Hi all, Getting prepared for the yearly trip to the in-laws and a day at breweries helps me survive . Last year my wife and I did lunch at Phantom Carriage > Monkish > El Segundo. I'm looking for a new 3-4 stop itinerary for probably the Tuesday after Christmas, including a dinner spot (could be brewery or restaurant with a great tap list). I kinda feel like I have to go back to Monkish as they weren't even brewing IPAs yet, but am otherwise flexible, just want really good beer regardless of style and would love to check out some up-and-comers I may not be familiar with. Staying in Calabasas but willing to drive a bit for a quality trip. Thanks for any suggestions!
If you want to stay south, you could hit Smog City after Monkish, and then down to Beachwood Blendery followed by Beachwood BBQ for dinner. Or you could head north after Monkish and hit Arts District followed by Highland Park. A road trip would get you to Noble, Bottle Logic and Bruery Terruex in Orange County.
Beachwood Long Beach -- hop on the 710 to the 405 -- Phantom Carriage/Monkish/Smog -- back on the 405 -- El Segundo. Boom. If you're feeling really adventurous, check out Highland Park Brewery
If it were me, I would hit the South Bay breweries (mainly Phantom, Monkish, Smog City) and then cruise down to Long Beach to hit Beachwood, both brewery and blendery. Ribs and Chicken Nachos at Beachwood. EDIT: If you plan to hit up the SB/LB breweries I wouldn't recommend hitting Highland Park after. You'd be driving through nearly clear across LA county. I wouldn't even want to do that sober, nor would I put someone else through that misery. But if you plan on hitting craft brew spots in or near downtown LA, then the brewery is worth checking out.
You do have a point there.. if you haven't sat still on a freeway while enduring the deafening blast of hip-hop bass and/or ranchero trumpets from neighboring cars, then you haven't officially visited LA.
Ha. I do live in Boston so I'm pretty familiar with traffic. And last year my father-in-law did get lost driving us to see the Watts Towers... And thanks everyone for all the great suggestions.
If you are staying in Calabasas, i think Ladyface is not far. Tony's Darts Away in Burbank for dinner- killer beer list.
If you are in Calabasas, you could go north and do Ventura County. I would recommend Casa Agria, Institution, and Ladyface. I also like Poseidon, but they are skippable. There is also a Figueroa Mountain tap room in Westlake.
If you do HPB/Hermosillo you could probably go the beer bar route before/after. Between Glendale Tap, Mohawk Bend, Sunset Beer Co, Verdugo Bar, Tony's Darts you could get a solid selection of brews.
If you are staying in Calabasas, you are only minutes from Ladyface. Wades wines (westlake village) Draughts (Thousand Oaks) Bottle and Pint (Newbury Pack) are all great craft beer Joints. Several lesser know breweries nearby as well, west lake brewing, enegren and institution. All of these are within 30 minutes practically every day.
