LA/Fresno Trip from the East Coast - 3/25 to 4/3

Discussion in 'Pacific' started by JandJMD, Mar 19, 2016.

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  1. JandJMD

    JandJMD Maven (1,375) Feb 23, 2013 Maryland

    I've done some searching, but apologize for an open thread like this. Traveling from DC to LA from Friday to the following Sunday. This is a family trip and not a beer centered trip, so no travel up the coast or long distance side trips.

    Questions:
    1. Going to a Dodger game - planning to hit up Mohawk Bend. Any better options that night?
    2. Heading up to the National Parks toward Fresno - Sequoia/Yosemite - mid week. Anything to look for on the way from LA? Anything in town for breweries or stores I need to hit?
    3. During the time in LA, what are the must hits? I'm looking at Glendale Tap, maybe Highland Park, and want to hit Select and/or Adam's. Any one of these I need to put at the top? Anything I'm missing?

    Again, this is family hanging in LA, but I can't go coast-to-coast without looking for Societe, Kern River, Noble, Knee Deep, Council, Russian River, etc.
     
  2. dee_el

    dee_el Initiate (0) Mar 11, 2016 California

    Don't miss noble for sure.

    Societe and Council are about two + hrs away from los angeles, so keep that in mind.
     
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  3. AlexM

    AlexM Pooh-Bah (1,844) Jun 9, 2011 California
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Highland Park should NOT be a maybe, but a must. You could probably do this before your Dodger game depending on time. If you are on the 405 side of LA, then Smog City & Monkish are musts. A bit south is Beachwood in Long Beach and tad north is El Segundo by LAX.
     
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  4. dcgunman

    dcgunman Pooh-Bah (2,608) Jul 1, 2009 California
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    In the LA area: How many days in LA? You could always say we're going for lunch or dinner to Beachwood BBQ & Brewing (Long Beach). A great family menu and a better tap list. Nearby LAX (3+ miles) you have Rock & Brews (restaurant/beers). Eat with the family and cross the street over to El Segundo Brewing Co. You also have Richmond Bar & Grill around the corner.
    Yosemite Valley @ the Curry Village market you have a pretty decent bottle selection. And I believe you may find some Kern River bottles there.
    In Bakersfield just off the hwy 99 you have Imbibe Wine & Spirits with an excellent bottle selection, including Kern River bottles.
     
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  5. Martin_carvalho

    Martin_carvalho Initiate (0) Jun 13, 2014 California

    Fresno breweries
    Tioga sequoia off 99- Fresyes fest is the 26th so they will have special beers. Check them out on Instagram.
    House of Pendragon- actually Clovis not Fresno, really good beer.
    Black Ops- again Clovis, up and coming brewery with some good beer.

    Shops
    The Fort- really good selection always getting new beers in.

    There's more in Fresno Clovis, but these are my favorites.
     
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  6. jakecattleco

    jakecattleco Grand Pooh-Bah (3,625) Sep 3, 2008 California
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    EZ Mart in Visalia has a good selection, and great customer service. Worth a stop if you're rolling the 198 into the South end of SEKI.
     
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  7. JandJMD

    JandJMD Maven (1,375) Feb 23, 2013 Maryland

    Thanks to all for the responses. It's mainly a family trip rather than couple or beer outing trip but I will mix in a stop or two.
     
  8. Lostmango

    Lostmango Initiate (0) Jun 29, 2013 California

    Take the kids to Beachwood in seal beach. Drop them off at the beach with the wife then walk the block to Beachwood, have a beer go back to the beach. Repeat.
     
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  9. OTB

    OTB Pooh-Bah (1,779) Sep 2, 2011 California
    Pooh-Bah Society

    In all actuality LA traffic is the worst in the nation so even a jaunt down to Anaheim(Noble) or Long Beach(Beachwood) from LA proper could take up to two hours in traffic. Just go find the nearest Whole Foods, if you go on Friday you might actually get Pliny. They should have Knee Deep bottles, El Segundo Bottles to name a few, unless you drive to San Diego you won't get Societe as they don't bottle. Try to get to Highland Park if you can especially if your staying in LA, it won't be that tough a drive and their beers are world class as you probably are aware of.If you are able to devote a bit of time and had to decide on where to go I say Beachwood, either the LB location which is the actual brewery or Seal Beach for the location and beach for kids. The food is really good,Carolina style BBQ,their beers are world class and the guest taps are fantastic, they have Russian River on frequently as well as Society from time to time.

    Cheers………..
     
    #9 OTB, Mar 22, 2016
    Last edited: Mar 22, 2016
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  10. Srsly

    Srsly Crusader (496) Mar 21, 2010 California

    Mohawk Bend is a good choice before the Dodger game, but you could also stop by Sunset Beer Co, which has 12 taps and a ton of bottles, and is a long-ish walk or a short Lyft from the stadium.

