The Hop is a great place to try new craft beers with appetizers and main dishes made to compliment the beer selections. This was our first visit to The Hop and our table enjoyed a variety of beers with several different appetizers including pretzels with homemade mustard, and the cheese and olive plates. I don't drink a lot of beer but I absolutely loved the one I chose- it was very dark with hints of coffee. Â The appetizers were also good and fairly standard as you might expect for cheese plates or pretzels. Next time I visit I would love to try the main courses which seem creative and delicious and get some of the packaged homemade snacks to enjoy at home like the pickled carrots or mustard. It does seem like they should have more seating- lots of folks standing around a large center island and only a couple tables to sit at. Overall it was a great experience- good food and god service!
Review Source:I saw this place in The Chronogram and I KNEW I had to try it. I love it! The beer selection is awesome, and you can even bring bottles home. The food is great, too. We had the cheese plate and cheddarwurst. The cheeses were awesome. I really loved the pickles. They sell them in the store, which I MUST buy next time. I really want to try the homemade sodas, too!
Can't wait to go back!
The Hop is wonderful. Â It does everything just as it should -- great beer, great selections, a smart menu, Â and a cozy environment. Â All the food we tried exceeded expectations. Â I was super impressed by the lamb and mushroom soup served with a fried egg (who expects to be impressed by soup?), and also had tasty grilled cheese, and a mild cheddarwurst with a terrific pickle. Â I also tried their homemade hibiscus soda and it was delish.
I wish we had one of these where I live! Â But it was fun to visit and I would love to go again on a future trip to Beacon.
We made it to The Hop! I had come across the menu online a few months back, read the great reviews and had been dreaming of it ever since. I really appreciate any place with a respectable and varied craft beer selection, but this place pushes it, matching great drink with absolutely delicious food (and vegetarian options!).
We had to wait a bit for one of the five beer-barrel tables to open up, this place is fairly small and (no surprise) crowded. During that time, we perused the menus and checked out all of the beers for retail sale. The owners/curators are thoughtful enough to put Beer Advocate ratings and descriptions on a good amount of their stock. This guidance helped us choose a sehr fucking gut German Hefe-Weissen to enjoy at home (Weihenstephaner, BA: 98) Â a beer we would have otherwise overlooked, and now a new favorite.
The draught selection was great too, I ordered a Firestone Walker Pale 31 and my bf, a Ballast Point Sculpin IPA, both awesome. Then out came the food: the most perfect beet salad on earth, and a hearty grilled cheese with gingered butternut squash soup. This beet salad was an otherworldly flavor dance of beets, apricots, a soft creamy cheese, frisee, walnuts, raisins, IT WAS SO GOOD.
Where to start? The Hop was an absolutely amazing experience! The chef's table is a must. You have privet seating that makes you feel like royalty. Your menu is Chef's choice and beer pairings with each course. If you walk away from this meal hungry or wanting more beer you are not human. John and Matt are humble, generous, and welcoming host's. The staf here is best described as passionate down to eath people. Truly refreshing in today's world! Stop reading and go!
Review Source:I visited The Hop at the end of August on a random weekday at around 3PM. There were several people milling about enjoying food and beer. There is not a lot of seating and the main bar is small too but there is a large bar in the center. I am told it hops during the weekends with standing room only.
I ordered a few pints, the Pickle Plate and the Leek & Lamb sausage. It was all delicious. I chatted with one of the owners and the manager who were both very friendly. I honestly did not want to leave and when I was asked if I wanted another beer I had to fight with myself to say no.
Great place, awesome eats and beer.
Not for a casual beer drinker. This is the place for fans of artisanal and craft beer. Some of the featured draft beers costs $12/ pint!. Most however are $6 per pint. If you like IPA this is your place. About four of ten tap beers were IPAs. Â Odd assortment of food including Curried goat with jasmine rice and multiple varieties of pate. Â Had the grilled cheese and soup ($11). Pretty good. Enjoyable niche bar, not for everybody but recommended for brew-thusiasts.
Review Source:wow this summer flew by and i didn't yelp at all . . . . Â bad yelper bad yelper. . .
Well i went to a wedding this weekend in beacon and came up from the city by train. Â What a cute town first of all .. . . Â we had heard of the hop and we had to try it. Â Lets just say great everything!!! Â First of all great staff with great beer selections on draft and bottle . Â Â
The food was freakin unreal. . . . Â i cant stop thinking about it . . . . Â country pork pate, the sausage and cheese and a great salad special !!!!
They also have a nice selection of  assorted artisan jams, mustard's pickles and a whole cheese selection. . . .
Dear the Hop please open one in Astoria Queens!!!!
