Mark on the Shore

Mark’s Score 8.0

Specific Gravity styles itself a craft brewhouse that happens to sell excellent pizza and wings. Specific Gravity does not craft its own beer, instead they seek to sell beer from small craft brewers from across America. The offerings change frequently so you have to check out the chalkboard to see what is currently on offer. They are currently selling 24 craft brews, eight of which are from Delmarva brewers. 

They may see themselves as a brewhouse, but for me Specific Gravity is my go-to take away pizza place. There are several reasons why, 1) it is just a couple blocks from my house (you want the pizza to be hot, when you get home), 2) their pizza is thin crust (my preference), 3) they use quality ingredients, and 4) their pizzas are never greasy.   

I have another reason why I like Specific Gravity they have the best chicken wings I have ever eaten. I don’t buy chicken wings very often; I usually just buy them for parties. But I could make a meal of their wings. So, what is it about their chicken wings that I find so appealing? They are always cooked to crispy perfection. Not many restaurants can make this dish properly. Too often wings are soggy, greasy, and covered in some dubious sauce. Specific Gravity wings are always crisp as crackling and dry as a bone on the outside. But the meat is succulent and cooked to perfection. I always order my wings with Key West seasoning (lime, salt, and cracked pepper). The salt and pepper enhance the outer crispiness and the lime adds a pleasant tartness to the skin. Specific Gravity wings are the definitive wings by which I judge all others. 

If I have one complaint about Specific it is that it is always too crowded. It has become a popular hangout in my neighborhood. I wouldn’t call Specific an intimate neighborhood bar, it has that modern industrial feel that they call “cool, no fuss atmosphere.” To me it feels like a bar in a warehouse, but to be fair, it is a common look for craft brewers. Burnish has the same feel and look. Because it is popular, service can sometimes be slow, especially around the holidays. Their wings have become a popular party food. I usually get their wings for New Year’s Eve, but you would be a fool to order the wings on December 31^st (they sell hundreds maybe even thousands of them on that day). So, I always order my New Year’s Eve wings on the December 30^th.  There is nothing wrong with day-old wings. Sometimes day-old wings can become soggy, but that is never the case for Specific Gravity wings

I suppose you can’t write a review of Specific Gravity without talking about their beers. The cool thing about Specific, you can try new and rare beers from across the country. The down side to that approach, sometimes you like them, sometimes you don’t.