, S, W, 1, 2, 3, 7 trains).
Directions:
From the 42nd Street subway station, exit at 8th Avenue and West 44th Street (initially follow signs to Port Authority from the main Times Square platforms), walk up two blocks, turn left on West 46th Street (just before The Collins Bar is reached). The House of Brews is on the right 3/4 way down the block.
Cask ales: One beer engine, ever-changing.
Other ales:A number of good taps and bottles.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours:
Address: 302 West 51st Street, New York, NY 10019-6436.
Telephone: 1 212 541 7080.
Nearest station: 50th Street (C, E trains).
Directions:
From the subway, head north along 8th Avenue and turn left on West 51st Street.
Cask ales: One beer engine, ever-changing.
Other ales:A number of good taps and bottles.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours:
Address: 43 East 7th Street (Basement), New York, NY 10003-8191.
Telephone: 1 212 982 3006.
Nearest station: Astor Place (6 trains).
Directions:
From the the 6 train at Astor Place (Cooper Union), briefly head east to the corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Marks Place. Turn right (southbound) down 3rd Avenue for one short block, turn left on East 7th Street. Pass McSorely's on your left (and probably a queue of tourists waiting to enter), Jimmy's is a few doors down the road in the basement of Standings Bar.
Cask ales: One, tapped weekly on Thursdays lasting until it runs out - probably over the weekend.
Other ales: About a dozen ever-changing taps, often rare and usually with one or two unusual Belgians.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours: 5.00pm-late.
Address: 790 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211-2514.
Telephone: 1 718 387 3797.
Nearest station: Graham Avenue (L train).
Directions:
From the subway, head east along Metropolitan Avenue (passing Harefield Road pub) for one block.
Cask ales: Up to two.
Other ales: Several.
Food: Not yet, coming in 2008 to this new bar.
Opening hours: 4.00pm-4.00am daily.
Address: 82 4th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217-1908.
Telephone: 1 718 858 1951.
Nearest station: Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street (2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, M, N, Q, R trains).
Directions:
From the subway station, take the Pacific Street/4th Avenue exit, head south along 4th Avenue for three blocks.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: 16 taps.
Food:
Opening hours: Mondays to Fridays 4pm to 4am, Saturdays and Sundays 12 noon to 4am.
Address: 90 South 4th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211-5505.
Telephone:
Nearest station: Bedford Avenue (L train).
Directions:
From the subway, head south along Bedford or Driggs Avenue, turn right on South 4th Street for one/two blocks.
Cask ales: One from November 2007.
Other ales: Several.
Food:
Opening hours: From 8am weekdays, from 10am weekends.
Address: 314 West 11th Street, New York, NY 10014-2369.
Telephone: 1 212 620 0393.
Nearest stations: 14th Street (A/C trains), 6-8 minutes walk; or Christopher Street (1 train), 6-8 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the A/C train, head down 8th Avenue and Hudson Street; turn right onto West 11th Street, The Spotted Pig is on the next corner. From the 1 train, head north on West 4th Street, and left along West 11th Street.
Cask ales: Two.
Other ales: 5 taps.
Food: English-style gastropub, advance booking strongly recommended due to popularity.
Opening hours: 12.00pm-1.30am Monday to Friday, 11.00am-1.30am weekends.
Address: 359 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211-3309.
Telephone: 1 718 963 4140.
Nearest station: Metropolitan Avenue (G train)/Lorimer Street (L train), 5 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the G or L train, head west along Metropolitan Avenue towards the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway road bridge, the bar is on the north side of the road a short distance past that; look for a tall church spire as a landmark on exiting the subway. Note there is no sign outside.
Cask ales: One beer engine, ever-changing and always interesting.
Other ales:6 good taps, plus a monstrous selection of bottles including plenty of European beers.
Food: Cheese/pate/meat boards only. Cheeses are as obscure and as tasty as the beer range.
Opening hours: Opens at 5pm daily.
Address: 17 Stanton Street, New York, NY 10002-1277.
Telephone: 1 212 677 5555.
Nearest stations: Broadway-Lafayette Street (B/D/F/V trains), 5 minutes walk, or Bowery (J/M/Z trains), 5 minutes walk.