Stumbled upon this place about 2 months ago. Â Been back 3 times since. Â Nice place to have a good craft beer and light artisan pub food. Â The only down side is that the chairs are those old school steel factory chairs which are not comfortable at all. Â Â Been there in the day and at night. Â A bit more crowded at night (Friday and Saturday) but respectful crowd that is mix of middle age and younger people. Â I'm thirsty just thinking about it.
Review Source:This is really, really good. A quiet, chilled little bistro themed entirely around beer. The food is all designed to pair well with beer, they sell many arcane bottled beers, they sell a zillion different types of snacks to enjoy with beer at home (nuts, mustards, pickled things, etc) and they happen to have a few on draft too - it changes a lot but they are very, very good. Get a flight and listen to their recommendations.
We've been twice. First time round, we just got a quick drink, but on our second visit, we ordered food. WOW. The pork rillettes looked upsettingly small, and in a way it was, as it was absolutely stunning. I could've eaten it about six times. Melt-in-mouth, and brilliantly paired with mustard seed 'caviar', a phenomenal mustard/sherry dressing and one of the best cheeses I've ever tasted, a sumptuous gouda, all with a nice handful of boldly crunchy mini crostini. I almost forgot I had beer - a delicious porter from the superb Defiant brewery down in Pearl River.
The Hop is one of the flagship establishments helping to redefine Beacon, and I applaud it loudly and slightly drunkenly.
LOVE THIS PLACE!!!
One of the newest additions to the increasingly cool town of Beacon. Â The beer selection is fantastic. Â I personally only order from the draught beer list, and I love it. Â The list is ever changing, and always has interesting beers on it, many of which I have never had before. Â I love having the opportunity to try so many new beers, and to patronize a business run by people who have such an appreciation and respect for beer.
The food is great as well. Â Local, artisanal and always delicious!
Highly recommended to anyone who appreciates good beer or good food! Â Wonderful addition to the Hudson Valley!
My wife and I ended up here after trying another disappointing spot up the road ( see my other reviews for beacon). Admittedly, the first time we walked by there weren't many people inside The Hop and the whole layout seemed a little strange, so we moved on. On the way back, there were more people so we decided to give it a try, and boy am I glad we did.
As a beer store, the range of beers you can buy here to bring home is impressive to say the least. It's presented beautifully the way wine often is in higher-end stores complete with cards describing color, nose, palate, ABV, IBU, Â and ratings. We didn't buy any bottles on this visit, but the very presentation is a conversation piece while you're there drinking.
Upon entering and wandering up to the bar, one of the staff members immediately saw us trying to decipher the chalkboard and offered to answer any questions we had. Not in a pushy way, at all, but in a friendly, "I'm here to help" way. I asked him a question about one of the beers on the board I was unfamiliar with and his face lit up as he knowledgeably explained the characteristics, then offered us a sample. We tried a couple tastes and settled on our drinks, which were served in appropriate glassware selected for the style of beer. The selection of beers on tap is well thought out, and arranged from the lightest pils through IPA, brown, and down to a stout, each with information about the beer's home town and characteristics.
As we were standing at one of the counters full of bottles for sale, we started perusing the menu, also up on a board behind the counter, and our mouths started to water. It comprises a great array of small plates, the kind of which you would imagine go well with good beer. Pates, cheese plates, pickles. We settled on a rabbit and raisin terrine (meat and fruit layered in a loaf pan and cooked slowly so it all becomes one homogenous loaf, then chilled and served in slices) and went back to our beers. While we were waiting, I watched the kitchen staff concentrate to an impressive length on compiling each plate, and when ours came out the effort showed. Small, manageable slices of the meat and dried fruit were arranged beautifully on frisee and paired with crackers and blue cheese, all on a rustic metal plate. At some point, a staff member walked by with a grilled cheese bound for another group and it took everything I had not to snatch it off the tray - Â it looked and smelled amazing.
We had a couple more beers while we checked out the selection of local novelties on the shelves - locally made soda syrup, locally made bloody mary mix, locally made pickles. We finally decided to grab a growler and a hunk of the great blue cheese that accompanied the the terrine to take with us and take the party home.
What it is: This place, put simply, is a shrine to the perfect afternoon or evening of beers and snacks with friends. Do it there or grab a growler and some of the great offerings from the deli case and shelves and do it with friends around your own coffee table. But do it.
What it's not: If anyone in your group is expecting bud light and wings, this is not their place. There seemed to be a few wine drinkers in the room, but by the list I saw on the wall, I think they essentially offer "red" or "white" (which all seemed to be local as well). There are no big screen TVs with sports on. There are no meatheads drinking Red Bull and Vodka (all apologies to the Red Bull and Vodka-drinking meatheads). There is no loud dance music, no local redneck that seems to want to kick everyone's ass, and best of all, no pretension.
What I'd change: We were there late on a saturday, so I don't know if there are usually more tables around, but if I showed up any earlier expecting to eat a light dinner or if I came in for lunch I'd want more seats and tables than seemed to be available. I can't say for sure that that usually is or is not an issue.
