The Omnivore's 100 and good, strong beer

If you use any of the Internet networking sites, you are familiar with “memes,” those insidious “Hey, look at this” lists or quizzes in which your friends tell you their results and encourage you to share yours.

One of the better ones going around right now is The Omnivore's 100, which comes out of a British food blog – a pretty good one, by the way – and is one person’s list of 100 foods and drinks everyone should try in their lifetime.

It is a well thought-out list and includes items such as carp, calamari, raw Scotch Bonnet pepper, curried goat, a Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut, poutine and haggis.

Among the drinks were four that I think establish a good theme – Lapsang Souchong tea, Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee, Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more, and beer above 8 percent ABV.

Being a connoisseur of all of those things, I was tickled, especially by the beer.

My immediate thought was, well if my friends wanted to do that, what beer would I serve to them.

First of all, if they were your basic Bud drinkers, I would ease into it, maybe giving them a heavier beer, but one that was still in the 5 to 6 percent range. Maybe an easy Porter or Scotch Ale. I would explain to them that when we tried the stronger beer, they might actually taste the alcohol. I would work from a 22-ounce bomber and would assume I might have to drink a good deal of it myself. (Oh, well). Yes, this could be done at a good brew pub, too. Another thought: Arrogant Bastard is 7.2 ABV, and people get a kick out of the name. It’s a good lead-in.

For barleywines, I would go with Sierra Nevada Bigfoot, Great Divide Old Ruffian, Flying Dog Horn Dog or Stone Old Guardian.

I would be interested in what you think.

The Man of Kent Tavern -- Hoosick Falls, NY

Sometimes a restaurant just happens to be in the right place at the right time. When that restaurant is consistently good and inexpensive, so much the better,

We travel fairly regularly on Route 7 between or home in Salem, NY, and Albany, the gateway to the NYS Turnpike the rest of civilization. This route takes us past The Man of Kent Tavern in Hoosick Falls, and all in all that’s a really good thing.

A month or so ago, we were in the middle of a five-hour drive home, and we wanted to eat before we got home, so I suggested The Man of Kent to my wife, who had not been there, but lived in London for two years and would enjoy the feel of the place.

We’re talking a small place, festooned with sports decorations from European football scarves, rugby and European soccer jerseys, golf tea flags and a corner shrine to horse racing at nearby Saratoga. Yes, there are even a few American football items thrown in. All this and a view of the woods with a stream below, plus an outdoor patio.

Did I mention one of the best tap lines near the Northway, with a huge variety of British beer? Plus an excellent bottle selection? Those are things that really appeal to me, especially the fact that they still have Brown’s Brewing’s Whiskey Stout up, and I do not think I saw it at the restaurant the last time I was there. They do it right, using the right glasses for the specific beers. One nitpick: My wife would have liked to have seen a cider on draft.

Still, for all that terrific atmosphere -- and the beer – for this restaurant to be as good as it is, it needs the outstanding type of food that the kitchen produces. What’s important to remember along with the quality of the food is that the cost is quite low. The Man of Kent has some of the lowest-priced pub burgers I have seen, and they are excellent.

We pulled in, extremely hungry and tired, an hour from home, and it turned out to be one of those perfect stops. I had a reuben sandwich, and my wife had a roast beef sandwich that she said had clearly come from a recently roasted beef. Both came with chips. The waitress was attentive and knowledgeable about both the food and the beer. She was having a good time, as were the other folks there. I had a couple of beers – including the aforementioned Whiskey Porter – and my wife opted for ginger ale. We decided to share a chocolate dessert, and she had tea – real English tea – and I had coffee. The bill before tip? $30. Well worth it.

For those who may have visited before, the tavern was sold in July 2007, by John Stoate, an Englishman who had established the pub in the 1980s. In talking to folks and reading reviews, there does not appear to have been any major changes. The friendly atmosphere and the care of the staff are still outstanding.