Hadley, MA

You're probably gonna want to visit Northampton or greenfield. Northampton brewery and abandoned building brewery are cool places in Northampton. The rendezvous in greenfield is supposed to be cool. Hope this helps. Both are close by if you have wheels

 

Yeah I would say you have to go either west to Northampton or east to Amherst. Northampton has a good brewpub, the Northampton Brewery. The local beer bar is the Dirty Truth, and they have a pretty good burger. McLaddens is also a good beer spot with a lot of taps, even though it looks like a normal crappy Irish pub (I sadly made this assumption for about 14 of the 18 months I lived there). Amherst has High Horse, which is also a brewpub - I'm pretty sure they are on the verge of expanding their brewery significantly and I think their owner lurks around these boards. There is also Amherst Brewing Co., another brewpub. Slightly harder to find is Amherst's beer bar, the Moan and Dove. I always prefer the Northampton side of the river, but either way there are a few cool spots in each town. Also, while in Hadley don't skip the coffee at Cafe Esselon.

No real need to head to Greenfield, but if you do the People's Pint is the spot.

 

+1 to Northampton Brewery and Dirty Truth. A couple of other places in Northampton with good food and good beer: Foundry and Sierra Grill.

Abandoned Building in Easthampton is a great brewery but I'm not sure they regularly have food.

The Rendezvouz in Turners Falls is very cool but it is going to be at least a 25 min drive from Hadley.

I've been meaning to check out Quarters in Hadley but I haven't yet. I've heard they have a good beer list.

 

I live in Northampton. Either Amherst or Northampton is your best bet.

Northampton as others have said:
Dirty Truth
The Foundry
Sierra Grille

Most of them are decent at keeping up on Beer Menus and Facebook/Twitter.

 

i was thinking hatfield. What an outta tower. Either way Northampton rocks I spent a lot of time there as a kid and it's been my go to concert spot for 18 years. Such a cool place.

 

Wildwood BBQ is good! They have a handful of good beers on tap. If you do go, make sure to get an order of the burnt ends. They are delicious! Other than that there are tons of excellent places in Northampton, Amherst and Greenfield that have already been mentioned.

 

The Quarters is a fun spot for solid beers, great food and 20-30 old school arcade games. Otherwise, the Hangar in Amherst, or Dirty Truth and The Foundry in NoHo.

 

Answer: the Hangar/Amherst Brew Co.KILLERRRRR wings, fun games like corn hole, etc, and what is often a nice tap list: sometimes ABC beers, sometimes other delicious brews (from what I understand about the new setup).

 

Don't forget to pick up a 4 pack of Building (BLDG) 8 "the IPA" (out of Northampton). Plus +1 to checking out the Esselon Cafe in Hadley (one of the best coffee shops around) Hope you enjoy the best part of the state!!

 

The Hangar, for sure. Aside from the increasingly-solid ABC outings, you can always get a nice pint of Be Hoppy and they float a few good rotating offerings (they had Prairie Bomb recently, for example). And the wings...well, as a UMass alum, I've eaten more than I'd care to admit, and as of two weeks ago I can say they're still exactly as amazing as ever. The NoHo suggestions are all worth your time, too, but for your dollar, the Hangar gets you the most bang for your buck.

If you see it on tap anywhere, Brick and Feather in Turner's Falls might be a hidden gem in the making. Their Positively 11th Street is a pale ale that evokes the smooth, juicy East Coast style that the big Mass. guns are getting famous for. You're probably too far to visit them, but I had it on tap at Moan & Dove so I'd imagine it's making the rounds out there.

High Horse, which is in the original ABC's space in downtown Amherst is good, too. Not sure about eating there, as they've gotten a pretty bad rap on Yelp for meal service, but their beers, particularly the Business, are worth a stop.

 

If you like coffee imperial stouts (or barrel-aged coffee imperial stouts) you really need to go to High Horse in Amherst and get The Business / BA Business. They have some nice IPAs as well, and better food than Dirty Truth in my opinion. And when you walk out, Glaze homemade donuts is right across the street. High Horse only serve their own beers plus a few guest beers. But their beers are excellent.

Moan & Dove is nice (no food, but a good Mexican place is across the street, though it's usually really busy), McLadden's has a very long tap list (including some harder-to-find stuff like Kent Falls), Dirty Truth has a nice tap list. The Quarters is fun but has a short tap list. Sierra Grille has a nice tap list and maybe the best frites of all these places listed.

Yes to Esselon and BLDG 8 IPA. Don't overlook Brewmaster Jack, either.

 

Worth noting that since they don't serve their own food (other than unlimited free peanuts), Moan lets you bring food, so you can totally grab takeout from Mission Cantina and bring it across the street.

I forgot to mention, if you're in the area at all for breakfast or brunch, Stables in Hadley (right on Rt. 9 across from the Whole Foods/Walmart strip mall) is where it's at.

 

If you're going to be in Hadley, I personally would stay in the Hadley/Amherst area and skip Northampton completely, as far as bars and restaurants go. Everything that Northampton offers, you can pretty find in Hadley/Amherst, usually at slightly lower prices.

I'd suggest The Hangar/ABC for food and drinks, then hit up High Horse or Moan and Dove for more drinks later on.

 

I wholeheartedly disagree, and point out that to hit each of those places you would likely be moving your car each time, whereas Northampton is much more compact. Also, Northampton has a way cooler vibe, in my humble opinion.

 

Different strokes I guess.

I personally would rather choose Hangar wings and beer, then take the three minute ride up the road to downtown Amherst, and get some great local brews at High Horse. Depending on the day and time, you'll spend more time fighting traffic and looking for parking in Northampton than the time it would take to drive from The Hangar and park in downtown Amherst.

I mean, you can't go wrong either way. I do love Northampton, but i don't find it as "casual" as OP stated.

 

You have to decide between which crowds you will encounter, Bro types in Amherst or Hipster types in Northampton. Personally I will choose Northampton 100% of the time. The Dirty Truth, Sierra Grill, Hinge and McLadden's are all within a few hundred yards of each other.

 

Their brewery is open Tues/Thurs/Fri from 3-7, and Saturdays 10-6, only a few minutes from downtown Northampton. Other than that, they do distribute to some local stores, but it's less predictable with where/when it's available.

 

This place flies way under-the-radar. Their food is phenomenal and they have a very solid tap list. If you want to stay strictly in Hadley, definitely go here or The Quarters.