Belse NYC, the city’s newest brewery, has opened on Manhattan’s Lower East Side in a location that might be familiar to beer fans already — the old Paulaner Brewpub on The Bowery. That brewpub closed unceremoniously in 2018, but for four years after, the German-engineered brewhouse that was custom-built for the location remained in the space unused — until a few weeks ago, when Belse brewer Ryan Gillette went to work on recipes for the vegan restaurant and brewery’s opening last week.
Gillette, who is German-trained in Brewing, has a resume that includes stops at Hyde Park Brewing, New Belgium, and Trillium. The first beers on tap are a Pale Lager, Hefeweizen, Blonde Ale, and Blackberry Ale, all served directly from serving tanks that continue to sit behind the bar. Expect more beer variety soon, including a Session Pils and, yes, an IPA.
Those beers will pair with Belse’s menu full of shared plates (fries, hummus, Brussels sprouts), flatbreads (Margharita pizza, Sausage Fennel flatbread), and main dishes (a burger, a cauliflower steak) that are entirely vegan. The restaurant team has LA roots, known for Little Pine there, and the NYC Belse is actually their second outpost — the first is in Dallas, a city not exactly known for vegans.
Belse is the third brewery to open on the East Side of Manhattan in under two years: Bronx Brewery opened their East Village outpost in February, and That Witch Ales You opened their doors in Two Bridges in 2020.
Belse is located at 265 Bowery, just south of Houston Street, and is open Monday-Friday from 11am-1am and Saturday and Sunday from 10am-1am, with brunch served on weekends from 10am-3pm.
