The Growler: Bites & Brews
55 Stone Street near William Street, Financial District
Getting There: J,M,Z to Broad Street; 2,3,4,5 to Wall Street

Stone Street’s newest gastropub officially opened its doors just a few short weeks ago. The former Subway restaurant, always somewhat out of place on the historic cobblestone block, has been universally transformed into The Growler: Bites & Brews, a slightly scaled up type pub that unassumingly meshes comfortably with its neighboring watering holes.

Though not a massive space, the bar area does feel exceptionally long, lined with stools and adjacent to some high top tables. With a dog as its mascot, The Growler stands out primarily because of its wall of glass growler bottles behind the center bar- any of which are there to be filled with some sudsy beer and carried out by thirsty patrons, or kept for gulping while inside the bar. While the idea of growlers is certainly nothing new, what with so many places offering them now including Whole Foods, it certainly seems like a novel idea in the Financial District, what with suit types flashing their wads of cash all around. Perhaps that’s what makes The Growler seem unique- its placement downtown is amongst the gray haired financial elite is actually catering to a younger, more casual drinker.

The bar itself offers far more than the wall full of beers on draught, however. Canine inspired drinks like the “Colorado Bulldog” ($10), a mixing of draft root beer, vodka, milk, and kahlua, and the “Irish Terrier” ($12), prepared with Jameson, Lagavulin scotch, lemon, pineapple, and orgeat, join names like the “Old Pal,” “Golden Retriever,” and “Great Dane,” on The Growler’s house cocktail list. The rest of the drink list has everything else you would expect downtown- a multitude of scotches, bourbons, and whiskeys, liqueurs and tequilas.

The Growler also recently began service on the ‘Bites’ portion of their menu, which might not be large enough for a full meal, but is perfect for some bar side noshing. The ‘Dogs’ portion of the menu contains all hot dogs- from the “all beef” variety ($6) to the “pork banger” ($6) to the “Hawaiian” ($7), served with pineapple, relish, and mustard to the “Chicago” style ($7), with pickles, tomato, yellow peppers, and relish. The Growler also offers some sandwiches, cut to share, with highlights being the fresh “liverwurst” ($9), with meat from Schaller & Weber is served with onions and pickles on a dark rye bread and the “braised Berkshire pork” ($10), served with scallions and pecorino cheese. The remainder of the small menu consists of “Snacks & Plates” like the “bone marrow” ($12) served with a smoked sea salt, “fried pickles” ($6), a “Boston lettuce salad” ($9), and “dog bites” ($9), mini hot dogs served with mustard.

The Growler is what it is- a neighborhood bar that serves craft beers and small snacks in a neighborhood currently unrepresented by any other place like it. While you may not be able to sit down for a full dinner date here, there are enough options to get you both a little bit loopy and to satisfy your hunger. And fear not, eternal dog lovers: a small outdoor fenced in area for patrons’ dogs is rumored to be on the way, catering to inhabitants of the pup-friendly neighborhood. However with the weather so unpredictable lately and likely to get worse, it might make more sense to leave Fido at home until the spring.