The Best Breweries In San Diego

The best breweries in San Diego has changed over time. San Diego used to pride itself as the Craft Beer Capital of the United States and then every other city in the United States started focusing on craft beer. That being said, with the breweries popping up these days, we think the city can still make that claim.

While the old giants like Stone and Ballast Point have been sold off to larger entities, there are plenty of locally-run breweries in San Diego that continue the path that those early trailblazers started. While the West Coast IPA dominates the scene, you will still find breweries doing everything from European beers to Murky IPAs, and doing it all well. Below is a list of the best craft beer creators San Diego has to offer, though the list is far from complete. We will update regularly.

The Breweries

Fall Brewing Company

Fall Brewing Company is what happens when punk music and brewing collide, and it totally rocks. Not beholden to one style, Fall Brewing is known for their extensive variety of brews from brown ales, murky IPA’s, crispy pale ales, easy-going lagers, and specialty brews like sangria sours and spiked seltzers. They have tasting rooms in Miramar (the HQ), North Park, and South Park, each offering a visual spectacle with vintage decor, handmade furniture, and a variety of art promoting a punk rock attitude. They are kid friendly, and dog friendly.

Harland Brewery South Park

Beer is implied in the name, but Harland is not just one of the best breweries in San Diego, it is also one of the best cafes in San Diego. Harland has three other tasting rooms, but the cafe experience is currently only available at their South Park location. Open and spacious with lots of natural light, you can get comfy at their massive U bar, one of their many tabletops, or out on their patio. Being on a quaint street corner makes it extra conducive for an early morning work session or a crispy boy with friends in the afternoon. The place is always busy, but not packed. And the South Park Harland location is family friendly, dog friendly, finch friendly, and just plain friendly.

Mujeres Brew House

Sitting just behind Bread and Salt, one of the best art galleries in San Diego, is Mujeres Brew House, one of the best breweries in San Diego. This quiet corner on Julian Ave packs a punch. Mujeres is a female-owned, all-female run brewery that opened five years ago and has flourished since then, becoming a go to destination in Barrio Logan. They are known for their Mexican-style beers and seltzer cocktails, but if you’re here you should probably just get a michelada and call it a day.

Pure Project Balboa Park

Pure Project is a newer brewery in San Diego serving offbeat beers from barley wines to ‘murky IPAs’ to well-made, delicious lagers. Their location in Bankers Hill is right off the entrance to Balboa Park, making it convenient to all sorts of other park-focused activities.

Ballast Point Brewing Little Italy

Ballast Point is one of the original breweries that started San Diego’s craft beer scene. Their Sculpin IPA made them a national name back in 2005 when most of us still didn’t know what an IPA was. Their brewery and restaurant in Little Italy has been around for years and is a great spot to have a beer and some food. It has a big, open, casual layout inside that smells of fermenting yeast and hops, as well as a large courtyard and an outdoor patio. Their food menu is not an afterthought so come with an appetite.

Pizza Port Solana Beach

Pizza Port is probably more well known for their beer (they are one of the early craft breweries of San Diego), but they did indeed start as a pizza shop too. And a damn good one at that. Their original location in Solana Beach is exactly what a local pizza shop should be – family-friendly, bustling and casual, filled with kids and teenagers and couples, all mingling at picnic tables and downing fresh out of the oven pies alongside freshly brewed beers (not the kids and teenagers, hopefully). There are arcade games in the back and TVs lining the wall with whatever sport you can think of playing. This place is the quintessential California pizza joint and it is always worth a visit.

Barley And Sword Brewing Company

Barley & Sword Brewing Company is the closest you can get to an old world brewpub without an expensive plane ticket. At Barley & Sword they specialize in British, German, and Czech beers (Kolsch, Irish Red Ale, Scottish Ale, Pilsner, ESB) and they do them damn well. So if you are sick of IPAs and in the mood for a bitter English or a crisp pilsner or a sour goze this your place. They do keep an IPA on tap, but this is for profiling purposes and that is not what you should be drinking here.

North Park Beer Company

North Park Beer Company’s original location, on University Ave in North Park, is a huge beer hall with a large downstairs, as well as an upstairs area that has arcade games, shuffleboard, and is often uninhabited enough during the weekdays to bring a child or two without disturbing anyone. They have a restaurant inside – Mastiff North Park – that serves brats and other bar food. This is the perfect location for large groups as the place is massive and open.

Eppig Brewing Waterfront Biergarten

Eppig Brewing Waterfront Biergarten is a lovely open space brewery with outdoor seating on San Diego Bay in Point Loma. The location is large and spacious and perfect for a sunny day when you want fresh air and to sit by the water. Go with a large group or alone and bring a book – this is a beautiful location that serves good beer from the last Eppig location standing.

Stone Brewing Liberty Station

There are several parts to Stone at Liberty Station. There is a massive indoor area with bar seating, table seating, several rooms, an indoor water feature, and probably more places that we haven’t even seen yet. But the best part is there are two beer gardens, one having a coy pond in the middle of it and seating galore all around.

TapRoom Beer Co

Tap Room Beer Co. is one of the earliest craft breweries with a taproom in North Park. It’s a great place to meet friends, watch a game, or just indulge in serious craft beer. It does get busy, but this is a huge space so you’ll find plenty of seating inside and out, or at their bar. Come hungry (and maybe in a carshare) because they have a delightful food menu, and you’ll want more than just one tasty brew.