Directions:
From the B/D/F/V subway, head east on Houston Street, turn right on Bowery then turn left on Stanton Street. From the J/M/Z subway, head north on Bowery and turn right on Stanton Street.
Cask ales: One beer engine, ever changing. Look out for good value 'Kick the Cask' evenings.
Other ales: 17 taps and good bottles.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours: Opens at 4pm in the week, noon Saturdays, and 3pm Sundays.
Address: 280 Smith Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231-4741.
Telephone: .
Nearest station: Carroll Street (F, G trains).
Directions:
From the Carroll Street subway station, walk north along Smith Street.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: 12 taps, 70 bottles.
Food:
Opening hours:
Address: 43 Franklin Street, Brooklyn, NY 11222-2053.
Telephone: 1 718 383 5030.
Nearest station: Nassau Avenue or Greenpoint Avenue (G train).
Directions:
From Nassau Avenue subway, head south-west along Nassau Avenue (passing Lorimer, Guernsey, and Dobbin Streets), turn right on North 15th Street, then immediately veer right on Banker Street. Continue until Calyer Street, then make two immediate sharp left turns.
From Greenpoint Avenue subway, head west along Greenpoint Avenue for one block, then turn left on Franklin Street.
Cask ales: Usually weekly (Thursdays) but call ahead for availability.
Other ales: A good range of taps and bottles.
Food:
Opening hours:
Address: 321 5th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215-2808.
Telephone: 1 718 768 4329.
Nearest station: Union Street (M, R trains).
Directions:
From the subway, head east along Union Street for one block, turn left along 5th Avenue and continue down for about 1/3 mile.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability (usually Wednesdays onwards).
Other ales: A good number of craft beers on tap.
Food: No.
Opening hours: From 4pm Mon-Thurs, from 3pm Fri, from 1pm weekends.
Address: 225 North 8th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211-2068.
Telephone: 1 718 388 3088.
Nearest station: Bedford Avenue (L train).
Directions:
From the subway, head east for one/two blocks to Roebling Street, turn left for one block.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: Several good taps and bottles.
Food: Pierogis.
Opening hours: Sundays to Thursdays 5pm to 2am, Fridays and Saturdays 5pm to 4am.
Address: 1025 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11222-5803.
Telephone: 1 718 349 2340.
Nearest station: Greenpoint Avenue (G train).
Directions:
From the subway, head north along Manhattan Avenue.
Cask ales: A cask is tapped Fridays but call ahead for availability.
Other ales: Several good taps and bottles.
Food: Bar snacks.
Opening hours: 4pm to 4am daily (12 noon to 4am winter Sundays).
Address: 252 East 51st Street,New York, NY 10022-6518.
Telephone: 1 212 888 2453.
Nearest station: 51st Street (6 trains).
Directions:
From the subway, head east for under two blocks.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales:A decent number of good taps and bottles.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours: From 3pm weekdays, from 4pm weekends.
Address: 160 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201-6244.
Telephone: 1 718 625 2835.
Nearest station: Bergen Street (F, G trains).
Directions:
From the Bergen Street subway station (north exit), walk north along Smith Street and turn left on Dean Street, continue to the next block.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: Several good taps, 750(!!!!!) bottles.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours:
Address: 147 Front Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201-1154.
Telephone: 1 718 797 2322.
Nearest station: York Street (F train).
Directions:
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: 15 craft beers on tap, 15 craft bottles.
Food:
Opening hours: From 1pm daily.
Address: 629 Vanderbilt Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11238-3805.
Telephone: 1 718 230 8393.
Nearest station: Grand Army Plaza (2, 3 trains) or 7th Avenue (B, Q trains).
Directions:
From either subway station, head east along Park Place or Sterling Place, then turn left on Vanderbilt Avenue.
Cask ales: Call ahead for availability.
Other ales: Several craft beers on tap.
Food: Yes.
Opening hours:
Also with gravity casks occasionally: Atlantic Chip Shop, Brooklyn Brewery, Casellula Cheese and Wine Cafe, Chelsea Brewery, Fresh Salt, Marshall Stack, Professor Thom's, and others...
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To find cask-conditioned ale in other parts of the USA and Canada, CLICK HERE.
© Alex Hall / The Gotham Imbiber, 2007.
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