Three-At-A-Time: The Quest For Immortality At Flying Saucer (Part 1)

Full Sail Session Black.

That’s the beer that, as of right now, I keep coming back to. Full Sail Session Black. 16 visits and 50 beers later, I still end my trip to this bar with Full Sail Session Black.

How often do you find yourself asking friends “what should we do tonight?”  How often do you get “I don’t know, what do you think we should do tonight?” as a response?  My guess is a lot, mainly because that used to make up the bulk of my night planning with my circle of friends (you’d think that writing for a website about stuff to do around your city would cut down on these things. You’d be wrong. Trust me.)

It was then that I rediscovered the Flying Saucer, a beer house with a purpose.

No, I’m not a raging alcoholic (yet). I’ve simply grown fond of (and now openly promote) Downtown Houston’s Main Street corner staple The Flying Saucer. More gigantic beer house than bar, the Flying Saucer is home to a vast array of brews from around the world.  They all live here, in a very comfortably spacious bar that, while often filled with people, never really feels crowded and almost always has just enough seats available for you and your posse.  It’s reliable enough that, even on nights when your crowd grows to small party proportions, you can usually find an area with enough room for your crew without having to make a reservation (which, with enough time in advance, you can still totally do.)  And you can dress comfortable, too, since the place doesn’t have a very strict dress code to follow (no shirts, no shoes, no service is applicable, though).  All of this means that you can come in and have a seat with your buds while sampling the myriad of drink choices. This more or less decade old bar has quickly become my go-to spot for a relaxing night out.

And all it took was a card.

Let me explain: The Flying Saucer has a club, or more truthfully a challenge; drink every one of the 200 beers on a list at least once. Once done, your name and inscription get on one of their saucers, and said saucer joins the now dozens and dozens adorning the walls of the establishment.  That’s where the bar gets its moniker – the inscribed saucers are hanging all around you, or “flying” above you, if you will.

The beautiful thing about this place is the way it more or less forces you to come back, if only to pound down a few wildly varying brews in the name of progressing to your very own flying saucer.  Once the bar gets you back in its walls, it then makes you choose something you most likely haven’t had before, since again, you have to try all of these beers at least once in order to finish.  The kicker?

You can only get credit for three different beers per visit.

What that means is, you have to expand your beer taste buds, which is both exciting and occasionally disgusting.  Everyone’s tastes are different, and you’ll inevitably find some that aren’t exactly winners in your book.  But the great thing is that that’s okay.  You can totally come here and have your regular Dos Equis or Michelob or whatever you like.  It’s all good at The Saucer.

And what would a beer be without something savory to eat?

In a twist to the old beer-and-pretzel combo, The Flying Saucer offers up FREE popcorn upon request, allowing you something salty to go with your drink of choice.  If you absolutely need something twisty, you can have an order of two huge baked pretzels that are just perfect for beer guzzling.  They go great with almost any drink on offer, and would be my eat of choice if the bratwurst wasn’t a thing.

Oh, but it is a thing. Oh MAN, is it a thing!

The bratwurst goes great with (expected) vast selection of German brews, and can give you a great fill up to prevent drunken stupidity.  Which, by the way, is something else that’s great about this place; you’re not really supposed to get stupid drunk here.  Oh, don’t get me wrong – of course people do just that.  But they’re one-offs, exceptions to the rule.  This place is first and foremost about the taste, the adventure of discovering new treats for the burgeoning beerknurd – the title given to all who accept the beer challenge that this place is so much about.

Remember the picture above, the one with the list of the beers I haven’t tried yet? That list is, I kid you not, two feet long.  There are newborns out there that are smaller than this list of beers I haven’t tasted. Not that headway hasn’t been made, mind you – I tend to stop by The Flying Saucer at least once, usually twice a week. I’ve even got a favorite area, a favorite snack, and a favorite waitress at this point. In fact, Geli (my awesome waitress) is the one who hit the exact spot I was looking for with her recommendation of Full Sail Session Black. Without her and all the other waitresses’ extensive beer knowledge, I may have never known the joy of Session Black.

And while I may have settled with Session Black for now, my lips sill have 148 beers to touch.

I’m not a “regular” at many places, and it’s hard to become one when your job requires you to hit as many new places as possible.  But I make an exception for The Flying Saucer, because it’s something both new and familiar every time I show up.  Every night is a surprise, with a very friendly atmosphere to be in.

I love coming to this place.  But you’ll know that the next time you ask me “what are we doing tonight?”

 

http://www.beerknurd.com/stores/houston/

 

Look out for Part 2 of Jose Rojas’s descent into alcoholism in the near future. Like MyHoustonLife on Facebook to know when updates and new articles are up!