Hop Angel Has Its Wings

After an enthusiastically tweeted soft opening last week, Hop Angel Bruahaus officially opened yesterday for dinner only, with lunch service to follow in a few weeks. The place looks pretty sharp, too, a clever mix of new and old Teutonica (photos courtesy of Thrillist.com).

The authentically titled menu is a lean but well chosen overview of German munchies and platters, and the pricing makes the Hop Angel an easy night out for dinner, with appetizers from $5-14 (for a variety plate of hams, sausage, salami and cheese) and entrees from $14 (Wiener schnitzel and meatloaf)-$22 (a platter of bratwurst, pork shank and smoked pork chops!).

Oh, and the beer: 12 taps of German and German-style micros, meticulously updated daily on the Hop Angel's website. I counted 3 Oktoberfests, an altbier from Manayunk Brewpub, a rauchbier from Sly Fox and (oh baby) Kostrizer. Prices might look higher than Center City, but read the list carefully: you're getting a half liter of brew in most cases. Keepin' it real in Fox Chase.

They're already planning an Oktoberfest celebration on October 2. Knowing co-owners Scoats and Pat, it will be a blowout bash. See you there!

Hop Angel Brauhaus

7980 Oxford Avenue

Philadelphia, PA 19111-2285

215-437-1939

The Hop Angel

DER HOPANGEL?

Really cool and good news for a change: as reported first by Jack Curtin on his Liquid Diet website, and the website for The Beer Yard, our buddy Mike "Scoats" Scotese is at last taking that momentous step at expanding the Grey Lodge empire with the purchase of the old Blue Ox Bistro in the Fox Chase section of Northeast Philly (7980 Oxford Ave) and renaming it the Hop Angel Brauhaus. Opening is scheduled for late summer.

His immediate plans are to keep many aspects of the German history and flavor of the place, which has been serving German food and drink for over a century (the building dates back to 1683), but you know it will soon be enlivened with that Scoats brand of irreverence and general mischief, two of the many reasons his Grey Lodge Pub has become one of the most popular and well know beer destinations in the city (and one of Esquire's "50 Best Bars in America" just a couple of years back). I am imagining some kind of Fox Chase Festivus, and surely one uber-Oktoberfest.

And so, the empire begins.....