The 5 Best Local Brews for National Beer Day
National Beer Day is on April 7th! Go out and celebrate with your friends at a local crowd-favorite, but without the crowds.
Since 2011, Basil Lee and Kevin Stafford have run a 20-barrel establishment as a creative experiment. For their first year, Lee and Stafford did their own logo and packaging designs. Little did they know that they would become one of the city’s standout breweries for its commitment to experimentation, as shown by their large portfolio.
For some spring vibes, try their Rolling in Clouds IPA.
Yelpers call this one of the best brewery experiences you can have during COVID. Even with masks on, the staff will recognize you and greet you as a friend. If you’re not an experienced beer drinker, they have multiple flights so you can choose your favorite.
Right now, the brand new Marble Slice, a 12.5% Imperial Stout with Chocolate & Peanut Butter, is available for pick-up, home delivery, or shipping.
Make your order here.
Get your spot at the Rockaway Brewing Co. in either the Rockaways or Long Island City. Have a sip at sunset on the beach or sunset at Gantry State Plaza Park, where the Manhattan skyline takes shape by night. Not only can you get a Hawaiian Pizza - IPA [6.8%], you can also get a bike at the bike shop next door and meet the brewery cat Brownie.
Get your Hawaiian Pizza here.
Astoria-based SingleCut Beersmiths is the brainchild of Queens-born, music-obsessed brewer Rich Buceta, who named his brewery after a guitar-body style. The tap handles made out of guitar heads and beer names made of music references complete the ambiance. If you miss drinking at live concerts, this is your closest bet.
Try their Eric More Cowbell! Chocolate Milk Stout.
The founders of Queens Brewery, which is complete with a beer garden, hail from Jackson Heights, Long Island City, and Astoria. In a show of millennial nostalgia, there are retro arcade games, carnival games, and card games (relive the Uno card games of your childhood), alongside a bar that takes up the entire right side of the former warehouse and communal tables that can seat up to a hundred.
Try their Queens Blvd, an American lager, dry-hopped with Summit, Chinook, and UK Pilgrim. Bonus: each drink on their website comes with a drink-along song.
