Tomorrow is Groundhog Day: WAKE UP, PHILLY!

Tomorrow is February 2, Groundhog Day.

If you drink beer in Philly, though...tomorrow is February 2, is Groundhog Day! That's when we start the day very very early at the Grey Lodge Pub, with the doors opening at 7 AM for the Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast. There are little events all morning with Yards, Sierra Nevada, Tröegs, and Victory, culminating in the noontime beer prognostication by Wissinoming Winnie, the Grey Lodge's Lucky Cat. 

Hey, I know, but like Scoats says, 

The Groundhog Day Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast and Lucky Cat Beer Prognostication is probably the stupitest event that we do at The Grey Lodge, and we set the bar on stupit pretty high (or should that be low?), so don't miss it. 

Right? See you there!

Finally someone does a beer breakfast in the area

Sly Fox has been celebrating their anniversary with crazy releases of multiple single-hop IPAs and pale ales for years now -- I blame O'Reilly -- and it always falls either on my anniversary or the day of my church Christmas concert, and I have to go at lunchtime, before it gets all fun and crazy, and then leave by 3, before it gets all fun and crazy...

Well, this year, it's happened again, their 15th anniversary -- congratulations! -- falls on Friday the 10th, and our concert is that night (St. Andrew's Church, Newtown, come on out, be glad to see you), but I'll be getting to Sly Fox Phoenixville even earlier this year...for the Brewmaster's Breakfast! I'm sorry to say it's sold out already (yeah, really: a beer breakfast, on a weekday, sold out), but take a look at this menu created by guest chef Andrew Deery of Majolica...and seriously think about taking the whole day off next year...

• Fresh Donuts - Paired with Kimberton Coffee Porter
• Potato and Leek Veloute, Smoked Salmon Croque Monsieur - Paired with Saison Vos
• Truffled White Sausage, Mashed Celery Root - Paired with Royal Weisse
• Maine Peekytoe Crab Benedict, Wilted Spinach. Sauce Choron - Paired with Odyssey Imperial IPA
• Spiced Pumpkin Biscuit, Cinnamon Ice Cream - Paired with 2010 Christmas Ale

Featuring the debut of Succubus and Majolica Blend Coffee Porter!

I'm looking forward to leaving at lunchtime...when it's going to be all fun and crazy. 

WhiskyFest San Francisco: the wrap-up

As I said, Friday morning Jamie Fox and I walked up to Dottie's True Blue to get breakfast. We stood in line for about 20 minutes (and the line just got longer and longer), talking to some people from Harrisburg, then got two seats at the counter: front-row on the action. I went simple this time and got an omelette with bacon, mushrooms, and spinach. Yum, but the buttermilk dill toast was the absolute kickass part of the meal.

Kind of frittered away much of the rest of the day. Walked around the area a bit, did a little shopping (needed a new charger for my mp3 player, trinkets for the family, suchlike), then went back and watched the Phillies till it was time to get showered and dressed for the fest. We went California casual this year: sportscoat, no tie, and it felt good.

The fest went very well. We increased the number of tickets by almost 50% (1800) and sold out! We'd also increased the size of the ballroom, and the crowd density was just about perfect this time. Wish we could hit that balance with WhiskyFest NY. The seminars, my responsibility, were all well-attended and smooth. We only had one 'over-refreshed' patron; he was taken care of courteously by the hotel staff.

Whisky? I never have time. Had a very nice Caol Isla that Lorne Mackillop suggested -- thanks for that! -- and a Dalmore 15 with Willie Tait. Hmmm... couple Glendronachs, and a High West Rendezvous Rye. Enough! The Fest was over, and after John and I made a beer run (Sierra Nevada Anniversary, pinot grigio, snacks and nuts), we had a short after-party in John & Amy's room, then called it a successful night. Had to get up early for the flight home; uneventful, and made it in time to sing in a 7:00 concert, which was successful too.

Join me in Jenkintown for a beer breakfast

The Jenkintown Jazz & Brewfest is another of the delightful gaggle of small beer festivals that have sprung up in the Philly 'burbs: others are in Kennett Square, Newtown, Yardley...it's happening. And thanks to self-aware brewers, most of these events are paying for beer, either through a fee or direct payments.

But Jenkintown's fest is different, for three reasons. First, it's smaller; the beer fest part is only a few hundred attendees (the jazz fest is free, and draws about 3,000). Second, there's jazz, with jazz vocalist Denise King and alto sax jazz icon Richie Cole and his Alto Madness Orchestra. Serious stuff. Finally, Jenkintown's got me for breakfast.

I'm presenting a beer breakfast at the West Avenue Grille in Jenkintown just before the 1:00 festival. It's not formal; we'll be having a vegetable omelette and french toast along with full glasses of beer (I'd tell you which beer, but to be honest, we haven't decided yet: breakfast beers take a little more thought!), and I'll be talking about why beer is a great brunch drink (and breakfast, too: God knows, I've been there), what beers make good choices for brunch and why, and how you can throw your own beer brunch with just a little thought. It's going to be a fun hour in an intimate setting, with plenty of individual tableside discussion, the kind of event I love to do. If you've got copies of my books, bring 'em along, I'll be happy to sign them for you.

