Part of the fun of my job onboard is the fact that…well…I don't work too much. Most days I don't start work until 7 pm or so. I do have the occasional rehearsal in the late morning, but, for the most part my days and afternoons are mine. This past Friday in Miami (after my usual stops for high speed Wi-Fi and checking my PO Box) Ian and I took advantage of our "work" schedule and settled into an English Pub called Elwood's.
If in real estate "location is everything" then Elwood's is in a prime location. Literally, the pub is 10 steps from where the crew shuttle drops off in downtown Miami. This is perfect as we noted that upon finishing our pints we could stumble a few steps to the crew shuttle and get dropped off at the ship. "Door to door" service to the bar. I always feel puke-y in the crew shuttle anyway.
Knowing very little about beer, I was informed that Elwood's has a wonderful lineup of "real ales" on tap. Apparently all of the tap ales are prepared with traditional English brewing practices regarding, among other things, amount of carbonation. When ales are prepared this way, they rarely travel well. These did, however, making this pub a great find. I tried a Bombadier and Speckled Hen sampler and then had a couple of pints of my favorite: Strongbow. Bombadier was the ale I liked the best. Didn't care for the Speckled Hen (although, I liked the name) as it was a bit bitter for my taste. Strongbow is not an ale, it's an English cider. Sweet, dry, and has a high alcohol content. In fact, it has more than most of the ales, beers, and stouts on tap at this bar, including Guiness. I even like drinking a glass of 3/5 Strongbow and 2/5 Guiness for a bit of a change up sometimes.
The best part of the visit for me was the authentic fish and chips dinner. I split an order with Ian. The plate included two huge planks of battered and fried fish, several chips and mushy peas (mashed up peas, as far as I can tell). Simply outstanding…and also contained enough salt to pickle me for preservation.
Ian and I enjoying "proper English ale."
The good stuff!
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