September 21, 2008
Best Beer I Ever Had
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!!
Dishes I tried:
Mussels and Pommes Frites
Very generous portion. Great appetizer.
Chocolate Macademia Caramel Tart
Fabulous, thick chocolately, truffle like tart. Has a nice crunch crust with generous portions of macademia nuts, topped with whipped cream. Good to share!
Pork Cheeks
Superb.


pleasurepalate
01/09/2009So have you checked out any fabulous eateries lately? :)
tulips500
05/24/2007who’s your icon? is he anime?