    For your other LA stops, I would suggest you pick by proximity - if you're East of, say, Koreatown you should make sure to hit up Highland Park. If you're in West or Southwest LA, I'd recommend going down to Monkish & Smog City. And if you're in the Valley, well..... You should probably still go to Highland Park. And Beachwood is excellent no matter what, but it can be a bit of a hike to Long Beach.
     
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  11. KRBCEric

    KRBCEric Crusader (455) Jan 6, 2009 California

    Stop by South Gate brewing in Oakhurst if you are going to yosemite. Good family dinner stop.
     
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  12. Alpha309

    Alpha309 Initiate (0) Nov 13, 2014 California

    Mostly this. Sunset Beer Co, is before Mohawk when you leave Dodger Stadium, and they are maybe half a mile from each other. About a 10 minute walk or 2 minute uber. And if you are interested in bottles, Sunset is one of the best places in town.

    If you do go towards Monkish and Smog city (a 5 minute walk from each other), I would recommend Phantom Carriage that is about a 5-10 minute drive away from them. And then El Segundo is over in that rather large general area too.

    The route you are taking up to the parks depends on what you will hit. If you are taking a beer specific route or the quickest way to get there.
     
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  13. danscott

    danscott Initiate (0) Jul 15, 2006 California

    My go-to spot in Fresno is Peeve's Public House, which is also a great family spot. It's big, warm, cozy, friendly, GREAT food and a really good beer selection, particularly since you're not from the West Coast. You'll get more bang-for-your-buck in trying a variety of beer here than going to Tioga-Sequoia which is perfectly nice but certainly nothing special. http://peevespub.com/
     
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  14. danielu

    danielu Initiate (0) Oct 8, 2013 California

    FRESNO

    Stop at Tioga Sequoia they open Wed-Sun(That's the local brewery) really the only one worth stopping in Fresno.

    If you are driving down the 168 for any reason then stop by House of Pendragon their IPAs are really good (Clovis).

    As far as bottle shops you have Spokeasy & Maroa Shell (These 2 are in close range from each other) you have The Fort (Sunny is a cool dude) and Fig Tree Liquor. All these places have an IG and Facebook so you can check out where they are at and what they have available.

    As far as stopping somewhere to eat and have a good beer Tioga Sequoia sometimes has food trucks and they allow kids, another option would be stopping at South Gate in Oakhurst

    and finally if you want to do some IP trades hit me up!! :slight_smile::grinning:

    -Daniel
     
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  15. clayfu

    clayfu Initiate (0) Apr 27, 2010 California

    HPB is doing a beer release party on 4/1. They usually have cool stuff on tap during the release day. Might even have some extra bottles to take home
     
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  16. walterfredo

    walterfredo Savant (1,032) Nov 22, 2011 California
    Trader

    If you'll be traveling the 198 through Visalia en route to Seauoia NP...

    1. Pita Kabob on Court and Oak. 31 great taps Mediterranean food.

    2. Ol buckaroo in Three Rivers. A few decent beer options, but great food and ambiance, all outside seating along the Kaweah River.
     
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  17. JandJMD

    JandJMD Maven (1,375) Feb 23, 2013 Maryland

    We've done the Anaheim/Bakersfield/Fresno/Yosemite/Sequoia route and will be in LA for the rest of the trip.

    I haven't hit Highland Park or Mohawk Bend yet, but at least one will be done on Friday before the Dodger game.

    I was able to hit up Kings in Anaheim when we were at Disney, Imbibe while driving through Bakersfield, and EZ Mart on the way out of Sequoia to a hotel in Visalia/Tulume. All good. Nothing mind blowing, but grabbed some locals from Bottle Logic, Kern River, Modern Times, and El Segundo, plenty of Stone 4.20, and some others.

    We did stop at South Gate Brewing coming out of Yosemite and then Sequoia Brewing (not Tioga-Sequoia) coming out of SEKI. Both good. A couple of other stops at places to eat (Del Frisco - because Santa Monica Pier and Blue Palms - because Hollywood WofF) have let me try some other locals - some of which I've had before like Pliny/Blind Pig. In all but one case, it was my wife that brought up the restaurant, so I didn't seem too eager to find a beer joint.
     
  18. TriggerFingers

    TriggerFingers Initiate (0) Apr 29, 2012 California

    Sounds awesome! Can't go wrong with any of those. Hope you got Modern Times "Booming Rollers." Oh, and Firestone is releasing Parabola on April 2nd. With good area distribution you should be able to find it in Fresno or down south.
     
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