The Lucky Dog Pub & Deli – (One Of) Man’s Best…Places To Find Good Craft Beer

Legend, if not actual fact, has it that St. Bernards trained for rescue in the Swiss Alps carried small casks of brandy to help warm those stranded in the cold. It seems like a great idea, but being a craft beer fan, my mind started wandering to what I would’ve more approved of as standard rescue equipment – an imperial stout, a good porter? Here in the Roanoke area, we have our own dog – of sorts – that carries more than once choice to quench thirsts and perhaps do a little warming. Open for roughly a year, the Lucky Dog Pub & Deli, located in Botetourt, currently carries about thirty different import, craft, or specialty brews. It represents yet another addition to Roanoke’s growing list of restaurants to recognize and support the interest in micro and craft beer. A few days ago, I stopped by and enjoyed one of my go – to beers, Terrapin’s Rye Pale Ale, and took a look around both the pub and the beer choices. Anyone who knows a beer fan also knows we love to pour over beer lists for much longer than seems humanly possible or normal, sometimes much longer than it takes to figure out what food to order.

What I found was a very good selection of both draft and bottled beers, including choices from St. George’s Brewery here in Virginia, Terrapin, Smuttynose, and Dogfish Head. The draft selection was well rounded out, and included Lionshead Pilsner, Bluegrass Brewing’s Bourbon Barrel Stout, and a couple of trusty selections in Dogfish Head’s 60 Minute IPA and New Belgium’s Fat Tire Amber. There was also a nod to a local Roanoke brewery, but with a twist – instead of Roanoke Railhouse’s Track 1, which usually is the knee jerk selection just about everywhere in town, their IPA was on tap at the time.

Of course, pub atmosphere is essential when enjoying good beer, and Lucky Dog’s unique dog themed, dog dedicated décor feels fun, laid back, and just right for doing so. On the wall behind the bar, a wooden shape of a dog house houses some glasses and shows off some of the bottle selection. But in the center of the dining area is what sets the pub’s casual, friendly vibe. There, nearly running all the way from the front of the pub to the back, is a large, multi-seat table – cut in the shape of a dog bone, of course – which could be for large parties, true. But a good pub has a higher mission, of course. The pub’s website refers to the table as a “communal” one, one that invites pub patrons to get together, rub elbows, share stories, enjoy the pub’s good food, and over a few good, craft beers, perhaps hold a little round, or bone – table discussion about what they might consider, if ever stranded in the Alps, the perfect…rescue beer.