It’s not often that I walk into a restaurant and fall in love.

This is before the fresh, locally harvested food arrives, before I get a look at the extensive beer list, or even learn that the place offers a craft beer cocktail.

There’s just something about Tap 42 — the walls made out of reclaimed barn wood, the casually dressed clientele, the feeling that you’d be welcome in jeans, the spacious outdoor seating area with lighted umbrellas that feels more like a friends’ patio than a restaurant.

Between the food menu and the beer list, I wish I had a small army to feed, just so I could order triple the dishes that our table needs. But I settle on a bowl of butternut bisque ($6), a delicious, surprisingly spicy and generous portion of roasted butternut squash, red curry, coconut milk and spiced cream. The homemade curried tomato dip ($7) and the bite-sized meatballs or warm pretzels ($10) are on my list to order next time.

Usually at beer bars I go for pub food but here, at a place that gets some of its greens at Marando Farms, literally across the street, I go the salad route and get the Quinoa “Superfood” Salad, made with fresh garden veggies including delicious arugula, fat toasted almonds that I suspect are Marconas, shaved red onion and feta cheese ($11). (I take half home.)

Famous and delicious is the Prohibition Burger ($13), which is only $5 on Monday nights — and it’s famous for a good reason.

As for the beer list, it’s jaw-dropping. They have 51 taps, including 16 rotating taps and a rotating cask. Check out their current list online at Tap42.com/crafts.

In addition to all that beer magic, the bar also offers craft beer cocktails. Small-batched pairings of beer and liquor. I tried the Brooklyn Brewjito, a mix of Bacardi, hand-picked mint, raspberry puree, spiced agave and Brooklyn Lager ($10), an earthy, smooth combination that goes down dangerously easy. They also have a fabulous selection of bourbon flights and specialty cocktails.

It’s not any one thing – it’s everything. Delicious, well-priced food that is thoughtfully prepared, a beer for every beer drinker and a cocktail for the ones that aren’t. Ambiance that is welcoming, décor that manages to be hip, unique but not trying too hard. I only wish it were local – say in West Palm Beach just a five-minute ride away.

Tap 42 Bar and Kitchen: 1411 South Andrews Avenue, Fort Lauderdale; 954-463-4900; open Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 a.m., Friday and Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to midnight.