Let the thermometers soar — it’s Eat-Drink-Local Week, people! And here’s my sure-fire cure for mid-week heat deflecting: local beer! April Bloomfield has got some good stuff on tap.
Bloomfield’s got a whopping five New York State sudsy specials pouring from the keg at the John Dory, as well as stout collaborations with local brewers at her West Village gastro-pub the Spotted Pig and the Breslin. Each of those two spots have a special brew made for them with Brooklyn Brewery: the cask-conditioned Spotted Pig Bitter Ale ($10), a toasty, yeasty, slightly citrusy and grainy mugful of refreshing goodness, pretty much made for hunkering down with a juicy burger. And the Devil’s Plaything ($8) brings Long Island’s Greenport Harbor Brewing into the fold with a citrusy, sprightly brew made with dried Haitian bitter orange segments, zingy lime, and a little dried chili pepper. It might not fall into the “what grows together, goes together” tenet, but it goes down awfully nice with pork belly pozole at Salvation Taco, and is on tap on the restaurant’s breezy rooftop.