Firefly serves up ‘Brewer’s Dinner’

Friday, January 27, 2012

Courtesy photo Firefly's Scallops Ceviche.

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Nestled quietly off Manchester’s downtown Elm Street, the Firefly American Bistro and Bar will host a Brewer’s Dinner at 5 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29.

The distinctive menu, created by Firefly head chef David Becker, will feature five courses, paired with five special beers, courtesy of Hampton’s Throwback Brewery.

“I sat down and met with the two women who own Throwback Brewery, and they brought in some samples,” said Becker. “We tasted them, and then I developed the menu around them.”

Among the five courses: pan-seared jumbo prawn with tostone, avocado, and key lime ginger sauce, served with Happy Hog Hefeweizen German-style wheat beer; and braised beef short rib with espresso demi glaze, creamy polenta and truffled pattypan, served with Dippity Doo American Brown Ale.

This special event comes on the heels of a Brewer’s Dinner that the Firefly Bistro hosted several months ago. That dinner was co-sponsored by White Birch Brewing, of Hooksett.

“It went over very well,” said Becker. “It was what inspired us to do this one, as well.”

As for what makes creating a singular menu uniquely challenging, Becker said that people are more familiar with pairing wine with food, rather than beer, but “it’s essentially the same concept.

The challenge is to achieve some sort of balance where if your beer has a flavor profile that’s sweet, then you want to establish some sort of balance where you’re going to use some sort of protein or another dish that has a bitterness or a tartness to it.”

Becker added that the menu is traditional, with an appetizer, soup, salad, entree and dessert, but portions will be somewhere between a tasting and a traditional menu portion. Each beer pour is structured to compliment the course, with a 6-ounce pouring.

So far, response has been positive.

“I think it’s catching on,” said Becker. “I’m not going to lie – we’re not the first restaurant in the world to do this. In fact, I know Throwback had their first brewer’s dinner at a restaurant in Portsmouth a few months back. And they were really excited about doing it again here in Manchester. As I said, it is catching on because craft beers are very trendy.”

Ultimately, Becker said, most restaurants have to strive to reinvent themselves.

“There’s always that constant pressure to try to stay fresh and up to date,” he said. “You need to keep changing and always offer something unique and different. In this business, that’s probably the No. 1 pressure that everybody feels. So I think this is just sort of right in tune with that. This is something that is very trendy right now and something that people show a lot of interest in. So we’re having at it.”

The Firefly American Bistro and Bar is located at 22 Concord St., Manchester, 935-9740. Tickets are $70 per person (gratuity is included) and may be purchased by phone. Seating is limited.