Karl Strauss Brewing Company - Downtown San Diego

Karl Strauss Brewing Company - Downtown San DiegoKarl Strauss Brewing Company - Downtown San Diego
Karl Strauss Brewing Company - Downtown San DiegoKarl Strauss Brewing Company - Downtown San Diego
Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

1157 Columbia St
San Diego, California, 92101
United States

(619) 234-2739 | map
karlstrauss.com

Beers are listed at the San Diego brewery location:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/4146/
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.94
Reviews:
31
Ratings:
58
pDev:
10.41%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by sunny289:
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Rated by sunny289 from California

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

Nov 07, 2013
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.14 by mdfb79 from New York

Oct 13, 2017
 
Rated: 3.74 by Spaceman_Jer from Colorado

Jan 31, 2017
 
Rated: 3.61 by wisegreensoul from Idaho

Jan 20, 2017
 
Rated: 4.13 by chrisjws from California

Mar 27, 2016
Photo of socon67
Reviewed by socon67 from New York

4.09/5  rDev +3.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.25
Location in the downtown area. Always have a Brewer's Choice and a barrel aged tap option. Also saw they do a cask on Thursdays. Went with a flight that had the peanut butter cup porter and the Oktoberfest. Food was good (I recommend the west coast carbonara).
Nov 14, 2015
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Rated by drummerdwzp from Connecticut

4.28/5  rDev +8.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 4
Bonnie was a great bartender
Oct 22, 2015
Photo of Davepoolesque
Reviewed by Davepoolesque from Massachusetts

4.15/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.25
Decent atmosphere, friendly bar tender and flights of beer. Food looked good. Not the most amazing beer selection as they had only Karl Strauss offerings.
Jul 27, 2015
 
Rated: 4.53 by SkiBumbo from California

Jul 17, 2015
 
Rated: 3.68 by barflybastard from Pennsylvania

May 14, 2015
Photo of numbers
Rated by numbers from Nevada

3.66/5  rDev -7.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.75 | food: 3.75
This place was the first San Diego brewery we went to. Vibe was so-so the servers were pretty damn good. Worth the trip
Apr 25, 2015
 
Rated: 4.43 by clager from Michigan

Apr 04, 2015
 
Rated: 3.99 by qcghost from North Carolina

Mar 01, 2015
 
Rated: 4.03 by kingpin1010 from California

Feb 09, 2015
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Rated by MikeyGCAP from California

4.1/5  rDev +4.1%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
A must visit if you are in Gas Lamp area.
Feb 08, 2015
 
Rated: 3.98 by GatorCoop from California

Dec 24, 2014
 
Rated: 3.86 by italianstallion from Wisconsin

Dec 23, 2014
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Reviewed by mrcraft from California

3.95/5  rDev +0.3%
I forgot this place was only a few blocks from the Sante Fe Depot. It was perfect to grab a few tasters before jumping on the train back home.

It was a Friday evening, so it was packed, a good sign. The atmosphere was inviting. Bartenders and servers were all friendly. I sat at the bar to grab a series of tasters. I had a nice chat with a fellow from back East visiting San Diego to watch the Patriots/Chargers game with buddies he hasn't seen in over 20 years. That was cool.

I didn't order any food, but it looked pretty good. The beers were good, nothing earth-shattering but solid. My favorite of the night was Five Wee, a scotch ale. Very nice.

I'll surely return in the future, and make my rotation of places to hit before hopping on the train.
Dec 06, 2014
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Reviewed by myelo from Tennessee

4.5/5  rDev +14.2%
Seems primarily a restaurant with good beer selection. Convenient to downtown. The food is better than a lot of brew pub places and atmosphere is upscale casual. Tried the chili, fish tacos, and the squid and ahi poke appetizers and they were all excellent. Service is very good and servers knew about the beer offering, which was about 10 beers on tap as well as some bottles. Also fill growlers. Tired the Belgian IPA, Octoberfest, Red Trolley ale and one other that I can't recall and they were all nice. Most main dishes were in the $15 range so figure $25-30 with a few beers.
Oct 25, 2014
 
Rated: 3.65 by Bung from Michigan

Oct 07, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by Beer-Zombie from Oregon

Sep 14, 2014
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Reviewed by Gavage from Nevada

3.9/5  rDev -1%
Upon entering you first notice the lighter shades of woods, yellow walls, and plenty of tables and 1/2 booths. There are a few tables outside too. The bar overlooks some of the brewing tanks. Big open wood ceiling give this a bit of an airy feel.

