Beer is as versatile as it is diverse.

A little known fact is that beer can provide both complimentary and contrasting experiences when paired with food …

The more hop bitterness the beer has, the heartier or livelier the meal needs to be to hold its own. Don’t overwhelm your palate or meal and ruin what the chef was trying to achieve.

Another general rule is keep sweet with sweet, and tart with tart. Try to keep your beer sweeter or tarter than the sweet or tart food on the plate. There are exceptions, like pairing drier robust beers with sweet chocolates.
Throw all of the rules out the window and experiment with contrasting and complimentary pairings. Match foods with complimentary flavors, or try contrasting them and create a slew of unique results.
For those of you, who are bound to the wine pairing school of thought

Think of ale as red wine and lager as white wine.
Hoppy beers can also be used in place of a pairing that calls for an acidic wine.

Taste is very subjective and what works for one person might not work for another. If it tastes good to you, then go for it. However, also be open to suggestions, as these tend to come with some knowledge and possible palate enlightenment.
Though it honestly doesn’t matter, these tips might help you to convert your taste buds over to beer or those of a friend over to beer.