C’mon, denizens of Fishtown! Visit your local library. Check out a book! It’s free and it will make you smarter. And you can hit Kraftwork immediately afterward to reward yourself.

Yuck. Stranger, there was just one coffee option for the bulk of Fishtown: the dreaded Rocket Cat. Now, Rocket Cat brought coffee right into the heart of Fishtown, located at the corners of Frankford and Norris, which is about as great a location as you can have in this neck of the woods. It’s a shame they serve bad coffee at premium prices with service that will ruin your day. Top it off with the shop’s west Philly vibe and you’ve got the trifecta of awful.

Last year we welcomed Milkcrate Cafe to Fishtown. It’s been out go-to spot when convenient. They serve La Colombe coffee, which is the gold standard of Philly coffee. Major upgrade over Rocket Cat, although they claim to have followed suit as customers rejected their watery organic blend. Bonus, right? It is, but Milkcrate is quite a hike, unless I’m headed to Penn Treaty Park with Charlie on a Sunday morning. The coffee’s good, the price is right and the service is wonderful, but I just don’t get over their often enough for it to be my regular spot. Wouldn’t hurt if they did something about the seating, too.

Enter the Lola Bean, which opened Saturday, right on Frankford just a block from Johnny Brenda’s. I’ve already been twice! The coffee’s great and the service is lovely. It’s a great addition in the heart of what will soon be a burgeoning strip of new businesses. I’m really excited to see what happens next!

Best part about the Fishtown coffee “problem?” We have options! It’s a luxury we didn’t have just three years ago. Love local folks investing in the neighborhood!

I’ve been to Kraftwork a number of times now and I think I like it. I mean, it’s okay. There’s that one sandwich that’s really delicious, but not much else that really stands out on the (recently reconsidered) menu. The draught list is amazing, although it’s like doing surgery with a shotgun; put enough beers on tap and you’re sure to get something right, no?

But you can fix menus and curate beer lists to make it seem like you know what you’re doing, rather than not wanting to get it wrong. What you can’t really change is physical plant. If you want to be clubbed over the head with concept, Kraftwork is the place. Without even mentioning the clunker of a name, you know it’s stylized to a fault, which really distracts from the things that probably brought you there in the first place. Did I mention how NOISY it is? Now, I know I’m getting older, but when you have a DJ spinning dance music during dinner, at a place that doesn’t have a dance floor, you’re going out of your way to seem silly. I mean, at least the Abbaye had sensible brunch DJs.

Thing I hear from fans of craft beer and gastropubs in general though is that the prices are simply too high. I can get a pint of Russian River Blind Pig for less than I can a tulip of the same at Kraftwork. And while the taps are more plentiful than other neighborhood bars, I don’t get the sense that more thought went into selecting what’s on them. Instead of feeling like you’re getting a deal on something that’s been carefully considered, you know you’re overpaying for something you can probably get somewhere else in town.

Will I keep going back? Absolutely. I have faith that Adam Ritter will get it right and, hell, who I am to say anything: the place is usually full to overflowing, which is a good problem to have in this economy. If they can build a tasty, inexpensive menu around their beer can chicken sandwich, then they’re already on the right track. Where else can you get a Mikkeller Breakfast Beer Geek Imperial Stout at 10:30 on a Sunday morning?

Adam and I ended up having a wonderful conversation with my friend Derrick, another Memphis Tap regular and amateur beer aficionado like myself. We discussed the merits of Dogfish Head’s approach to brewing and how great it is to be sandwiched between so many great breweries, all of which are doing different, distinctive things. Dogfish Head really does a great job of brewing signature IPAs, complemented nicely by great seasonals. I think their spring and summer beers, both of which feature great fruit flavors, are among the most refreshing I drink, without being sickeningly sweet.

As an aside, I wanted to take this opportunity to mention Jay Hinman’s great beer blog, Hedonist Beer Jive. Some of you may recognize Jay from his legendary music blog, Agony Shorthand. Now, instead of debating issues of race with Black to Comm, he’s telling you why he won’t pony up for expensive bombers of Russian River Consecration (and I don’t blame him!) Jay’s always been a great read, and his beer writing is just as fun and engaging as his music writing ever was.

I went out to see A.C. Newman at Johnny Brenda’s Tuesday night. I had a great time. I’m going to write about the man and his new album, Get Guilty, over at my work blog, Blinded by the Hype, today (hopefully.)

It was an amazing show. Regardless of how you feel about his most recent stuff with the New Pornographers, or his solo work, he’s an undeniable showman who must be seen to be believed. I can think of few songwriters whose body of work has been so consistently strong since he came back on the scene with the New Pornographers nearly a decade ago.

If you’re not at SXSW and you’re looking to hear some great music, make sure you get yourself out to see A.C. Newman when he comes to town. You won’t be disappointed.

But there was light at the end of the tunnel. In the two years we’ve lived up here we’ve found some great food, whether it’s Memphis Taproom around the corner when we’re just looking for a quick bite and something to drink, or Bistro Juliana for the delightful Italian food we loved so much in our old neighborhood. But that’s not all! I recently made an early morning run to Czerw’s on Tilton St. for several pounds of smoked kielbasa and fresh-made pierogies. If there is a heaven, I hope it smells like Czerw’s. There’s great Mexican at Las Cazuelas, or quick Mexican at Taco Riendo. We’ve even found some decent pizza, having recently tried Santucci’s upside-down square pie. Now we feel like we have more options than we ever did back in old Pennsport.

