An East Village gathering spot since 2011, Knotty Barrel Gastropub has spent the last year working on a serious expansion and will officially open the final piece of its enhanced concept today. Earlier this year, the eatery annexed an adjacent space to creating more dining capacity and a new game room, which holds big screen TVs, shuffle board, darts, ring toss, giant Jenga and more.
And last month, it launched Knotty's Backyard in a 2,300-square-foot parking lot next to the restaurant; open in the evenings from Monday to Friday and all day Saturday and Sunday, the outdoor space includes its own bar, drought-tolerant landscaping, dog-friendly features and a cornhole game court.
Today marks the launch of its new on-site brewery, Knotty Brewing Co. Operating off a 5 barrel brewhouse, it has its own dedicated tasting room with 10 beers on tap. Head brewer Donavan Lane, who hails from Maine's Funky Bow Brewery, is creating Knotty's British and European-style beers, which include British Pale Ale, Blonde Ale, Belgium Wit and British Stout in the core lineup and Belgium Table Beer, Dark Belgium IPA, ESB and a Munich-style Marzen among its seasonal brews. Knotty Barrel president Ken Lovi says they also hope to do rotating collaboration beers with other local breweries.