Carl's Meat Market

Cavanaghty

Maine

4.05/5  rDev -6.5%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$$

Carl's is close to my house, so myself and a couple of friends frequent this establichment for beers. I see reviews of the past state that there is a decent selection, but not a lot to choose from. I would say that has changed. There was about 150 different craft and imported beers there. I hosted a tasting party just off the 15 different IPAs we bought there. The service there is primarly for the meat market end of the store, the staff there really only knows what they have not much about what the beers really are. The meats you buy there are of excellent quality, highly recommend. Good stop for a cook out day and pick out some good beers to go with the meats.

07-29-2012 20:16:13 | More by Cavanaghty

troutbumnh

New Hampshire

4.7/5  rDev +8.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5 | $$

Carl's is a Kittery landmark, known for its quality meats, sandwiches, and, more recently, beer. Its sister next door, Golden Harvest, is similarly locally renown for produce, cheese, and wine (they supply many, if not most, of the Portsmouth restaurants with their veggies and fruit).

And while they don't have a huge selection of beer, those with Jim the owner puts on the shelf are all good to great offerings...

No silly ABV limits like ol' "Live Free and Over-regulate Beer" NH, so Dogfish 120 makes its appearance, as I'm sure Worldwide Stout will. Many Weyerbacher products, the Stone family, and among others... Plus a nice, eclectic Belgian selection, hard(er) to find bombers, and more. It's the first place I found "Lunch" by the Maine Beer Company (unfortunatley gone 'til spring), and they're always bringing in something new.

The counter staff are professional butchers that may not know as much about the brews as a beer specialty store would -- as others have said they're a meat market that happens to have an excellent beer selection. If the friendly staff can't help with a specific beer question, you can always ask for Jim (if he's not busy running the other aspects his two stores).

He's also open to requests, so if there's anything the CBG carries, he'll likely order it up for you... Swing through, give it a whirl.

12-21-2011 00:07:52 | More by troutbumnh

603BeerMe

New Hampshire

4.85/5  rDev +12%
quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Best meat market around! And one of the best, albeit smaller craft beer selections too!

Dogfish Head, Redhook, Smutty, all 4 Sierra 30th Anniversary series were there, Victory, Weyerbacher, a few European brews, and MUCH more! There aren't isles of beer, but what is there, is quality...

Not every employee is knowledgeable about the beer, but one who is, is never far away. Very polite & courteous staff!

Great store for beer, and meat! Full deli too!

Worth the stop if you're at the Kittery Outlets, or downtown Portsmouth...

01-05-2011 21:37:25 | More by 603BeerMe

KTCamm

New Jersey

4.35/5  rDev +0.5%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Disguised as a meat market, this small shop packs a whallop when it comes to craft brews. You won't have aisles and aisles of beers to walk down, but what they do have is varied, eclectic, and you will certainly leave with something new.

Good selection of Maine Beers of course, both bombers and sixers. Also a varied import section, serving up some brews I hadn't yet seen before near me. I went there for the Maine selection, but probably could have bagged abother 6-7 new ones I hadn't tried before.

If you're in town shopping at the outlet malls, swing by, and bring home something you can't find at the shops.

10-23-2010 21:58:01 | More by KTCamm

lou50rp

Maine

4.35/5  rDev +0.5%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Whenever i want to try something new and/or do not know what I am in the mood for, I go to Carl's. The selection has a few main stays with an eclectic collection which seems to vary each visit. It regualrly stocks Allagash products and usually one of my favorites-McGoverns Oatmeal Stout. Saw some Southern Tier there today. Bought a four pack of Old Rasput, today for $8 A good price that will definitely bring me back for more.
Service is friendly and efficient, but I don't know about there beer knowledge. The quality of the brews speaks for it self. You find any macro brews here.
Prices seem reasonable on some items, a bit pricey on others, but considering the alternative is a trip to Wells-20 miles away I will pay them.

08-12-2010 01:19:41 | More by lou50rp

FrankLloydMike

Massachusetts

4.4/5  rDev +1.6%
quality: 5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I don't have much to say that hasn't already been said, but I did want to rate this place. My mom and stepdad live up the road in Eliot, so I stop by this place a lot when I'm visiting.

As has been said, the selection isn't huge, but it's pretty sizable and you're sure to find something to your liking. Every time, I've stood for awhile making a choice between several excellent options, so I think it's plenty big based on that alone. And it changes frequently, so there's always a chance of coming across something serendipitously.

It's a butcher shop first, a beer store second, so there has never been anyway to turn to with questions, but usually everything is pretty clear and I prefer not to be badgered anyway. You pay for the beer at the deli counter, and the folks there are friendly, and I'm sure would answer your questions if you have any--you'd just need to approach them.

Aside from Bert's in Hooksett, this is the best beer store in/right near New Hampshire that I've been to (which is a limited number), so I'd probably seek it out frequently if I lived just across the river.

03-16-2010 19:10:59 | More by FrankLloydMike

ElGallo

New Hampshire

4.2/5  rDev -3%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$$

Because beer variety in NH is a joke, most BAs in the NH seacoast cross the bridge to Kittery to see what Carl's has to offer.

This is a great little meat shop that expanaded its beer selection within the last couple of years. They don't have a large selection of beers, but they carry great stuff and the inventory rotates frequently so it never hurts to call ahead and see what's new.

I have found bottles of Old Engine Oil, Ellezelloise Quitine Blond, Saison Dupont, DFH Squall and Burton Baton, and plenty of French blond, saison and biere de garde that you can't find elsewhere.

Price can be an issue here. I feel like their Allagash 750s are overpriced, and $10 for a 6-pack of Dixie Lager is absurd - this is Maine not NYC.

Still worth checking out if you're visiting Portsmouth, NH and want some variety to what you're drinking.

02-12-2010 15:56:24 | More by ElGallo

SevaTse

New Hampshire

4.4/5  rDev +1.6%
quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$

The beers are to the left as you walk in. The place is a deli/butcher shop/ food store, but a good amount of floor space is dedicated to the reason that you are on this Web site.

There is usually a fair number of Belgians, Brits(a lot that I have never seen in NH or Mass.), Maine beers, as well as crafts from around the U.S. of A. Everything is pretty consistently priced and they seem to have specials on different 6s/12s most of the time. An awesome place due to the fact that it carries a lot of items that, I am guessing, can not be had in N.H., and it is pretty much right over the border, thus I would recommend it to all locals and passer bys, as you will probably find something new to try, unless you reside somewhere near a bigger beer store in Maine.

Food is pretty awesome. They have chicken wings(ready to go), grilled sandwiches, cold sandwiches, pre-packaged salads, cheeses (including smoked string cheese!), hams, in addition to fancy condiments and so on.

05-16-2009 14:18:48 | More by SevaTse

lordofthewiens

Maine

3.7/5  rDev -14.5%
quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5 | $$

As the name implies, this is a butcher shop (and a very good one). They put in a small beer corner on the left side of the store. While small, they have some impressive labels: Allagash, Clipper City/Heavy Seas, Flying Dog, Hooker, Southampton, as well as some Belgians, Germans, and British. The prices look pretty reasonable; I was there just before Christmas, and got a 750 of Allagash Black for $10.99. They also had Hooker barleywine on sale for $4.99 a bottle.
I'm not sure I'd go there just looking for beer, but if you are buying your red meats and poultry, take a look at the beer selection.
One final comment. This is a pretty lively part of town. Besides Carl's, the Golden Harvest is just next door with a great selection of produce. Across the street is Terra Cotta for wonderful pastas, and nearby is Beach Pea bakery with breads to die for.

01-05-2008 15:34:04 | More by lordofthewiens