Whenever my wife and I plan a trip somewhere, the first thing I look into is the local breweries.  Almost every big town and city has one or more craft brewery these days, so there is never an excuse not to try out some new, local beer!  On our last trip to Reading, I did the same thing and came across Chatty Monks.  We were on our way to a Fightin’ Phils game, but were not able to make a visit.  But I had kept an eye on the place, and was determined to get there on my next visit to Reading.   

Last week, my wife made plans to head up to the Reading area to visit Koziar’s Christmas Village.  It didn’t open up until later, so we had to find someplace to meet up with the rest of our group for lunch.  Seeing my opening, I quickly suggested (OK, insisted) we try out Chatty Monks.  She agreed, reached out to the brewery, and I finally got my chance to check out the place. They were very responsive to having Just Get in the Car in for a visit, and the complimentary flight of beer was most welcomed!

We showed up on a Sunday afternoon with a pretty big crew – four adults and six kids.  We settled in for a nice meal, with a side of libations.  It was difficult to decide what to start with:  the Hoppy French Friars were intriguing – hand cut fries dusted with hops.  We also considered the Fried Pickles and wings, but our stomachs were not big enough to try everything.  We decided on the Jalapeno Popper Dip – a spicy and delicious dip we were all able to share.  I would highly recommend trying it if you stop in.