What it costs: We had a total of 4 beers, the rabbit terrine, a growler (including the cost of a new jug) and a chunk of cheese to go for about $60.
A good part of the time we were there, I was coming up with people I'd like to go back with, because I just felt this place needed to be shared. Point is, if you like good beer and you like food that seems like it's had some attention paid to it to go along with that good beer, you need to check this place out.
Went here when it first opened. Â What an awesome idea for a craft beer bar restaurant. Â The owners seem to really know their beer. Â They have an excellent craft selection on tap while also offering a pretty extensive bottle list as well.
Didn't have a chance to try the grub, but the beer was excellent. Â After enjoying a couple of beers with friends we all ended up doing some mix and match 6 packs to go. Â They even had some beers that can be pretty hard to find (Hoptimum).
Haven't had a chance to go back but if I ever found myself in Beacon thirsting for a good brew I would not hesitate to stop back into The Hop.
The hubby and I visited The Hop a few days ago, during our anniversary week vacation. Â It was nice to stroll in mid-week, mid-day (usually we're both at work!). Â A few other patrons came and went while we were there, which was quite a while.
The Hop is a really cool, innovative place that sells six rotating, microbrewery and/or craft beers on tap (and we're not talking Budweiser or Coors, thank God!) for moderate prices ($5-7 glass). Â You can also try a small sample of any type on tap.
This is not a typical type bar or eatery. Â There is a kitchen in the rear, and creative, gourmet creations (mostly small plates, I think) are available. Â A dozen or so dishes are advertised on the small menu, many of which were designed to complement the types of beers of tap. Â I don't know if the menu dishes change like the beer does. There are three stools at the "bar" area, and a handful of round tables and seats located near the entry way.
We ordered the Pickle Plate ($6-) to share, which was fabulous. Â It featured several, perfectly pickled vegetables, artfully presented. Some of the veggies appeared to be obscure, and so we had to ask what they were and some were just common veggies that were cleverly disguised in their creative preparation. Â
The Hop is also a small retail shop which sells all of the beers that are offered on tap, in addition to many other hard to find craft beers and some more familiar micro brews. Â The selection is excellent. Â I have been a big fan of Half-Time (Poughkeepsie) and Beer World (Catskill & coming soon to Kingston), so I have a lot of fun shopping for new craft brews and my usual favorites. Â There are also some other gourmet, locally created/packaged food items offered for sale.
John, one of the owners, was VERY amiable and knowledgeable about the brews and is very eager to please his customers. Â We had fun chewing his ear off for a good hour or so! Â The Hop gets a big 'CHEERS' from this craft beer-loving lady!
My friend K. had been raving about The Hop since probably before it was even officially open. I trust his judgment especially when he not so subtly added that there is a vegan option on the dining menu. That is pretty much all I needed! And so made plans to go with The L. and meet a friend there for drinks and dinner.
With all sorts of brews on tap, the real challenge was what to order. There are also bottles and bottles of some really far out there and less far out there, for the sake of this review, beers which can be supersonically chilled, for a $7 fee, but I chose to not have to make a real decision and go with their flight of four draught beers, there is a larger numbered option, which gave me a nice introduction to their offerings. I had meant to take a photo of the board with the names but in my merriment forgot, but I recall an IPA, a Scottish Stout, a Weyerbacher and an Imperial Stout. I am no connoisseuse of beer but I do know I love the dark ones most , the more the merrier, and hence was very happy.
As for the food, I had the grilled tofu with veggies and it was very nice. Pretty hazy at this point (!) so I will have to go again and either 1., take notes or 2, take photos!!! Yeah, that's the ticket! The L. had among his options, the cheese plate which was really really tempting... And the pickle plate which I tasted and liked, again hazy! ;)))
So basically, yay to The Hop! Great beers, great local FRESH artisanal food, nice digs, good crowd.. MUST GO BACK!!!
Thanks to K for a great rec, too. And hopefully the next time he joins us!
... Felt like falling down? Check! The L had to carry me out that night! ;)))
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Honestly, you can't ask for much more than this place. An extensive and well curated selection of beer, both by the bottle and on tap (Love that you can out together a mix and match 6 pack to carry out, great for trying new beers. ) friendly and knowledgable staff and good food. The whole vibe of the place is laid back and friendly. Can see myself making this a weekly place.
Review Source:What a wonderful place to be. Â
The simplest thing in life are free, and when we entered this fine establishment the room was filled with smiling faces.  The mixture of crowd was interestingly pleasant, and it 's always good to see a familiar face now and again.  The staff did not only understand and love the products being served, but a staff of professionals that work hand in hand with one another (to me, that is key for everything right).  A great selection of beer, and the perfect compliment of Hor D'oeuvres and Entrées.
So looking forward to our next visit.