Tickets are available here; the breakfast is a package with a brewfest ticket. There are two seatings, at 11 and noon; the fest begins at 1 PM. The $25 ticket for the breakfast may seem a bit steep, but when you put it together with a $25 ticket for the fest, it's a steal. Think about it: you'll get there an hour or two early, get good parking, and be nice and relaxed for the fest, with a little something in your stomach before the tasting starts. Hope to see you there!

At Least They Spelled My Name Right

I was driving down to Philly this morning, headed for the Grey Lodge to host my wheat beer breakfast event, when I heard a Philly Beer Week report on KYW misquote the Philly Beer Week slogan as "America's Best Drinking City" and refer to Joe Sixpack as "Don Nichols." I did not drive off the road, but I did groan.

So I was able to take this bullshit in stride, an AP story that hit the Houston Chronicle this morning:

Drunk by noon? Perfectly acceptable in Philly

In many places, drinking before noon is something to hide. Not in Philadelphia. The second annual Philly Beer Week has eight scheduled beer-drinking events before noon on Saturday.
For example, an event called "Lew Bryson's Wheat Beer Breakfast of Champions" begins at 9 a.m. Saturday at a tavern in Philadelphia's Tacony neighborhood. Later in the morning, there's an event called "Kegs and Eggs" at an Irish pub in the Old City historic district.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter used a ceremonial mallet dubbed the "Hammer of Glory" to kick off the event Friday night. He used it to open a keg [of] Philadelphia-brewed Yards ESA. Earlier Friday, the mallet was carried Olympic-torch-style through various Philadelphia neighborhoods. Hundreds of other events are planned through March 15.

Just another idiot who can't tell the difference between "drinking" and "drunk," which I'd guess says more about them than about us. Anyway...at least they spelled my name right. As of this evening, it appeared that the Chronic was the only paper that had picked up the story...guess newspaper editors aren't that stupid after all. Smarter than the editors at the AP, anyway.

Wheat Beer Breakfast II

After last year's Wheat Beer Breakfast at the Grey Lodge, Scoats asked me to come back and do it again. I agreed, and it's looking better than ever this year (and just got a nice mention in today's Inquirer, thank you). Here are the beers, with suggested food pairings from the pay-as-you-go menu:

Ayinger Brau Weisse - Banana Walnut Pancakes
Flying Fish Imperial Espresso Porter (not a wheat beer, admittedly, but breakfast needs coffee) - Cream Chipped Beef over Home Fries
Franziskaner Dunkelweisse - Chocolate Chip Pancakes
Harpoon Catamount Maple Wheat - Buttermilk Pancakes with Maple Syrup
Penn Weizenbock - Spicy Egg wrap with cheddar and fresh salsa.
Philadelphia Walt Wit - Banana Walnut Pancakes
Ramstein Winter Wheat - Spicy Egg wrap with cheddar and fresh salsa.
River Horse Double White - Banana Walnut Pancakes
Sly Fox Royal Weisse - Banana Walnut Pancakes
Victory Sunrise Weissbier - Banana Walnut Pancakes

I'll be there to talk to you about the beers, mingle and blather, not tweet, and try to re-create the wheat beer breakfast mini-lecture that everyone thought was so great last year (that I spun completely off-the-cuff and can't remember a word of). Should be fun -- again! -- and then, if you'd like, you can keep the party going by joining me at another delish beer/food event in Northeast Philly, the German beer/meat sampling at the Blue Ox Bistro and Rieker's Meats.

"A Temple to Breakfast"

We walked across the parking lot of our motel to Walker Brothers' Original House of Pancakes. Wow. I can't say much about this place because it just blew us away. We like going out for breakfast, and we're not easily impressed. These were the best pancakes I've had since the late, lamented Lena's Lunch of White River Junction, VT. Cathy had an apple pancake, which looked like an egg foo yung pancake the size of a metal plate cover, only steaming with fresh apple and Sinkiang cinnamon. It's a signature dish, along with the Dutch Baby. I had the 49ers Flapjacks, three thin, custardy, egg-heavy pancakes that were just crazy delicious. The coffee was excellent, the bacon meaty and delish, and the service perfectly on-pitch.

The building itself? Our host for the weekend, the father of the bride, the renowned Dr. J. George Sarmiento, asked me if we'd got to Walker Brothers, and what did we think? "George, it's a temple to breakfast, the place is a freakin' temple to breakfast!" It was fantastic. I love this area. Chicago still does so many things the east coast has stopped doing out of stupid self-conciousness. Sad. And well worth an annual pilgrimage to Chicagoland. Great to be here, sorry we're leaving tomorrow.

Flies, Skeeters, Michelob, and Noah

Hey, I've been gone...case you didn't notice. We took a trip to the Adirondacks to go camping with my brother-in-law Chris and his kids. We love it up there, but...a ton of mosquitoes and bugs, and it rained and rained and rained. At one point Cathy said, "That's it, I'm not cooking in the rain any more. Lunch is on me, let's go into town." Good thing we did, because about halfway through lunch I was sure there was a big cow and a flat rock outside...

