Let the summer drinking begin

Looking for a sudsy summer? Here are three new spots that will have you celebrating.

Brauhaus Schmitz (718 South St., www.brauhausschmitz.com) is getting tantalizingly close to opening. The South Street German restaurant and bar will fill the embarrassing lack of a German restaurant downtown left by Ludwig’s Garten’s closing. Owners Doug and Kelly Hager have just put the call out for front-of-the-house staff as construction continues within — the drywall is complete and the kitchen is being installed this week. The restaurant and bar will serve up 16 German beers on tap and will, of course, feature authentic German standards such as potato pancakes, Bavarian soft pretzels, a variety of schnitzels and even a meter-long wurst meant for sharing.

Over at Silk City (435 Spring Garden St.,  215-592-8838, www.silkcityphilly.com), the new beer garden looks close to completion on the east side of the diner. The fenced-in area will have 50 alfresco seats and access to Silk City’s beers on draught, plus an interesting array of bottles. The addition is aiming to be open by Memorial Day.

B rew (1900 S. 15th St., 215-339-5177) opened last Friday, and the cornerstore looks to serve the Newbold neighborhood day and night. Owned by South Philadelphia Taproom’s John Longacre, the spot combines a coffee shop with a takeout bottle store. Right now, only Ultimo Coffee —  the java side of things — is percolating. There are four varieties of coffee and eats, such as croissants, yogurt and simple sandwiches. In a month or so when the liquor license is in place, it’ll have more than 500 beers available for takeout.

Arthur Etchells is a local food blogger. Read more at www.foobooz.com.