Review: Peekskill Brewery

(Credit: Stuart Bayer)

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Good news for craft beer lovers: The Peekskill Brewery is brewing up some phenomenal local suds. And unlike most of the other breweries in the area (which just stick to serving beer), they also have a menu of interesting pub food — beer-battered pickle rings, anyone? — that keeps a paired pint in mind.

The brewery is divided into two spaces: a pub and a dining room, which are separated by a long hallway. You pass the brewery, which is behind a big glass window, on your way from one to the other, and it's great to see Neill Acer, the brewmaster, at work. As local beer fans know, Acer is the genius behind Rockland's Defiant Brewing Company.

After a massive renovation, the place nicely reflects the ambience of Peekskill's bygone days, with high tin ceilings and framed photos of the city in its heyday. But where the Brewery Bar was lively and filled to capacity with sports fans one night, the dining room was quiet and laid-back, and that's the intention. Not everyone, it seems, is into the game.

The menu hasa handful of substantial entrees — including New York strip steak, sesame-crusted tuna and roasted chicken — on the dining-room side. There's also a three-course specials menu that pairs each course with the appropriate brew. And many of the things on the menu are also made with beer; even the chocolate cupcake I had for dessert got a dose of Porter in it.

Service was terrific. Our waiter knew his beers and steered us to the pub's own Sally Sweeney's Oatmeal Raisin Stout, which was superb: dark brown with a bit of a hazelnut-colored foam. It had great body, immense taste, with, yes, a nutty flavor reminiscent of oatmeal. It was a nice companion to the portobello mushrooms served on crunchy French bread that arrived as a chef's treat.

But the entrees needed work. A generous portion of short ribs, braised in dark beer, was tender, although lacking in the cherry flavor the description promised. Same for the polenta, which could have used something, even a little salt, to lift its appeal. And some side dishes — sliced carrots and home fries — lacked flavor.

Dessert was much better. I loved the Chocolate Porter cupcake, which combined two of my favorite things: beer and chocolate. It had just a drizzle of icing (and a swizzle pattern of cherry icing on the plate) with a dense flavor made more intense from the ale. The orange-ginger crème brûlée had a light, clean finish to all that had come before.

Your best bet might be to grab a seat in the Brewery Bar, enjoy any one of the incredible house beers — there are 14 other craft beers on tap, along with 99 different varieties of bottled craft beers — and stick to the small or shared plates. There are good burgers, artisanal cheeses, chili and those Beer Locks, which can become an addiction. And with Neill Acer now brewing the beer, this local pub might just become another.

For pics to click, go Inside: Peekskill Brewery

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