Nothing like beer with 22 of your closest friends

Had a couple of good pub experiences while visiting relatives last week. (Yes, I check for brew pubs, breweries, etc. when I take a trip).

On a Saturday afternoon, about 23 of us went to the Nodding Head Brew Pub in Philadelphia. Mrs. Short Pours and I were there two years ago and remembered it as being a good place, especially for mussels. I had put the word out on the Internet, and I had called to reserve the table.

Excellent beer, service and food. They had us in a separate room with a great waiter. I love getting my friends together over beer. Some of them are beer geeks, others are trying the good stuff for the first time, and some drink soda, but want to be there for the shenanigans. We invariably have a great time, and this was easily one of the best.

Terrific food included the burgers, from what I could see, along with “nut crusted baked brie topped with mango chutney and served with freshly baked pita bread” and the Jerk Mussels, which were “steamed with thyme, scotch bonnet peppers, allspice, ginger and beer.” The waiter recommended those over the hot ones we'd had last time.

The beer was fresh and well-made, although they didn't have anything from the “big beer” department. I especially liked the IPA, which had a nice snap. The BPA was different, malty, and very good. Here's the tap list. (There was no Sledwrecker.

We did a planned reprise two days later at Kildare's, the King of Prussia location. Again, terrific food and a solid waitress. The tap line wasn't quite what I would have preferred. There was a good selection of British and English beers, including Victory Hop Devil, but not enough craft stuff for me. Then, I am picky. A great time was had by all.