Por Dr. Ink

The last time I set foot inside The Ritual Kitchen and Beer Garden, the place looked like a Gothic-style pub from the outside, and the words “kitchen” and “beer garden” weren’t part of its name. The exterior now looks brighter, less underground, and a spacious rear patio accented with colorful beer banners, a patch of shrubbery and a few jolly gnomes has been added.

Unchanged is the vast selection of craft beer the place began serving almost a decade ago, before other establishments along this 30th Street corridor joined the suds fest. The bar area is still as cozy and pubby as ever, festooned with steins, mugs and a couple of gargoyles. Also, the front patio shows better signs of life as patrons order their drinks through an open window at one end of the bar.

Happy hour signals $2 off select craft beers, about six of them, plus appetizers that stick to the norm, such as garlic-Parmesan fries, onion rings, hummus with ciabatta and veggies, roasted Brussels sprouts and chicken wings. The noshes range from $3 to $6.50 apiece.

On happy-hour price, the beers ring in at under $5 a glass, which vary in size depending what you order.

My companion’s dark and luscious AleSmith Speedway Imperial Coffee Stout, for example, was served in an 8-ounce glass for an easy $4. It carried him through an order of thickly battered onion rings served with house-made ranch and barbecue sauce.

I chose Duck Foot “Double White” IPA, a misleading name that might indicate an extra-hoppy finish. Served in a 10-ounce glass, it was actually quite balanced. Although for my companion, who hasn’t acquired a taste for hop-forward beers, he cringed when taking a sip of it.

Other brews on the happy-hour list included an American pale ale by BNS Flintlock, a red rye by Benchmark River Rye, and Tabula Rasa porter from Second Chance, a firm choice if you’re palate demands a malty, nutty finish. The selection rotates frequently.

In addition to the onion rings, we grazed from a large serving of roasted Brussels sprouts, which tasted neither here nor there despite their garlic butter sauce and balsamic reduction. As for the wings ($6.50 for six of them), they were scrawny; low on meat but high in flavor from the habanero-carrot sauce we chose.

The mediocre bar nibbles, however, won’t prevent us from returning for the fine crafts and the European-like ambiance, which based on the regular menu, holds more culinary promise if sticking around for dinner.