Rhody Pride

Paint a picture of What Cheer Tavern for our readers.
My wife Zoe and I opened the Tavern late summer this year. We’re a local craft beer bar with eight taps and are in the process of adding four more. I do my best to represent all Rhode Island beers. We locally source most of our food as best we can; the chicken is from Baffoni’s Farm in Johnston. You’ll experience a lively mix of people here from Edgewood, a spattering of locals, working professionals and the local college crowd.

What’s on tap?
Narragansett lager, $2 all the time, Newport Storm Seasonal, Grey Sail Brewing Company’s Flying Jenny Extra Pale Ale, Revival Double Black IPA (American Black Ale) from Revival Brewing Company in Providence (we use this beer to make our famous chili), Coffee Milk Stout by the Ravenous Brewing Company in Woonsocket and The Bucket Brewing in Pawtucket. I’ll have all six RI beers on tap pretty much all the time.

Which bottled beers do you carry?
I keep mostly IPAs, both local and from around the US – that’s my favorite style. The Tavern supplies Narragansett, a few German beers, a few Belgians and local craft beers. We have an interesting selection that’s constantly evolving. Of course we carry the usual suspects – Bud, Bud Light and Corona.

What was the creative process for naming tavern “What Cheer”?
We focus on local beers, so we wanted a name that would reflect that sense of community. ‘What cheer’ actually used to be the slogan for the City of Providence. You can still see it depicted on the City’s seal. Our state’s founder, Roger Williams, was cast out of Boston and forced to cross the Seekonk River into uncharted territory. Once across, the Native people welcomed him with the phrase “What Cheer, Netop;” Netop being the native word for “friend.” We thought it was great. That’s what we want to be about - a place where people from all over are comfortable.

What’s going on in the kitchen?
Zoe runs a bar food-plus menu. People have expectations that certain things will be on a bar menu; the menu accommodates those expectations and then some. We added Pickled Eggs on the menu as a joke, but people really love them and get a kick out of them. They’re more popular than I’d thought they’d be. Our House Pickled Egg is spicy served with habaneros and jalapenos for only $1. As our clientele changes, we’ll adapt and evolve the menu to reflect that. For example, my wife created a veggie version of my famous chili upon their request.

Which items are a must-try?
Bacon Wings. I overhead a customer say, “I didn’t know you could make a chicken wing better.” Bacon Wings are fresh crispy fried wings that are tossed in a bacon hot sauce with crumbled thick-cut bacon. It doesn’t get any better than bacon seasoning and bacon hot sauce.

What if you want something stronger than beer?
I carry a lot of local spirits and bourbons, including Triple 8 vodka produced in Nantucket and Uprising Whiskey which is distilled in South Kingstown by the Sons of Liberty. They also produce vodka, Loyal 9, that I use to create a Liberty Mule. Thomas Tew Rum, distilled in Newport, is also fantastic.

What are some of your signature drinks?
We make our own Bloody Mary mix; we soak Thai dragon chili and Serrano chili in vodka to create a Spicy Bloody Mary. Try the Michelada – our Spicy Bloody Mary mixed with Narragansett Beer, and served with a soy sauce peppercorn rim and a lime.

What led to you opening What Cheer?
I’m a wannabe beersmith. I love beer. We saw other guys opening their own bars and noticed that none of them focused exclusively on the local beer that I like.

What are your New Year’s resolutions?
Drink more beer (laughs). Learn more about bourbons and wines.