smallfry

I am definitely not a beer expert. Nor am I a beer lover. In fact, I normally dislike beer because of the bitter taste. And never have I ever expected to actually like beer until I went to Hopleaf.

Per GeeBear’s wise recommendations, we went early enough on a Friday evening (6:15p.m.) to get seats. Apparently, once 7p.m. hits, the wait is 2 hours! Upon walking in, the place was already bustling with what appeared to be a TON of regulars. It felt like a hip version of “Cheers,” if anyone remembers the bar centered sitcom from way back when. Sure, they probably didn’t know everyone’s name, but it felt nice to see a bunch of people, completely at home.

The food was amazing. I was thoroughly surprised. The pork cheeks were the best. Superbly braised and tender. Went perfectly with the corn pudding. The garnish was interesting because I had never had celery sliced that way before and although normally I hate celery, the texture was different because of the elongated, oblique cut. I liked it.

BIG fan of the Kwak, a dark Belgian beer – best beer I have ever tasted. I also tried the Framboise (red raspberry flavored) but I wouldn’t have thought it was beer at all! It was almost sparkly, like champagne. It was great!

Definitely go for the food AND the beer!!