Coalhouse Pizza

Coalhouse Pizza

Stamford, CT

www.coalhousepizza.com

Food Menu | Beer Menu

Taps [rotating]: Blue Moon, Captain Lawrence Extra Gold, Captain Lawrence Espresso Stout, Dogfish 90 Minute IPA, Magic Hat #9, Rogue Dead Guy, Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale, Victory Hop Devil, Stella Artois, Stone Arrogant Bastard

When I first stepped foot into the place they call Coalhouse Pizza there was football on the TV, cold beer on tap, a fifty-cent wing special, paintings of blues/rock legends lining the walls, and dozens of strange looking cigar-box guitars hanging above the bar. Clearly, I was home.

Now, I had always heard that Coalhouse had a great beer selection, so the first thing I did was check out the list of beers on tap, which reads like the answer to the question “hey Ryan, what are some of your favorite beers?” Dogfish 90. Arrogant Bastard. Dead Guy Ale. Victory Hop Devil. Sierra Nevada Celebration. Whaaaaaaaat?

At another bar, any one of those beers would elicit the “stop it right there, that’s what I’m having” response. Here, you have to make the tough choice (or just order them all one after the other. Go big or go home).  If nothing on draught strikes your fancy, you could try one of the dozens of bottled beers lining the shelves above the taps. The Coalhouse beer selection is truly an embarrassment of riches.

 With beers in hand, we recommend that you order up a couple dozen wings tossed in original house sauces. They’re crispy, enormous, and totally satisfying. Then, lick your fingers clean and try one of their coal-fired pizzas. The thin crust is light and crisp, coated in a fresh tangy sauce with more topping options than you can shake a stick at. Seriously, I tried. My arm got tired. Among the toppings are traditional favorites like pepperoni, mushrooms and bacon, of course, but you’re also presented with some intriguingly unconventional toppings like Korean BBQ Beef, caramelized onions, homemade sausage, and flaming hot sauces.

Also, if you see the owner, Gerard, say “hello”.

 Whoops! That’s not Gerard – that’s Alexi Lalas from the 1994 World Cup. We didn’t have a picture of Gerard, but this is what he would look like if he grew out his hair and beard and dressed head to toe in brightly-colored neon polyester soccer clothes. (Come on Gerard, make it happen!!!)

He’s a tall man with red hair and a red goatee, and he’s always at Coalhouse…he’s hard to miss. I’m explaining his appearance to you for two reasons: The first is that he’s an extremely friendly guy – I’ve been there three times now and I feel like I’ve been coming in for years. He’ll listen to your suggestions and even get on the phone with his beer distributors if you think there’s a beer that he should be carrying. The second reason you need to know what Gerard looks like is that you need to know who he is in order to join the Coalhouse Beer Club.

For $20, you’re given a sweet Coalhouse beer mug, you’re entitled to discounted drafts and early notice for upcoming events, and a whole host of other perks. As Beer Club members we’ve already enjoyed several free pints and were given a FREE small pizza as taste-test guinea pigs for a new super-spicy recipe (which was absolutely delicious…and really effin’ spicy).

With Beer Club VIP status Coalhouse has quickly become one of our regular watering holes, and they’re constantly hosting events and giving us reasons to go back. (Trivia night, open mic night, beer dinners, etc)

But in the end, all you really need to know about Coalhouse is this: I wasn’t hungry when I started writing this, but by the time I had finished, I chewed off my left arm.  We will be back. Soon.

-Ryan

Follow up from last post:

As I alluded to in the last post, we were enjoying our Beer Club Member VIP status one day when Gerard dropped the bomb on us.

“Hey, how come you guys haven’t written in your blog recently?”

We’re still confused as to how he knew FPB, but he knew us. And that, dear readers, is when we knew it was time to bring the blog back. Go to Coalhouse and thank Gerard yourself.