Fishtown, Philadelphia, PA - Strolling along Frankford Avenue in Fishtown its easy to see that this street is home to many great businesses. We rejoiced in finding Bottle Bar East is a gem of a spot to stop by for a boozy brunch. Opening in November 2012, this spot has an incredibly vast selection of over 800 beers available to-go or for drinking at the bar and 16 beers on draft to enjoy or growler.
The front of the shop functions as a store and as you walk toward the back you’ll see the main bar, kitchen and bi-level seating offered to customers. With their beer selection, Bottle Bar East (BBE) strives to represent many local Bucks County and Philadelphia based breweries. They’ve got everything from Yards and PBC to Saint Benjamin, Neshaminy Creek and 2SP Brewing Company.
And beer isn’t all they do. BBE offers a variety of cocktails, including those made with a house-infused vodka or bourbon. The Lavenderita is their take on a margarita featuring Hornitos Platas Tequila and lavender. During brunch, they feature a house-made Bloody Mary as well as La Columbe coffee. Like with their beer selection, BBE pride themselves on our selection of bourbons and whiskeys including many local distilleries. We started off our brunch with the Hushpuppies special made with blue corn, these hot warm bites were perfect for the dreary weather outside. We also sipped on the Bourbon Blues made with WL Weller Reserve Bourbon, blueberries, basil, agave nectar, and soda; and the Nica’s Dream with lillet, Bulliet rye, and rowhouse spirits bear trap.
Chef Luke Arasim is definitely serving up some southern comfort with his gastropub menu. Dine-in to get a free Mimosa or La Columbe Coffee with any entree. Brunch is served Saturday & Sunday from 10:30 am- 3:30 pm with favorites like the Benny of the Week (ours was a vegetable eggs benedict version with peppers, onion, and asparagus), Bacon Fat Biscuits & Gravy with proscuitto de cotto ham, French Toast with blueberry bourbon syrup and candied bacon, Breakfast Hash with seitan, peppers, onions, potatoes, and a fried egg, or the very popular Hangover Tacos with scrambled eggs, cheddar, ground andouille sausage and angus beef with crema rosa. If you love tacos then stop by Tuesdays for half-priced tacos all day!
If you’re more inclined for the lunch type offerings at brunch then you CANNOT miss the Grilled Cheeseserved at BBE. The Cheesus Christ holds a 5 cheese blend, Buffalo Soldiers is made with buffalo style chicken or cauliflower sandwiched together with Point Reyes blue cheese and cheddar, Brisket & Mushroom, and even Eggplant Parm grilled cheese. We opted for the “create-you-own” because with toppings like asparagus, mushroom, fried onions, proscuitto di cotto, bacon, brisket, tomato, and more you cannot possibly go wrong. Stop by every Sunday for half-priced grilled cheese when dining in!
To satisfy our cheesy cravings even more we tried the Bottle Bar Mac N’Cheese made with their 5 cheese blend and baked- we even customized our order with tomatoes and bacon. And of course we had to try The Hankwich 2.0 because this monster of a sandwich is loaded with sliced filet mignon, fries, homemade cheese sauce, caramelized onions, wild mushrooms, and topped with truffle oil. If you’re feeling up to it, try to conquer this sandwich and earn your bragging rights. If you’re more of a burger person be sure to swing by BBE every Wednesday for half-priced burgers all day and Thursdays you can grab the $3 City Wide Special with a pounder and a shot.
If you know us then you’ll also know we cannot miss dessert. So naturally we had to try the Pumpkin Cheesecake and Belgian Chocolate Cake both are made by Bindi Bakery in Kearney, NJ. We were very satisfied after this meal if you can imagine. Stop by for their late-night special for $10 you’ll get a glass of house wine and dessert Sunday-Thursday 10 pm-1 am.
What is even better is that you don’t have to leave the house to enjoy BBE! Delivery is offered via Caviar Monday-Friday 11:30-10:30 pm and Saturday-Sunday 3:30-10:30 pm.
And don’t forget about stopping by for Happy Hour Monday-Friday for half-priced drafts and wine, $6 specialty cocktails, half-priced well drinks and half-priced appetizers. BBE also has $3 Lagunitas IPAs on draft during all Philadelphia Eagles games and all day for Sunday football. And if you’re ever around for lunch Monday-Friday 12-4 pm check out the Fishtown Lunch Break any sandwich and a pint for $12.
Bottle Bar East is open Monday-Friday 11:30 am- 1am, Saturday-Sunday 10:30 am- 1 am.