There were about 10 house beers on draft with some beers available in bombers. I had numerous beers over a few stops here and the ranged from OK to really good. One of the older places in San Diego, and it is worthy of a stop.
Sep 05, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by anthony23cippy from Maine

Aug 02, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by cherche from Washington

Jul 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by anon from California

Jul 13, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by rocket182 from California

Jul 05, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by BubalooBrewMaster from Kentucky

Apr 21, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Tarps68 from Massachusetts

Feb 22, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by kristougher from North Carolina

Jan 31, 2014
 
Rated: 2.5 by mattmarka1 from Minnesota

Jan 15, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by johnhkelm from California

Jan 06, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Beer_Trotter from New Hampshire

Oct 24, 2013
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Reviewed by jjboesen from Maryland

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 4.75 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.25
Overwhelmed by choices during my recent San Diego Beer Week sojourn, I did not give much thought to Karl Strauss; however, an exhausting trip to the nearby Maritime Museum, as well as an overwhelming thirst, led me to this downtown venue. Located on a generic block, the building can be spotted immediately identified from the massive leaf drapery that festoons its’ façade. Thus began, my tenth stop of the trip.

Entering into the dimly lit interior, which has plenty of wood décor, can be found in any other restaurant in the city, I found a seat at the sparsely populated bar and was greeted by the cheerful and very exuberant 14-year old server (she was young, to say the least, but certainly not a pre-teen).

Karl Strauss offers a wide range of brews; during my lunchtime visit, I was proffered with their Red Trolley Ale, Tower 10 IPA, Pintail Ale, and yet-to-be-named amber taken directly from the fermenting tank. While the beers cannot be compared to many of the local hop bombs, the beers here were pleasing and good accompaniment to the big and juicy cheddar burger.

A pleasant experience nonetheless: decent beer, hearty chow, a friendly server who was liberal with samplers and another day in America’s favorite beer city.
Mar 25, 2013
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Reviewed by crossovert from Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 3.5
This is a cozy little place kind of away from a lot of the action. Still right downtown though. It is on a quiet corner. I went in the evening it was happy hour so the bartender convinced me to get boneless wings, they were nothing special but good. The bed of spicy as fuck mustard and cabbage was the best part about it. I had a sampler of a few of the beers. They were decent. Nothing stuck out, I think this brewery has more beers to offer but they run a pretty limited selection at the pub. Only about 5 taps total. Overall a god stop in SD.
Jul 26, 2012
Photo of exodus1369
Reviewed by exodus1369 from California

4.22/5  rDev +7.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4
Great place wonderful location, not huge not to small. The quality was outstanding. The service was great, out standing waitress! Besides being HOT she new a ton about beer and loved to talk about it. Selection is not huge of cores it is a single Brewery. The food was great! and every thing was very well priced. No complaints at all, they have growers that are priced very well. They have monthly beer pairings witch is nice. Not a huge menu but every thing I have tried has been great. They have a nice selection of food made in a beer sauce. If ever in San Diego a wonderful place to check out.
Jan 26, 2012
Photo of drpimento
Reviewed by drpimento from Wisconsin

3.86/5  rDev -2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5
I came here based upon last year when I was out here and had a really tasty bottle a their brew. And that it was just off the trolley route which for a lazy fuck like me adds a lot of charisma. They have a smallish patio in front which had an employee enjoying whilst he did some sort of arcane paperwork. Got a spot at the far end of the bar by the tap tower and immediiate service. Easy going bartenders and customers. Bartenders went from very accomodating to work a day. There’s a view of the brewery behind the back bar and a wide range of beers to look at from my spot. Great garlicy aromas in the air. Just got a very polite sniff an sample of an obscure tequila plata from the gracious bartender. Nice large oak bar, overhead is old school commercial, good lighting, sports on TV, growlers to go. I think my score should be better. But there you go.
Nov 09, 2011
Photo of berley31
Reviewed by berley31 from Canada (NB)

3.25/5  rDev -17.5%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 2 | selection: 4 | food: 2
Dropped in for some food/beers after being at DJB's for a couple of hours...

