Astoria Bier & Cheese
Description
Manhattan’s hybrid bar-shop trend crosses the bridge to Queens with this funky 1,100-square-foot curds-and-brew haven, which sports a bathroom mural of Kim Jong-il milking a cow. At the marble bar, grab one of the ten seasonal, mostly local drafts, like Port Jeff’s Cold North Wind, an American-style barley wine from Long Island. There are also more than 200 bottles and cans—organized by style and offered in mix-and-match six-packs—that can be purchased to go or opened on site for a $2 corking fee. Fromage buff Mike Fisher (a Bedford Cheese Shop vet) culls more than 100 selections for the refrigerated case, some of which are worked into a sit-down menu that includes a cheddar-and-goat beer cheese and six different grilled melts, like one stuffed with prosciutto. Aspiring gourmands can get schooled with the pairing plate, which matches four five-ounce pours with cheeses helpfully labeled on a slate board; the harmonic couplings include a hoppy Speakeasy Betrayal ale with the sweet and nutty aged sheep's-milk Ewephoria Gouda.