OC/Riverside/Moreno Valley Trip Help

No need for Costco membership to purchase tobacco and alcohol. Tell them at the door that's your intentions.

 

Go to the Salted Pig. I cannot emphasize this enough. Only go to killarney's if you really enjoy and embrace the BRO culture of the inland empire along with mediocre food. The Pig is one of the best decisions you can make if you like good food. Again, I cannot emphasize this enough.

 

Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of Provisions -- mark-up on generally available brews, and as you mentioned, underutilized taps. I'd knock Haven Gastropub down in Orange Circle a bit too, if only because I've been to the Pasadena location as well and find it to have a much wider and more interesting selection of beers.

 

I think Haven has to be one of, if not THE, most overrated places in OC. It was a sad, dark day when Provisions went from Bruery to Haven. Stone, you could have saved us!

 

Haven is horrible. Haven is synonymous with price gouging.

 

I was hoping so badly that they would have swooped in, would have been perfect for a Stone store. I hope they're considering an OC location as neither of Pasadena or Oceanside is very close for us.

 

They're considering downtown LA right now, so I don't know if that also means Pasadena's done. Neither's incredibly easy to get to from Santa Monica, though at least I have friends that live in Pasadena and can crash with them at their place a couple blocks away from Stone.

 

100% disagree. Salted Pig is some of the best food ive ever had. Pretty good beer selection too. Kilarnies has some awesome beers too but food is not as good and all the bros hang out there

Hangar is not worth it IMO especially for the drive from where your going to be. Nothing but uppity people that think they know beer but don't. The staff there think they know everything too and think their pretty cool that they work there. Just my opinion.

La Bodega is my go to when i go out there (My parents live in R-Side so I'm out there often). Their a little pricier than BevMo or Total Wine but have way more selection and even get stuff I cant get in OC.

Iron Fire is in temecula i think. Not a close drive

 

The 'Haven' Provisions is so damn annoying. Not only are the taps underutilized, but the staff always insist on talking to you and make the most ridiculous recommendations. I don't mind people being helpful, especially if their employer forces them to talk to everyone. BUT - I have been offered silly recommendations without requesting them or even seeming to want them. I hate pulling the 'I know more about beer than you do' shtick, and this is the only place where I am forced to do that so that I can be let be to browse through their overpriced bottles.

 

Let me guess, they put it in back so you have to specifically ask for it?

 

A Stone store would be nice to have in central OC. I am right in the middle of Oceanside & Pasadena. But Pasadena is my go to for now as it is a bit faster for some reason. As long as I avoid the horrible traffic going from there to the OC. Plus I have other options to check out other "stops" while I'm up in that area.

 

they stopped putting things in the back. Everything goes in the cooler. Either in the box or on the special release shelves. check imediately to your right when you walk in the cooler.

 

Good to know. Thanks.

 

Yeah. I was talking to one of the beer guys. Too much hassel and too much beer in the back. Its nice but a little dissapointing when you show up and there is an empty box (pliny) or spot on the shelf that says limit 1 under it (hoppy alpine)

 

I've always thought keeping beers in the back was stupid. I went to my local bevmo last year looking for Parabola. They had one case on the floor so I opened it and took it to the register and the guy was like "where did you get this?". He got mad cause I opened the case he was gonna sell as a case and I didn't ask about the beer in the back. HOW THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHO HAS BEER IN THE BACK AND WHO DOESN'T AND WHATS IN THE BACK VS WHATS ON THE FLOOR. Ok rant over, on a closing note Kilarnies last day of operation is this Sunday.

 

Yeah, beer in the back is an awful practice and leads to employees keeping all the bottles or being selective in who they go to. Pretty unfair, even as somebody who utilizes said benefits via connections.