Jack’s Abby is expanding (after only a year!). We went there a while back to try out their beer hall and kitchen (before they had expanded). The craft brewery, which was founded in 2011, makes only lagers. You can get a growler to go or grab a wood fired pizza, you can even tour the new facility. The restaurant is open and has communal seating with long tables and benches. They don’t take reservations, but we didn’t need one when we ventured in for a weekday lunch.

Their thin crust pizzas are pretty delicious – here is a sample of their menu:

Potato & Bacon $14
Garlic Cream/Cheddar/Scallions

Farmer’s Market with Goat Cheese $14
Tomato/Summer Squash/Zucchini/Eggplant/Fennel/Red Peppers

Clam & Bacon* $15
Fresh Mozzarella/Pecorino/Thyme/Red Pepper Flakes

Prosciutto & Arugula $15
Fresh Mozzarella/Dates/Thyme/Grape Must

BBQ Pork $15
Pineapple/Serrano Chili/Cilantro/Red Onion/Gruyère

The four cheese macaroni and cheese ($10) was thick and creamy, stick to your ribs, comfort food. It had a crumb topping that I wish there were a little more of.

You can’t come to a beer hall and NOT get the house lager pretzel ($5) served with horseradish mustard and beer cheese.

The desserts left me wanting more, they were just eh (the main stars for me were the pizzas). The bread pudding was more bread than pudding in consistency, and a bit overdone for my liking.

I wanted the crisp to be delicious, but it was lacking in flavor – do you really want to waste your calories on something bland?

Jack’s Abby

100 Clinton Street, Framingham, MA

https://jacksabby.com/

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Crop brews their own beer, pretty cool. We push two high tops together, and Billy, the bartender takes good care of us. He is personable, and has a great sense of humor.

We get the tres amigos ($10), three tacos: duck confit, braised pork, shredded chicken. The chicken is by far the favorite in the trio.

The onion rings ($6) were enormous, crunchy and delicious!.

The fried pickles were cut lengthwise, haven’t seen that anywhere else, but it made it hard to get the breading in every bite.

The squeak and squeal ($16), mac & cheese, crispy pulled pork, with mustard demi sauce fell a little short for me. The sauce was a bit gritty and tasted like it came out of a can and the meat wasn’t as tender as I would have liked. While the food here was just ok, the service was excellent, we really enjoyed Billy’s company.

Crop Bistro and Brewery
1859 Mountain Road
Stowe, VT, 05672

http://www.cropvt.com

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