Empire Building

Touched By a Hop Angel

Photo: Hop Angel Brauhaus

The Beer Yard broke the news yesterday that the venerable Blue Ox in Fox Chase has a new owner: Mike “Scoats” Scotese, owner of the Grey Lodge and the one-man glorification committee for the much-maligned Northeast. We checked in with Scoats to see what he was planned for the Blue Ox, which has had a rocky run for the past few years under different ownership. First up, he’s giving it a heavenly new name: the Hop Angel Brauhaus.

Scoats says he hopes to have the Hop Angel open by August or September, depending on how long the liquor license transfer process. The bar will have at least 13 taps, “focusing on German styles from Germany and the USA,” although he says “some Belgian styles will probably sneak in too.”

As for food, expect a casual dining “somewhat Alpine menu” with “some German dishes, pizzas, and open face sandwiches.”

Will there be (oh please, oh please) an outdoor beer garten of some sort? Scoats says there’s outdoor space on the side of the building he plans to do something with, but he’s playing it close to the vest.

As for whether or not any of the infamous Grey Lodge beer events — like Groundhog Day Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast/Lucky Cat Day Beer Prognostication Day — will be replicated at the Hop Angel, Scoats says “the Grey Lodge is one of a kind, so no dupes. Look for Starkbier fest around Lent.”

An interesting side note, via the Beer Yard, the Blue Ox’s building has been around since 1683.

Touched By a Hop Angel