In case you missed some of TTN’s favorite bar picks in the Bar Guide, check out this list of some of the city’s bars in terms of the draft beer options.
Philadelphians love beer – especially good beer.
This probably goes without saying, since one can pretty much throw a rock and hit a good beer bar in this town. Even hole-in-the-wall dives sometimes carry a surprising assortment of imported bottles.
Similarly, many bars keep a great deal more than just the old reliables on tap. To make a complete list of bars with good draught selections, this story would need a lot more space on this page, and a lot more time for “research.”
So it’s important to remember that this is not a ranking. It’s not a discussion of the bars that probably come to mind with the mention of a great draught selection, such as Standard Tap, Belgian Cafe, Monk’s and the South Philly Taproom. Instead, it’s a list of a few excellent bars worth going to, for those who appreciate good beer.
Prohibition Taproom
501 N. 13th St.
Don’t let the no-man’s land location fool you. The interior, and name, of the bar bring to mind an old time saloon – but not in a gimmicky way. This small gastropub is tasteful through and through. The staff is friendly and unpretentious, despite being knowledgeable beer snobs.
As for the draught list, they usually keep eight or nine beers on tap, which rotate frequently. At the time of this publication, the selection includes Ommegang, Dogfish Head, Lost Abbey and Free Will, but by the time you read this, it will probably be totally different. On Sundays it has BYOV (Bring Your Own Vinyl), and play awesome music all night. Win.
The Farmer’s Cabinet
1113 Walnut St.
Don’t you hate it when you want to drink Shakespeare-themed cocktails but you can’t find a fancy enough barn to drink them in? Yeah, me too. Until I discovered the Farmer’s Cabinet. And besides having probably the best cocktails ever, the beer selection is also intriguing.
“All of our beers are unique,” said the bartender, Joe. “They come from small breweries all over Europe and the United States. Sometimes we’ll have the only keg of a certain beer in the U.S.” But for those who really want to experience this beautiful bar, go on a weeknight when it’s not crowded. On the weekend, its dead Center City location guarantees there will be hoards of bros grunting loudly about stuff and mainline girls getting too drunk in too-high heels.
Devil’s Den
1148 S. 11th St.
This South Philly standard boasts around 17 draught beers, none of which include the word “lite.” Right now some of the draught beers are Maredsous, Bear Republic, Blue Point and Flying Fish. This is probably the most casual of all the bars on the list, and for those who live in the area, it could easily become a regular spot. The bar’s happy hour is worth a South Philly trip: From 5-7 p.m., all draughts are half off. I’ll have another $6 – I mean $3 – double IPA, please.
Eulogy Belgian Tavern
136 Chestnut St.
First of all, this place is the self-proclaimed “beer heaven,” which is probably true. They have a monstrous five-page bottle menu, with brews from all across the world. Unlike other bars in the same vein, Eulogy has a relaxed, homey atmosphere that actually does recall corner pubs in Belgium or France.
“We get a lot of beers that other bars don’t get,” said Chris, a server who has worked at Eulogy for more than four years. “We take beer very seriously, and we’ve been around for nine years, which is like an eternity in [Old City], where bars are opening and closing all the time.” They also have a killer food menu. The burgers and belgian frites are definitely worth a trip back for.
Local 44
4333 Spruce St.
If, for whatever reason, you happen to find yourself in the wild west of the city, definitely check out Local 44. It’s owned by the same people that own the Memphis Taproom in Fishtown and Resurrection Ale House in South Philly, which are also great bars. Local 44 is just far enough west that you won’t see a ton of Penn students, but not too far west that you’ll want to give up before you get there. They have more than 15 beers on draught, including St. Bernardus, Great Divide, Fullers and Stone. The atmosphere is pretty relaxed, and the food is excellent. I’m still thinking about the vegetarian Reuben I had.
Kraftwork
541 E. Girard Ave.
My love for this bar is as deep as my love for beer and french fries, forming a perfect trifecta of love in my deep fried, beer-stained heart. Maybe a slight exaggeration, but they do have a ton of amazing beer, and great fries. With 24 beers on tap and a food menu that pays homage to the old industrial days in Fishtown. Pretzel bite fondu and perogies, anyone? Kraftwork is a hip, but down to Earth, spot. They also have a late night happy hour, 11 p.m.- 2 a.m.
The list could go on and on, and doesn’t even mention other places with great selections like Grace Tavern, Khyber Pass, Nodding Head or Johnny Brenda’s. Philadelphia is a beer lover’s paradise, so it would be impossible to include them all. But, c’est la vie. On to bigger and better beers.
Annabelle Buck can be reached at annabelle.buck@temple.edu.
I’m sorry to be bothering you about this. I tried to take the high road on this and then was told by one of the Standard Tap employees that I should email the management on your website regarding my complain. I did that and the response I received from your manager was appalling. She emailed back and told me that due to my complaint that i’m no longer welcome. She could have asked to talk about this and try to work something out where if Kate ( the bartender I have an issue with would apologize and I would gladly apologize to her to resolve any issue and everything would have went back to normal) However, I never realized that a whim of a bartender over-rides any complaint of a patron who has been coming into your establishment for over 5 years and has spent thousands of dollars and constantly brought in more customers on a weekly basis. I’m spent over 7 years bartending in Philadelphia bars and restaurants, anywhere from high end to dives, and have never seen such bad treatment to the patrons of a place. I thought may be reaching out to the owner’s might have some difference, not even for me to come back to Standard Tap, which i certainly do not feel welcome or comfortable with doing after such treatment but hopefully it might make a difference for someone else.
