First Stone Brewery visit

First time ever trying any of their beer, or just the first time going to the brewery?

 

Ruination 10th Anniversary will rock your socks off on tap.

 

here's a tip - if you go anywhere near peak hours, make a reservation. It gets extremely crowded. Beautiful place though!

 

i would personally not spend my money on the food there and would save it for the beer. Its a nice environment though.

 

Went there for my first time a couple weeks ago and being from Louisiana it was a big deal too. The tour was cool then had lunch with a couple Stone beers and a fresh Pliny the Elder on tap, amazing!

 

Tours fill up fast so if you want to get on one the first thing you should do is get tickets to the next available tour...

 

You have to pick up your tour passes two hours in advance. Here’s what you do: Schedule a bistro reservation for 2 hours before the tour that you want to go to (e.g., if you plan on touring at 2pm, schedule a noon lunch). Arrive at the brewery 2 hours and 15 minutes before the tour you want to go to. Wait 15 minutes, grab your tickets, then immediately go to your reservation at the bistro and eat some food and have one beer (no more than that). Your lunch will take ~1.5 hours, which gives you enough time to then get ready for the tour, after which you will have a flight of 4 beers. Enjoy!

 

if you can, go at 11 am. walk in, get a a pass for the first tour at noon, have a beer in the garden, go on said tour, have lunch, drink more, have an awesome time. going first thing ensures no funny business, a casual experience hopefully, and a fun time! (i work there, i would know)

 

This. Ive never had a meal I enjoyed there. If you can fit it in go down to Scripps Ranch 15 minutes South and do tje Ballast Point tour any day at 12, 2 and 5. Better beer too IMO.

 

After Stone head over to Port/Lost Abbey. Great brewery in general, but even better after leaving Stone and seeing where Stone first got started. They sold the place to Port when they expanded to Escondido. This was when Port/Lost Abbey was branching off from Pizza Port which happened to be the first place to carry Stone. Now that's a cool story, bro.

 

Slap my endorsement on this, couldn't be said better.

 

This. Spend the day if you can. Designate a driver. Stone not only has an amazing portfolio (you've had AB? Not Ruination? No smoked porter? no russian stout? you are in a for a treat) but they also serve a lot of one-offs and tap-only stuff, plus some great guest taps. Food's kind of unique, not everybody likes it (tho I do), but definitely worth having a meal there, too. Wish I was going...

 

What's the news on Stone's venue at Liberty Station? I am planning my first trip to San Diego - though not to do any jackin" - and really must include Stone on my agenda.

 

I think stones food is great. Maybe a bit more on the menu

 

Show up at noon and get tour tickets for 2 or 3pm. Then head immediately to Port/Lost Abbey. Spend 2 hours there, and then head back to Stone for your tour.

 

I understand what some people are saying about the food as some of the dishes seem to be misses, but overall I like their food. You do have to understand that they are not a typical brewpub. Meaning you will not find a cheap burger or nachos like 90% of the other places. What you will find is food made with local, organic, and fresh ingredients. Because of the quality and type of ingredients the dishes will be slightly higher. Also, because everything is fresh, it will take a little bit of time to make. Because Stone's philosophy on food (not just beer) is too push flavor boundaries there will be some interesting dishes, and just like their beer, it is not for everyone.

My recommendations:
Mushroom Penne
Mac 'n beer cheese
Mussels in Thai sauce (they didn't have this last time I was there which was a huge disappointment, it is my favorite dish)
Prime Rib Melt
There was also a pork dish that was amazing that I am not seeing on the menu
Brownie Sundae, it is huge and delicious

Things I do not recommend (IMO of course):
Stone IPA soup
Duck tacos (a big hit with others, I just don't like the sweet BBQ sauce)
Burger (not bad, just not their specialty IMO, and you can get better ones in SD, like at Sessions Public and the Neighborhood)

 

Even sourcing local and sustainable, I still don't think their normal food is all that tasty, and especially not for the prices they charge. Their Tuesday dinners on the other hand tend to be awesome.