A: What you'd expect. Lots of tables, big bar, high ceilings... not very many people there at 10 or so on a Monday night.

Q+Selection: Several of their beers on tap (about 10)... I only tried the IPA, but it was very fresh and tasty.

Service: Blech. We had one of those young, so-snarky-I'm-cool waitresses. I'm not your best friend, no need to be sarcastic with me from the very beginning. And when I showed my AHA card (website says it gets happy hour prices on beer all day), she takes it to the bartender, who tells her they only honor it during Beer Week... wtf?

F: Had some wings and garlic fries which were subpar.

O: The beer was good, the rest wasn't. I wouldn't return.
Sep 30, 2011
Photo of Siggy125
Reviewed by Siggy125 from California

4.3/5  rDev +9.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 5
I get to visit San Diego on business every few weeks and this has been a favorite lunch spot for some time. Being that it's lunchtime and I'm supposed to be working, I enjoy 1 brew each visit.

The restaurant is located downtown and parking can be a challenge unless you arrive a little early. But then you still have to fumble for change to feed the meter, This joint has no parking lot.

Pretty diverse menu, geat food. Burgers, pastas, pizzas , sandwiches, etc.. Food quality has always been solid. They have a pretty full list of beers from lighter Hefs and pale ales to stouts and porters. Something for everyone. They usually come around the restaurant and offer small tasters of their beers complimentary. Nice touch.

Service is pretty solid, staff pretty friendly. I've never ran into poor service here. Good spot if the food is just importatnt to you as the beer. Recommended!
Jul 16, 2011
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Reviewed by GarthDanielson from Virginia

4.03/5  rDev +2.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Went to this place pretty late at night, but were surprised how well and smooth our visit was. Some places seem to change within an hour of close.

The place was very relaxed. Great, open areas for seating and a nice, long open bar. Our bartender was great. She was very helpful describing the beers, as well as the rest of the pub's offering.

They have their standard flagship beers available on tap, plus 3-4 seasonal and limited brews. They also have bombers of some of their out of season beers, as well as some guest taps.

The food was decent. Desert was fantastic. They do a "Shake and Cake", where they make a milkshake with one of their beers, and pair it with a lovely, rich chocolate cake. That alone is worth a trip.

All in all, with the beers and the food, the pricing wasn't bad at all. I would definitely make a return visit.
Dec 31, 2010
Photo of theghost3
Reviewed by theghost3 from Louisiana

3.4/5  rDev -13.7%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5
This place is located downtown. There was some seating outside, which in hindsight, I should've gone for since the weather was so nice. However, there were few people outside, there wasn't much of a view, and I was alone, so I took a place at the bar.

As you walk in, there are tables and booths in the front and to the left. The brewery is behind glass on the right and the bar is also to the right a little farther back. Lots of wood, fairly dark inside, and a long bar--typical brewpub.

The place had a decent amount of business for a Monday during the summer. This was probably explained by all of the TVs showing a Monday night preseason NFL game as well as a Padres game.

Happy hour was still going on when I was there, and I was imprssed with the low prices on some of the food at that time. There were 8 taps with a couple of there seasonals/specials. I had the Oktoberfest. I also had the spicy sweet potato fries. Warning--very spicy. Outside of that, a ceviche and a couple of other fish dishes, the food is just standard bar food. They sell growlers, and they advertise a cask night on Thursdays. They also had several bombers available to take home.

The service is the worst part of this place. The bartender was nice enough and attentive at first, but she slacked off because she just had too much going on. The bar area was full when I got there, and she was the only bartender working. Not only was she working a large bar (which had full taps at both ends), but she was the only one pouring beers for all of the waitstaff who were taking care of the customers sitting at the tables. They should either have another bartender or allow the servers to pour their own beers. There was also a fair amount of chit chat between the bartender and the other employees; all the while ignoring customers.

I might come back here to try some of their other beers or food, but I definitely wouldn't go out of my way to make it back.
Aug 28, 2010
Karl Strauss Brewing Company - Downtown San Diego in San Diego, CA
Place rating: 3.94 out of 5 with 58 ratings