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The Who:
​The people behind Paulaner are actually quite old. In fact, they date way back to 1634 when Roman Catholic friars founded a brewery in Munich. They named it after the founder of the order, Francis of Paola.

More recently, the Paulaner company sent German beer professionals to the Lower East Side of New York to keep the tradition of fresh German beer alive. Brewmaster Andreas Heidenreich, a 20 year veteran of the beer industry, started the beer recipes at the New York location. He made all the traditional styles like Hefeweizen and Dunkel Weisse, but also experimented with things like the not-traditionally German IPA.

Andreas has since gone on to work for Caspary, the German company that built the tanks that Paulaner uses to brew their beers and send it to the tap lines (there are no kegs at Paulaner). In his place, Marco Santomauro, who has worked for Paulaner both in the UK and in Atlanta, has taken over as the general manager and they have trained a local brewer to continue the German brewing tradition.

The What:
Paulaner has opened more than 20 brauhaus locations around the world, most of them in China. In 2013, this was the first North American brewpub and it's right in the historic German neighborhood called Kleindeutschland. We learn all about this history and  sometimes visit Paualner on our Tenements Tales and Tastes tour. 

All the beer is brewed on site according to the Reinheitsgebot (German purity law of 1516) that says only four ingredients are allowed in the beer: water, malt, hops, and yeast.

In the middle of the brewpub are beautiful customized copper and steel fermentation tanks that were made in Germany. The recipes for the four beer styles (Munich Lager, Munich Dark, Hefeweizen, and a rotating seasonal beer) have mostly remained unchanged since 1634.

As for food, the menu is typical Bavarian cuisine with lots of dishes that pair well with beer. And you can't leave here without trying one of their giant pretzels.

The Why:
On our beer tours, we talk about both local and craft beers. Even though Paulaner originally opened in Germany and are a major producer of beer, we still consider them both local and craft. All the beers in New York are being made on premises and are fresher than you can get even at some local beer bars. And the attention to detail and tradition certainly put them in the craft world.

We also love that the brewpub is in a building that used to be the home to Sammy's Follies Cabaret, known as the "Stork Club of the Bowery" in the 1930's and 40's, which appealed to the working class people in the neighborhood during the Great Depression.

Plus it's the freshest traditional Oktoberfest beer you will be able to find in the entire United States. Since only 6 breweries are allowed to make the traditional seasonal beer (and Paulaner is one of them), your best bet is to come right here to celebrate.

The Where:
Paulaner on Bowery
265 Bowery
(212) 780-0300
New York, NY 10002

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The Who:
Thomas Cucco is an entrepreneur from Brooklyn and like many people from his home borough, he also loves pizza. After working in the restaurant business for over 20 years, he came up with a food idea that got him quite a bit of notoriety and has turned into a growing business.

​He met Lori Greiner when he was a contestant on the television show Shark Tank. The television personality and inventor invested in his concept and together they have secured large accounts like Whole Foods and Fresh Direct and can now be found in over 600 supermarkets.

The What:
There are many classic and historic coal-oven pizzerias in the city. Problem is none of them serve slices. If you want to try a place like Lombardi's or Juliana's, you've got order an entire pie. And those pies can be quite large.

Thomas figured out a way to not only serve the charred coal-oven style pizza by the slice to customers in Brooklyn, but also how to package, freeze, and ship slices of this great pizza so people outside of the city can enjoy them too. 

The original storefront opened on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn Heights in 2012. The restaurant has a very old-fashioned New York feel with a dining room in back and a slice joint in front. We have often visited the shop for slices as a special stop on our Brownstone Brooklyn Tour. It's not included on every tour but is always a crowd pleaser. Thomas expanded the business with two more locations in Brooklyn - one in Gowanus and the other in Industry City. 

The Why:
There is a great number of pizzerias along Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn Heights. But only one serves traditional New York-coal oven pizza by the slice. When you taste that char and soft chewy dough, you realize why Table 87 is worth walking a little further down Atlantic Avenue for. 

The Where:
Table 87
87 Atlantic Avenue
New York, NY 11201