A night out on the town affords lots of choices as far as where to eat & drink, especially in South Floria, but the neighborhood pub may be your best choice for food, beer & fun.
“Pub” comes from the abbreviation of the term “Public House” referring to a privately owned home whose common area has become open to the public for drinking and meeting. While in modern times the term “tavern” may be used interchangeably, the term tavern originally meant a place that served wine, while an “inn” offered a place of rest.
In times gone by, the pub was a place to do business and hear the local news. It is said that some of the groundwork plans for the American revolution were made in pubs. Visit The Green Dragon Tavern in Boston is a good example, although it is not the original structure it captures the essence of the pubs of the past.
The modern pub while most likely will not have rooms for rent, it will most definitely serve wine and probably food. In a modern pub, food can be of the non-traditional sort, varying from chicken wings to nachos. Most pubs however will tend to have a traditional menu which may include, but not limited to: Bangers & Mash, Shepard’s Pie, Fish & Chips, and stew. In today’s modern pubs there is no reason why even the pickiest of eaters could not find something to eat.
Yet eating is only the half of it. If you find yourself wandering into a pub it will most likely be to have a beer. In today’s beer market the local pub fits right in, with your local pub offering dozens of choices in the way of beer, from the lightest of lagers to the darkest of stouts. The pub is a good place to get adventurous and experiment with some flavor profiles you may not be used to like those in a Guinness beer. Guinness is the staple brew in Ireland. Don’t let the dark color deceive you, this stout (full bodied ale) despite its color has a surprising “drinkability” and a creamy texture. If a full Guinness is not your thing perhaps one of several Guinness beer cocktails would be more to your liking. Try a “Black & Tan” which is a half a pint of Bass Ale topped off with Guinness. The Guinness will actually float atop the Bass not unlike oil to water. Fun fact: Bass’s red triangle is the oldest known trademark in the world, dating back to 1777. Other Guinness cocktails include the “Black Velvet” which is half Guinness and half apple cider, hard cider. Cider is a great alternative for the non-beer drinker, sweet and light, and popular with the ladies.
If a stout ale is not your cup of tea then perhaps a Harps Irish lager or any of the usual domestic American beers can be found in bottle or draft at your local pub. Additionally, most pubs today are not limited to beer & wine, many also have a liquor licenses allowing them to serve the Irish staple of whiskey. The big name in Irish whiskey is Jamesons. A popular whiskey with world-wide appeal, Jameson can be served neat or as a cocktail. Jameson & ginger-ale is a match made in heaven, mixing so well together one can not tell where the Jameson ends and the ginger-ale begins. Other whiskey inspired cocktails include the Irish Coffee, the Irish Car Bomb (a shot of Baily’s Irish Cream & Jameson dropped into a half-pint of Guinness). The newest addition to the scene is the Irish Breakfast. The Irish breakfast is a fun drink that could easily be served at a college bar because of its novelty. To drink an Irish Breakfast shot one must first eat a piece of bacon, yes BACON, then shoot a shot of Jamesons with butterscotch schnapps. The two alcohols together leaves the drinker with an impression of maple syrup. Chase with orange juice and you have just had yourself an Irish Breakfast shot.
South Florida is in no short supply with its share of Irish pubs. Despite its distance from the island “across the pond”, Florida is home to plenty of ex-pats from Ireland. If you are lucky you may even hear an authentic accent in a Florida pub. Two new comers to the pub scene in Fort Lauderdale include Stout (formally Biddy Early’s) and Kelly Brothers (formally the Wayward Sailor). Kelly Brothers is owned by a team of brothers from New York state who made a point to get their Irish citizenship just to insure that their pub is authentic. Kelly Brothers has a wide variety of beer and liquors and a fun bar menu that has traditional fair like chicken pot pie as well as late-night bar favorites like chicken wings and pizza. Kelly’s has a large center bar which affords the visitor a great view of the flat screen TVs as well as their fellow patrons.
So the next time you are out and about, and are tired of the same old sport’s bar and the usual Budweiser & burger fare, why not visit your local pub for an ale and a Shepard’s pie instead.
Sláinte! (traditional Irish toast)
