Located on Delaware Avenue in the 19123, Yards is technically in Northern Liberties. Politics aside, the split-up from their previous location in Fishtown that spawned the Philadelphia Brewing Company was nothing but a win-win situation for locals that enjoy quality brews.

Tours are held every Saturday at Noon, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, and 3:00 pm, and last approximately 45 minutes. A few cups of whatever they want to offer are provided for free, but that’s about it. The Tasting Room dishes out beer for $5 a pint, as well as serving up what looked like some great pub lunch dishes. If you want to just hang in the Tasting Room, it’s open until 7:00 pm.

Our tour guide, Toby, was practically a standup comedian working at Yards. Very funny guy with many “asides”, cracks on attendees, and any guy that can make fun of himself and laugh at himself is always good by me.

Definitely swing by Yards some Saturday afternoon and sample something new. I checked out their barley wine, Old Bartholomew, which I had never even heard of. Meanwhile, my favorite Yards beer remains the Thomas Jefferson Ale.

Shipping area…Bad photo, I know.

Tasting Room winding down…It was quite hectic in there upon arrival…Seats were hard to find.

The locale of Yards Brewery used to be a skate / bike park, and this is a remnant of that.

I remember a few events over the past couple years where Melissa and I were wishing there was a place nearby to get a good cake, besides a supermarket cake at Thriftway. Based on the photos, this place looks amazing. This Yoda looks grotesquely like him, but I’m very curious as to sticking a fork in his eyeball and finding out what flavor it is.

Melissa’s been taking loads of “meal” photos lately, and it’s fun to look back on her creations. Looking at this, I can remember exactly how it tasted.

Otherwise, I am quite the carb whore…No surprise there really.

Monday:

• 1 cup of yogurt, granola, and fruit from Saxby’s
• 1 medium coffee from Saxby’s
• 1 medium coffee from Metropolitan Bakery
• 1 breakfast burrito from Metropolitan Bakery
• 1 pack of Fig Newtons
• 1 pack of Pepperidge Farm chocolate chip cookies
• 2 bottles of Poland Spring water
• 8 pieces of Orbit Peppermint gum
• 1 Chicken Tikka Massalla from Etka Indian Restaurant (chicken, rice, spicy sauce)
• 1/2 Rosemary Naan
• 1 glass of water

Tuesday:

• 1 millet muffin from Metropolitan Bakery
• 1 medium coffee from Metropolitan Bakery
• 1 small coffee from Saxby’s
• 1 bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on an “everything” bagel from Saxby’s
• 1 CLIF Bar – Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch
• 6 pieces of Orbitz Maui Melon Mint gum
• 3 bottles of Poland spring water
• 1 slice of pizza with asparagus and plum tomatoe toppings from Rustica
• 4 mini pancakes with Dickinson’s blackberry jelly

Wednesday:

• 1 small coffee from Rocket Cat Cafe
• 1 medium coffee from Metropolitan Bakery
• 1 CLIF Bar – Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch
• 1 chicken burrito from Chipotle
• 2 bottles of Deer Park spring water
• 1 4-pack of Chips Ahoy! chocolate chip cookies
• 1 plate of pasta with mustard greens, spinach, and orange peppers
• 1 banana
• 8 homemade chocolate chip cookies
• 2 glasses of red wine

Thursday:

• 1 medium coffee from Rocket Cat Cafe
• 1 CLIF Bar – Chocolate Chip Peanut Crunch
• 1 Salmon Burger on a kaiser bun with lettuce, tomato, Swiss cheese from Marathon Grille
• 1 Caesar side salad from Marathon Grille
• 1 cup of coffee from from Marathon Grille
• 2 bottles of Poland spring water
• 1 Power Bar – Peanut Butter and Chocolate CHip
• 2 glasses of wine
• 1 glass of water
• 1 plate of tofu, mustard greens, spinach, and tabouli
• 6 homemade chocolate chip cookies

So far, it goes great with watching the Phillies tease my hopes and dreams, and watching Dan In Real Life. I really recommend this beer if you’re looking for a seasonal local sweet tasting brew filled with the sensations of autumn. At roughly $44 a case, it’s steep, but it’s f-ing once a year, right? Yum, indeed. “Get Your Gourd On!”, as the bottle says.

After a few Smithwicks Irish Ale, we headed out to Marie’s Lobster House to have a huge seafood dinner right on the bay. The entrees range from $18 – $80 and up. I settled on a medium priced Mahi Mahi with mango salsa.

We decided to head on back to the Dead Dog Saloon because it was so chill there. A crowd was forming, and we watched the rest of the Phillies game. The bartender even hooked us up with some free brews. I went outside to put some money into the meter and when I came back in, I was approached by a semi-manager looking dude that said that I had to cover up my Jameson shirt with a collared shirt.

Suddenly, after 9:00 p.m., a strange new dress code had come into play. I found this to be hilarious, especially since the place was nothing that special. I rented one of their shirts on hand for $10, flipped up the collar, buttoned up the buttons, and looked like a total idiot, basking in the glory of the goofy garment rule they had. Girls could wear whatever they wanted, as I noticed that a girl was wearing a sweatshirt with graphics on it, and she said, "You’re a guy. That’s what they do here," as if I was an idiot.

Here I am wearing my problematic Jameson t-shirt, which I received on my 30th birthday from Mike Murray. Don’t wear something like this to the Dead Dog Saloon!

Dining as a couple, we have finally realized, mixed with the delicious bread, that 3 small plates is plenty ‘o food for us. We settled on the same thing that we got there last time, I believe, which is: scampi, grilled vegetables, and the avocado citrus salad.

Of course, we downed a bottle of moderately priced cabernet, and I have no idea what the heck that dessert was, but it was quickly devoured. We ended up getting ultra boozy, and wandered around the nearby Fabric Row, posing with mannequins and wondering why one entire block smelled like moth balls.

Melissa has a moment with the mannequins.

Melissa is absolutely amazed by something, most likely due to the wine.

Aimlessly walking through intersections, Melissa raves about the grilled vegetables at Dimitri’s. Sadly, we are heading to the South Street Starbucks in this photo for an evening caffeine jolt.

Located at 2624 Brown Street, Trio is far removed from busy Fairmount Avenue, and instills a very relaxing atmosphere. The most expensive dish on the menu is the "Pink Peppercorn Filet Mignon" at $19. Most dishes are very moderate in price. I delved into the "Seafood Hot Pot", which is a medley of baked jumbo shrimp, calamari, scallops, mixed with glass noodles and scallops. Very hearty. Melissa enjoyed a "Baked Atlantic Salmon" with Sake Dijon mustard sauce. And of course, I always get dessert and settled on the Marzipan.

We then proceeded to get a drink at the London Grille, which is a great place to watch the Phillies game, especially when they win 20-2 like last night. Hellzzz, yeah!

Here’s where Trio is in Fairmount:

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