We salved our soggy pride with Sly Fox Phoenix Pale Ale, cans of that all-malt Michelob, some assorted Saranacs, Lake Placid Ubu, Long Trail IPA (really interesting hops in that one, and bursting with flavor), and one scary-delicious bottle of Blue Point Old Howling Bastard. It got clear and starry after everyone but me and Chris and the Bastard hit the sleeping bags, and that was pretty good.

We also had a great lunch on the way home at the Northampton Diner in Mayfield, near Great Sacandaga Lake. A hustling, bustling old classic diner, and we sat at the counter right opposite the grill. The food was good, and all I could think was how great it would be to be having coffee and pancakes there next winter.

Top Ten: breakfast places

As I told you, I forced Uncle Jack to go to the Miss Albany Diner on the way up to Montreal -- which he admitted was a damned fine place, quite an admission for a guy who's an avowed "two over easy, sausage, and dry toast" breakfast eater -- and then I mentioned, as we drove past the Keene Valley exit on the way back through the Adirondacks, that there was another of my "top ten breakfast places" just up that road. Jack made fun -- as he's wont to do -- and then said I should do a top ten list every month, my favorite places for everything. He was jerking my chain, but the more I thought about it, the more it seemed like fun. So, for as long as it's fun, I'm going to do it. I make no claims for completeness, I do this in the sense of sharing, and if you've got suggestions, well, make them: because it struck me that one of the best reasons to do this is that folks may come up with new places for me to go. Yum. Thanks, Jack.

Lew's Top Ten Places for Breakfast (unranked)

1. The Roadhouse, Belchertown, MA. We found the Roadhouse early one morning back in 1989, just cruising around New England, and there was this place: rustic, kind of hand-made in appearance, and promising. We went in, and since then I've been detouring 50 miles out of my way to have breakfast here. Why? I've already said.

2. Moody's Diner, Damariscotta, ME. Plenty of folks have told me that Moody's is not really that great, or not what it used to be, or has lousy service. I'm sorry they feel that way. I haven't been going forever, just since 1986, but it's certainly held up over that time. Moody's is solid, real, and serves breakfast the way I like it: well-made, with both traditional and special breakfasts. I'll be stopping in every time I'm nearby.

3. Noon Mark Diner, Keene Valley, NY. Pleasantly eccentric, but in an old-fashioned, genuine way, not an art-school working-at-it way. This is one of the few places I'll eat pie for breakfast, because the pies (and the coffee) are so good. Worth the trip just for the scenery...but eat.

4. Miss Albany Diner, Albany, NY. Yum. Very creative breakfast specials -- when was the last time you had duck sausage with your diner breakfast? -- genuine Rhode Island coffee milk, some of the very best service you'll ever get, a pleasantly curmudgeonly owner, all in a beautifully-maintained Silk City diner, and only 5 minutes off the I-787 expressway (and only a 5 minute walk from the Pump House brewpub!).

5. Blue Moon Cafe, Baltimore, MD. The coffee alone is worth the trip, but the food I've had here has been top-notch, and the service is personal and friendly, if occasionally quirky. A great place after a long Fells Point night.

6. Dottie's True Blue Cafe, San Francisco, CA. Cathy and I found Dottie's on the last day of San Francisco WhiskyFest. It's small, busy, dedicated to local, hand-made food, and serves delicious breakfasts. A must-stop; we'll be there in October again.

7. Lawrence Park Dinor, Lawrence Park, PA. Long may it wave. I've pretty much said it all here; don't know if George has found a buyer yet.






8. Littleton Diner, Littleton, NH. I stumbled on this place during "The Beerhunt of the Last Free Man," a short rip through beery New England the weekend before I got married. I'd go just for the house-made corned beef hash, but everything else -- including the grilled blueberry muffins -- is great, too. They've got a wonderful attitude about small-town business; bless 'em.


9. Lynn's Paradise Cafe, Louisville, KY. Lynn's has booze, Lynn's has...stuff all over (and you can buy a lot of it in the gift shop, including the spark-spitting, wind-up nun seen at the top of this post), Lynn's is artsy and colorful and fun...but you know what? That's all well and good, but it's the excellent, outstanding food that brings me back every time I go to Louisville (and I might just squeeze in a trip when I go to Bardstown in a couple weeks). Delicious, on both the traditional and the innovative. Go out of your way to get here.

10. Hot Metal Diner, West Mifflin, PA. I've actually never been to the Hot Metal Diner...yet. I'm planning on correcting that in about 10 days. But I've been to Wendy Betten's previous diner, BOBS, a number of times, and I have no doubts that the breakfasts at the HMD are the equal of the fantastic breakfasts I've had (and led people to) at BOBS. Looking forward to making this official. (Ahhh...no longer true, I have been to the HMD, and things are just fine: attitude? Check. Woman power? Check. Great value for excellent food? Check. Massive breakfasts? Check. Go hungry, and with tongue in cheek.)