I’ve been coming to Standard Tap for over 5 years and really considered this to be a great spot with great people. Always brought in friends from in and out of town and tried to bring in customers to support this place. My little sister grew up with Beck and they are best friends so I started coming in to show support since I lived around the corner. over the years i have become friends with most of your bartenders such as Beck, Brian, Ron, Branden, and Eric who works in your kitchen and they are all amazing! If you have any questions on my character any one of them will tell them that I’m a good person, not someone who is rude to staff or gets badly drunk. I always tip way over 20% and bring in large groups of people on a regular basis of whom I made regular customers for your business. I, myself, spent over 7 years bartending in Philadelphia bars and restaurants so I understand how important it is to support local places so they stay open.
Over the last few months I have been treated extremely rudely by an upstairs bartender by the name of Kate. I have no idea what I have ever done to her but she has always been extremely rude to me ( if looking back over the years then pretty much always since i’ve started coming in to standard tap) and anyone I had with me. Later I realized it wasn’t just me but mostly everyone that comes in contact with her. After coming to Standard Tap every Sunday for the last 2 years and bringing a large group of people with me ( at least ten) where we normally spend around 1,000 dollars all together over the coarse of the day since we would spend usually between 1pm and 6 pm at the upstairs bar i would think that we were someone who should be treated a a good customer. I created this Sunday activity to get my friends together and always thought Standard Tap was a great place to go to since I love your food and atmosphere. The few times that we ended up staying past 6 pm on a Sunday or came in on a Sat ended our evenings in such a bad taste in our mouth with Kate coming on the shift and treating us so badly. I would think bringing such large business to a restaurant on a Sunday was a good thing especially since Sunday is a slow day for many places down town. On the last incident we were getting ready to leave a few months ago as Kate was coming on her shift ( we normally left as fast as possible as she was coming in) I was sitting at the bar waiting for my check while i was on my phone. I watched 2 guys trying to order a drink for 2 women that were in my group. I have then observed Kate loudly….stating to Cody…”i’m not serving those bitches”) loudly enough for the whole bar to hear. At the time I was on my cell phone and was so appalled by this I didn’t even know what to do since I’ve never saw such action taken by a bartender who is supposed to be in the servicing industry. Those two women were not drunk and have only been at the time for 1 hour at the tap and did absolutely nothing to offend Kate since she only came on her shift 30 minutes prior to that incident. i have never in my years of going to any place in Philadelphia have seen such actions by a bartender which is completely unacceptable. Those 2 females ( who are both actually bartenders ), i have then watched complain to the manager, i think her name was Eden, who did absolutely nothing to apologize or correct such action.
I think as a business owner you have the right to know what goes on in your bar and how a certain bartender is making you loose many, many customers and a lot of money in business.
I decided to do the adult thing and write an email to the management explaining what has been going on and how I feel quite wronged and treated badly by someone who works for them. Thinking that a manager who cares about the business and customers of the establishment she/he works for would care and want to resolve such an issue. WAS I WRONG OR WHAT!!! Instead of asking me any questions or trying to resolve the problem, the manage emailed me back telling me, well if i don’t like it then i’m not welcome and my friends are not welcome to Standard Tap. All i can say i how appalling and sad this is because Philadelphia is a small community where most people in the city know each other, and people in the restaurant community want to support each other. How can a place stay in business in such an economy if their staff treats their customers in such a manner. You can respond to me if you would like.
i’ve been coming to this place for over 5 years and really considered this to be a great spot with great people. Always brought in friends from in and out of town and tried to bring in customers to support this place. I, myself, spent over 7 years bartending in Philadelphia bars and restaurants so I understand how important it is to support local places so they stay open. In my 10 year living in the city I have never through id actually be posting something to discourage people from going to eat and drink at a place but this is exactly why i’m writing this post which is actually the first time i’m ever writing a review on yelp.
Over the last few months I have been treated extremely rudely by an upstairs bartender by the name of Kate…if you have gone there i’m sure you have seen her, she is always there on Sat night at the upstairs bar. Blonde hair, a bit over weight, and constantly looking mean. I have no idea what I have ever done to her but she has always been extremely rude to me and anyone I had with me. Later I realized it wasn’t just me but mostly everyone that comes in contact with her. I’m not a rude or drunk person and always tip over 20% when i go out since I was the person behind the bar for so many years. After going to this place almost every Sunday for the last 2 years and bringing a large group of people with me where we normally spend around 1,000 dollars together you would imagine the restaurant management and owners would appreciate that. Especially since Sunday is a slow day for many places down town. Well not at Standard Tap!!!! Customers here do not have any say or respect and really they can care less whether you come in or not, as far as they are concerned if you do not take the bad treatment then go somewhere else.
This is really appalling especially in such an economy.
I decided to do the adult thing and write an email to the management explaining what has been going on and how I feel quite wronged and treated badly by someone who works for them. Thinking that a manager who cares about the business and customers of the establishment she/he works for would care and want to resolve such an issue. WAS I WRONG OR WHAT!!! Instead of asking me any questions or trying to resolve the problem, the manager ( i do not believe even told the owners the issue) emailed me back telling me, well if i don’t like it then i’m not welcome and my friends are not welcome to Standard Tap. All i can say i how appalling and sad for this restaurant’s owners because they will not be able to stay in business in such an economy if their staff treats their customers in such a manner. I can say that now I feel a duty to let other Philadelphia residents know that such bad treatment exists and they should not support a place that will take their money and will not care how they get treated.