Amidst the blossoming craft brewery and brewpub scene is Tired Hands in Ardmore. Initially opened as a corner bar in 2012 Tired Hands grew rapidly enough that more space was needed. The brewery did not close down one operation in favor of another; they simply opened up larger Fermentaria 3 blocks away. Unlike the initial location the Fermentaria features a full food menu along with their now nationally famous craft beer.
Their beer can take up an entire post. The beer was predominantly saison derivatives but the menu expanded to stouts and sours and of course the most popular of all-IPAs. For those of you who are microbrew enthusiasts, they possibility of an entire post about the beer at Tired Hands would be delightful. It is considered by many one of the best micro breweries in the country and holds a pretty strong hold on the designation of best in the state. But alas, this is a food blog.
On a snowy April Saturday night we were joined buy a couple good friends for dinner. After grabbing some 4 or 8 ounce beers we moved on to “snacks” with pork bell crispy buns made with kimchi mustard and pickled sesame cucumber all within a nice light bun. The asian flare the kimchi gives it makes it more savory as a whole instead of just some really good pork belly with accompaniments. Also, we got the nachos with chicken. Instead of having gooey nachos with all the toppings, the cheese dip came on the side with the chicken and jalapenos on top. Great gooey cheese is never a bad thing, but the chicken stole my heart with how moist and slightly spicy it was.
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| Pork belly "crispy buns" |
Next up with had our entrees. Three of us opted for various tacos as this is the bulk and the center of the menu. You get two tacos loaded with the toppings. If you are looking for traditional tacos, you have come to the wrong place. While they do have chicken, fish, carnitas, and bean-the most recommended ones on the menu are the odd-balls. The best of the three (pastrami, bean and cheese, and brussel sprout) was by far the brussel sprout. Sautéed and topped with a cold apple slaw and sriracha ranch dressing, it was nicely tied together with a house-made bacon jam. Sweet, earthy, spicy, and meaty all mixed into one makes a great anything let alone a taco. The pastrami tacos seem to be a unique blend of Eastern Europe and Mexican; the flavors of the accompaniments (carraway slaw, tarragon crema, pickled mustard seed) blend very well together for an outstanding savory and spicy flavor. The pastrami itself was good but a tad too thick and chewy. The bean and cheese tacos are well mixed but not something to write home about. The salsa verde is pretty copious and lends most of the flavoring. I only ate the one and brought the other home with me (inner portion of taco only as the shell wound be gross as a leftover).
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| Black Bean Tacos |
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| Pastrami Tacos |
The last entree was lamb belly, lemon-mint yogurt and tabouleh. Being a huge fan of lamb pork belly, we were very anxious to get a taste of this salty fatty hybrid. It lived up to our expectations. Very well prepared, it combined the great taste unique to lamb with the fatty tenderness of great belly.
Overall our experience at Tired Hands Fermentaria was very positive. A great selection of beers and food are provided for all taste buds: sour, bitter, sweet, spicy, savory, meaty, veggie, healthy, no-so-healthy. If you’re thorough you can find a perfect beer to compliment your food selection. One critique often discussed about this place is the noise. It is an open facility with little to absorb the many conversations. It was a packed house during out time there and while it was noisy, it did not prevent or subdue any good conversation.
