Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast
& Lucky Cat Beer Prognostication
Chase away those mid-winter blues!
Updated: 01 February 2013
We Pennsylvanians believe very strongly in rodent based weather forecasting, so we assemble at The Grey Lodge every Groundhog Day at 7am to catch Punxsutawney Phil's prognostication.
To chase away the winter blues, we wear our best/worst Hawaiian shirts and have a Beer Breakfast. Later in the morning we kick off more oddity as Groundhog Day turns into Lucky Cat Day. Lucky Cat Day features Wissinoming Winnie's Beer Prognostication and other fun stuff.
The Groundhog Day Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast and Lucky Cat Beer Prognostication is probably the stupitest event that we do at The Grey Lodge, and we set the bar on stupit pretty high (or should that be low?), so don't miss it.
With how cold this winter has been so far, we all need a Groundhog Day Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast more than usual. What better way to tell winter to screw off than with beer and Hawaiian shirts at 7am?
Weather notice: We have gotten very lucky (thanks Winnie) with the weather for 9 out of 10 Groundhog Days. It looks like we are going to get lucky again. The weather should be nice, well nice for February.
FourSquare Groundhog Badge
Thanks to the fine folks at VisitPA, you can get the FourSquare Groundhog Badge for joining us on Groundhog Day. It's as 1-2-3! Easier actually as there is no step 3. So it's as easy as 1-2 but that doesn't sound right. 1) follow VisitPA on 4square, 2) check in greylodge on 2/2. This has worked the last two years, so it will probably work again this year.
Beads: There are very few right times to wear beads. There's Mardi Gras in New Orleans, but only during Mardi Gras. Any other time and the locals think you're a douche. Groundhog Day at The Grey Lodge is also on the bead appropriate list. If you've been to New Orleans, you've probably bought some cool beads at a souvenir shop (I did), but you were too cool to wear them if it wasn't Mardi Gras. Well this is an appropriate time to break them out.
Events like Groundhog Day and Friday the Firkinteenth are too hectic for us run tabs or accept credit cards. On rare days like those we are cash only.
Groundhog Day is a great day to take public transportation to the Grey Lodge.
- Featured Beers for 2013 Groundhog Day:
- Dogfish Head 2011 Black and Red
- Flying Fish Exit 16 Wild Rice IPA (gravity-pour firkin)
- Founders Backwoods Bastard (sixtel) followed by Petrus 2011 Aged Ale (30 liter)
- Manayunk Grand Cru (Flanders Red) - the only one to leave the brewpub this year
- Philadelphia Kilty Pleasure
- Russian River 2011 Supplication (sixtel) followed by Russian River 2011 Temptation (sixtel)
- Sierra Nevada 2011 Exportation (our last one!)
- Sly Fox JB Coffee Porter
- Stoudts Blood Orange APA (gravity-pour firkin)
- Troegs Dreamweaver Wheat
- Troegs Perpetual IPA (gravity-pour firkin)
- Victory Biere de Garden
- Yards Belgian Black (sixtel), followed by Yards Bourbon Love Stout (stout)
- Breakfast Menu:
- Bacon, Egg and Cheese Sandwich
- Pancakes with Fresh Fruit
- Creamed Chipped Beef over toast
- our famous ABC Omelette
- Smoked Apple Chicken Sausage Sandwich
- Smoked Ham Steak, with grits and red eye gravy
2013 Groundhog Day Hawaiian Shirt Beer Breakfast
& Lucky Cat Day Beer Prognostication
06:45am: Waiting with Oskar Blues the Grouch
For Groundhog Day, we open at 7am. People tend to line up outside early. This year they will be joined by Oskar Blues the Grouch, who will be making his/her second appearance at The Grey Lodge.
And we will have free coffee for anyone waiting outside.
07am: Punxatowney Phil's Weather Prognostication 
Our doors will open at 7am, the earliest we are allowed to open by law.
We open at 7am because Punxsutawney Phil does his prognostication at 7:20am, and we can't miss that; that's the whole point of Groundhog Day! We will have our large-screen, high-def TVs tuned to PCN, ready for Phil's pronouncement. We'll have loads of noisemakers to greet Phil's appearance.
Our kitchen will be open with a special breakfast menu.
Featured Beers - Aged: Founders Backwoods Bastard, Russian River 2011 Supplication, Dogfish Head Red and Black. We have been aging all three of these beers for about a year or more. Backwoods Bastard is Founders Old Dirty Bastard aged in bourbon barrels. Russian River Supplication should be extra tart from the extra aging. Dogfish Head Red and Black should have mellowed out after a year. The Supplication will be backed up by a sixtel of 2011 Russian River Temptation.
Featured Beers - Fresh: Manayunk Grand Cru (Flanders Red), Oscar Blues Mama's Little Yella Pils (cans), Oscar Blues Dale's Pale Ale (cans), Victory Biere de Garden. Mananyunk's Grand Cru is another sour beer. Oskar wants you to know about his cans, we'll have his pilsner and pale ale.
08am: Troegs Hawaiian Shirt Contest
The Hawaiian Shirt contest is an annual Groundhog Day tradition. Wear your best (worst) Hawaiian shirt. Troegs will have prizes for the best (worst) ones. Best/worst - same differnce.
09am Sly Fox Hula Hoop Contest
Continuing with the Hawaiian theme, it's a hula hoop contest. Prizes for the best and most enthusiastic hoopers. Featured Beer: Sly Fox JB Coffee Porter. This beer will wake you up and will go great with breakfast. Maybe the coffee will give you some extra get up and go for hula hooping.
10am: Yards Dance Off
Shake your money maker for prizes.
Featured Beers: Yards Belgian Black (sixtel), backed up with Yards Bourbon Love Stout (sixtel). Belgian Black is a one of from Yards that is really rare. When it kicks, we'll tap a Bourbon Love Stout, which is also quite rare.
11am: Flying Fish Flying Fish Contest
This is high concept, a Flying Fish Contest by Flying Fish. Head brewer Casey Hughes will shoot gold fish crackers at your mouth (or as we call it "beer hole"). Catch the most to win a prize.
Featured Beer: Flying Fish Exit 16 Wild Rice IPA (gravity-pour firkin). With all the sour beers and barrel aged beers on tap, we wanted another option for our hopheads.
12noon: Lucky Cat Day Seasonal Beer Prognostication
Like Punxsutawney Phil, the Grey Lodge's Wissinoming Winnie is a prognosticator. Unlike Phil who prognosticates weather, Winnie prognosticates beer.
Every February 2nd, with the help of her Inner Circle, Winnie determines if there will be 6 more weeks of winter beers or if the spring seasonals will arrive early. Winnie's Inner Circle is comprised of her hand picked (paw picked?) menagerie of local beer folks.
After the Prognosticaion, it's time to go home for a well deserved nap. Or stay a spell, we'll be here til 2am.
Back to the Grey Lodge Pub Home Page.
One of the Best Bars in America - Esquire Magazine