The Malted Barley, Westerly, RI
Downtown Westerly, RI boasts an up-and-coming main street with several consignment stores where you'll find used, vintage, and crafty items, plus a great musical instrument shop, two yoga studios, and a cute coffee + wine bar, Perks & Corks. One of the most recent additions to downtown is The Malted Barley, taking up two floors of the blue building in the middle of High Street.
Dimly lit, with a long bar and a handful of high tables, the Barley has a high-end feel. Towards the back of the bar, a stairway leads to a basement room with short tables and an outdoor patio. The patio overlooks the Pawcatuck River, and while the river is quaint, the old factory buildings that line it are a bit of an eye sore. Still, it's a pleasant place to be on a warm spring day, and apparently gets packed during the summer/beach season.
The staff are quick to greet and pass you a menu. Most of the younger folks who work there are newer to craft beer. My most recent beer-tender was very into IPAs at the moment. However, they do their best to understand the beers they have on tap and will offer small tastes if you'd like to try something. If it's not too busy, they'll take some time to talk beer, and have always been receptive to learning more. Always attentive and timely, the service has been outstanding.
Of the 37 taps at the Barley, about 5 rotate regularly in my experience. The menu arranges the beers by style. Two taps carry gluten-free, one of which is the Angry Orchard Cider. Showing support for the local breweries, they keep Grey Sail and Cottrell on tap regularly. In addition, about 30 beers are included on the bottle list, but be cautious: some have been a bit too old. I had a White Birch IPA that was about 6 months past its prime. Overall the selection is large and varied enough that I always manage to find something new to drink when I visit.
I usually get a sampler flight at the Barley. Each beer is individually priced for a sampler, from $1.5 for a lighter brew to $3.5 for the Fruli. Instead of pitchers, the Barley offers an 80 ounce barrel for several of their beers, a solid alternative for keeping the beer fresh while you waste away an afternoon on their patio.
Wine and cocktails are also served here, but one of the greatest things about the Malted Barley are their pretzels. Baked crispy on the outside, while still chewy and soft on the inside, the pretzels are made to order, and come with a variety of fillings and dipping sauces. A salted pretzel with their beer brown mustard is a great snack for day drinking. If you're in a sweeter mood, try the brown sugar & cinnamon pretzel, served with cream cheese frosting.
