City Beer Store is not really a restaurant, but rather a beer store as you can probably guess from the name. They are also a bar with a large number of taps. However, since they’ve recently moved to a new location on Mission Street (conveniently located about a block and a half from Civic Center station, in the old Coachman space) , they have added a kitchen and a food menu.
I’ve went here a few times recently mostly to drink beer but also had some food.
Warm Castelvetrano Olives ($6)
Warmed Castelvetrano olives that have been topped with a bit of paprika. This was fine. Olives were a little softer than expected for the normally slightly crispy Castelvetranos.
Corn Nuts ($4)
The menu describes these as “drinkin’ salt.” Which is an apt description. Much better than commercial corn nuts. Corn kernels deep fried crunchy and crispy, and seasoned with salt and some sort of sour flavoring/citrus. Great with beer.
Roast Pork Sandwich ($16)
A really good sandwich. Pulled pork/carnitas like consistency in the pork, with slightly bitter broccoli rabe, some funky provolone, and a sinus clearing horseradish aioli. I think there was a little cabbage in there as well. Served with a small container of very salty pork jus. And some dill pickles. A very moist sandwich, even without the jus. I wish the pork jus container was a little wider or flared to accommodate dipping. I ended up pouring a little jus on top of the sandwich while eating it, like salsa on a burrito. The bread was good too, kind of light. This type of pork sandwich I believe is endemic to Philadelphia. I’ve never been to Philadelphia so can’t say anything about its authenticity, but it was a delicious sandwich. Messy eating. Went very well with the hoppy hazy IPA from Alvarado that I was drinking at the time.
