This Friday and Saturday Hillcrest’s Local Habit will host their second annual Crawfish Boil Weekend, with a special beer brewed by East Village’s Monkey Paw Pub & Brewery.
“Chef Nick is from Baton Rouge, Louisiana and crawfish boils are big events around Mardi Gras and through the prime crawfish season,” said co-owner Barry Braden. “Nick wanted to recreate the Louisiana experience here for Local Habit.”
Last year, 400 pounds (at 1.5 lb portions) were served and the restaurant is having 500 pounds sent out this year.
To pair with the freshwater crustaceans, Monkey Paw brewer Derek Freese recently crafted 10 barrels (~20 kegs) of a sessionable “Sweet Tea” IPA. “We hopped it with Sorachi Ace and a little Amarillo to give it an earthy lemon and other citrus quality,” explained Freese. “Sweet Tea IPA has a nice, dark iced tea color, with a decent amount of body to hold up against its 4.3% ABV.”
A live brass band goes from 8:30 – 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, but $1 off beers on tap lasts all weekend — if you wear your Mardi Gras beads. The party is the perfect preview for Local Habit’s upcoming February 12 “Cali-Creole” beer dinner with Monkey Paw.