We’re not alone. Our neighborhood has recently been a new focal point in local cuisine, featuring both newcomers and old. The amazing Rick Nichols recently ventured up Richmond St. in Port Richmond, highlighting all the wondeful Polish food the neighborhood offers. Think that sounds delicious? Then you should spend a Saturday afternoon with him on his Edible World Food Tour that’s being organized by First Person Arts! (I’ll add that you should check out the other New Wave Cafe up on Allegheny Avenue for a few rounds of strong Polish beer and more than your fair share of kielbasa and pierogies.)

Metro contributor and Foobooz writer Arthur Etchells also reps for our ‘hood in his recent article, “River Ward Steps Up.” He talks about some of the restaurants I mentioned above, as well as The Pickled Heron, a restaurant that will bring finer dining to Frankford Avenue later this spring. They also hope to take part in River Ward Restaurant Week! That’s really exciting, especially since there was some speculation about whether or not they would still be opening as the economy took the plunge. I can’t wait to try their menu!

When our friends Rick and Grace recently moved up to Letterly St. just two doors up the block, we assured them it was a great neighborhood that we’d been beta-testing for over two years. It’s a great area that blends old favorites like Jovan’s Place and Memphis Taproom. We have Greensgrow Farms and Philadelphia Brewing Company around the corner, too! Now when you think of Port Fishington, think food!

I met Keith Fitzgerald at Memphis Taproom last night to talk about blogs, apps, and all the other fun geek stuff our wives tell us “sounds fun” as we walk out the door.

Our wonderful conversation was aided and abetted by some delicious beer as the No Repeat Beer Week rolls on! I started the night with a smoky Weyerbacher Fireside (pictured) before delving into a bunch of beefy IPAs. Here’s last night’s list:

• Weyerbacher Fireside
• Anderson Valley 20th Anniversary Double IPA
• Ballast Point Big Eye IPA
• Moylan’s Moylander Double IPA
• Bell’s Pale Ale

I took it easy since it was a school night, but I can assure you I had no difficulty getting up this morning for a quick three-mile run.

Our conversation ended with an interesting discussion about how RSS is the blood coursing through the veins of the Internet, yet we still find ourselves joining every known social media platform that comes down the pike. Isn’t RSS supposed to make our lives really simple?

Speaking of which, we also chatted about Pitchfork’s headscratcher of a redesign. It reminded me of Paper Thin Walls after it was redesigned and made ready for a social network that never took off. Ouch. I told Keith that Pitchfork should’ve looked to ESPN.com’s redesign and focused on their video production. Why they’re still married to the concept of a music webzine escapes me.

Keith also shared his pet project with me: a running app for the 3G iPhone that should blow MapMyRun and its ilk out of the water. I’m considering buying a new iPhone just to beta test it against my Garmin watch. It sounds great for beginners and advanced runners alike. There’s a great opportunity for an iPhone app like this to meet the needs of Garmin customers who’re still waiting for Garmin to roll out their Mac features.

It was a great night for geeking out on beer and the Internet. I’m looking forward to working with Keith on tweaking and adding features to Kensington Blues over the next few weeks. To that end, can anyone recommend a clean, free, 2-column WordPress theme?

Last night Helen and I were joined by our friends — and new neighbors! — Rick and Grace for a nice dinner, which ultimately evolved into the girls going home and us boys geeking out to some new beers. I can’t think of a better way to welcome them to the neighborhood!

What did I drink? Jess was kind enough to loan me a pen and I used one of their handy beer menus as a checklist. I tried one of each of the following:

• Dogfish Head Red and White
• Fuller’s ESB
• Brooklyn Savoir Faire
• Avery IPA
• Elysian Loki Lager
• Ipswich Original Ale

What did I like? I’m partial to everything Elysian does. I enjoyed their Bifrost Winter Ale immensely and look forward to trying more of their stuff. My local distributor’s even stocking it now! The Loki Lager had an amazing finish that demands your attention.

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a sucker for an IPA, even though I’m trying to break the habit of defaulting to these sometimes overpowering beers. What can I say? I’m a total hops-head!

Dogfish Head makes some of the most nuanced beers I’ve ever tasted, and the Red and White was no exception. They’re always working on another level in my opinion.

My surprising favorite? The Ipswich Original Ale. I know! I’m shocked, too! Lew Bryson says it’s going to be a big year for session beers, and if they’re as satisfying as this one, who could deny him?

Let’s just say it was an amazing way to celebrate Philly Beer Week in my ‘hood! Be sure to stop by and sample some of the great stuff they’re tapping this week at Memphis and Cumberland!

As a Philadelphian, I want it all. I don’t want to sacrifice things like the Office of Sustainability. A lack of sustainabiity is how we got here in the first place. The housing market wasn’t sustainable; now it beggars us. I want the City to pursue an aggressive policy toward biking. I ride a bike and want to be safer as I commute to work. Why can’t we have that and our libraries, too?

What we may be seeing is the downside to Mayor Nutter and Governor Rendell endorsing Hillary in the primary. I hope that’s not the case and that President-elect Obama can see why our politicians endorsed his opponent but then worked hard to ensure that Pennsylvania went his way in November. If there is money out there for banks, insurers, the auto industry, and unpopular wars, there needs to be money for ordinary citizens, too.

This makes me wonder what’s next for Fairmount Park. I voted ‘no’ on that ballot initiative specifically because the only thing I’ve ever seen the Recreation Department do is close pools. I seriously hope Nutter and City Council aren’t conjuring up ways to sell off our common wealth. We really need to do better.