Lucy Palmer
Philadelphia is a haven for beer lovers, with a plethora of craft breweries and bottle shops scattered across the city. Here's an introduction to the topic of where you can buy craft beers in Philly retail:
Philadelphia has earned a reputation as one of the best cities in America for beer enthusiasts, boasting a large number of craft breweries and an extensive selection of craft beers in local bottle shops. The city's brewing scene is thriving, with a mix of well-established breweries and new microbreweries offering unique and innovative beers.
Some of the notable craft breweries in Philadelphia include:
- Yards Brewing Company: With a massive taproom and a family-friendly atmosphere, Yards offers a wide range of beers, from classics like Philadelphia Pale Ale to newer creations.
- Philadelphia Brewing Company: This Kensington mainstay provides an excellent local beer experience with flights and free tours, along with occasional live music.
- Wissahickon Brewing Company: A family-owned, unpretentious brewery that hosts live music, bar games, and regular food trucks. They offer flights and tours in a lively setting.
- Dock Street Brewery: The OG brewery in Philadelphia, Dock Street has multiple locations and serves up some of the city's best brews along with tasty appetizers.
- Love City Brewing: Located in a charming industrial space, Love City specializes in approachable beers like pilsners and lagers.
- Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant: A local chain with 15 locations, Iron Hill offers a wide range of beers and a massive food menu, including gluten-free and kid-friendly options.
- Second District Brewing Company: A hip and convivial bar and brewery with inventive beers and delicious vegetarian and vegan bar food.
In addition to these breweries, Philadelphia also has numerous bottle shops that offer a wide selection of craft beers. Some notable bottle shops include:
- The Bottle Shop: Located on East Passyunk Avenue, this shop offers over 500 beers, allowing customers to create their own six-packs or enjoy a flight at the bar.
- BeerLOVE: With multiple locations in Philadelphia, BeerLOVE boasts over 2000 bottles of beer and a passion for curating an extensive collection of craft and import bottles.
- Bottle Bar East: Featuring 800+ bottles and a rotating tap list focused on Pennsylvania beers, Bottle Bar East also offers food and beer to go.
- Rybrew: A unique spot that's part restaurant, part bottle shop, and part hangout, with a menu of gourmet sandwiches and a draft list of unique beers.
Whether you're looking to visit a brewery or stock up at a bottle shop, Philadelphia has plenty of options for craft beer enthusiasts.
What You'll Learn
Breweries with taprooms attached
Philadelphia has a lot of breweries with taprooms attached. Here are some of the best ones:
Two Locals Brewing Co.
Philadelphia's first Black-owned brewery, co-owned by brothers Mengistu and Richard Koilor, debuted a brick-and-mortar location in December 2023. The taproom, located in the new uCity Square building near Drexel University, offers 12 beers on tap and a food menu with a weekly dish inspired by the brothers' Liberian and Jamaican heritage.
Dock Street Brewing Company
Dock Street Brewing Company was Philadelphia's first post-prohibition craft brewery, with influential founder Rosemary Certo becoming one of America's first female brewery owners. The South Philly brewpub features a 10,500-square-foot space in Point Breeze with modern Mediterranean and European small plates and constantly changing beer on tap. A new Fishtown spot is set to open in the winter of 2023.
Evil Genius Beer Company
Evil Genius Beer Company is known for its delicious-tasting and whimsically-named brews, served in a funky, eclectic Fishtown brewpub. Their beers include There's No Crying In Baseball and Stacy's Mom American IPAs, I Love Lamp hefeweizen, and the acclaimed Purple Monkey Dishwasher porter. The facility offers a viewable brewery, a tasting room, and a side yard beer garden.
Free Will Brewing Co.
Free Will Brewing Co.'s flagship location in Perkasie, which opened in 2012, offers a dozen taps of constantly rotating beer, while food trucks dish out eats outside. They also have locations in Lahaska and Souderton.
Love City Brewing Company
Love City Brewing Company, located in a warehouse space on the brick streets of Callowhill, is known as one of the city's friendliest brewpubs. They offer a grand selection, including signature brews like Love City Lager American lager and Eraserhood, a triple-hopped hazy IPA inspired by former neighborhood resident David Lynch. The brewery also has a seasonal beer garden under the Rail Park nearby.
Yards Brewing Company
Yards Brewing Company is a tenured and respected brewery that has been in Philly since 1994. Their grandest location is in Northern Liberties, with a 70,000-square-foot brewery, taproom, restaurant, and beer garden that keeps 20 rotating beers on tap. They also have a location at the Philadelphia International Airport.
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Beer shops
Philly is a beer-drinker's town, with a recent boom in new places to sip suds. From no-frills microbreweries to large-scale motherships, there are plenty of options for beer lovers.
The Bottle Shop
With over 500 beers to choose from, you can create your own six-pack or stick around and create your own flight at the bar.
Hawthornes Biercafé, Local 44 and the Foodery
These are some of the most well-known bottle shop stalwarts in Philly.
320 Market Café
With a focus on "craft beer only", don't expect to find Budweiser, Miller, or Coors here. Instead, look for can releases, draft pours, and growler fills of rarities like Hill Farmstead, Russian River, Burley Oak, and Maine Beer Co.
Capone's Restaurant, Bar and Bottle Shop
With at least 400 beers and 30 taps, Capone's has something for everyone, including rare releases from Russian River and Cantillon. But where the store really shines is its aged-beer program and reserve list, which has over 2,900 members.
Pinocchio's Beer Garden To Go
Considered the first bottle shop in Delaware County, Pinocchio's Beer Garden has been slinging pies since 1955. These days, the shop features about 1,000 bottles or cans from 200-plus breweries, 25 tap handles, and growler fills.
The Richmond Bottle Shop
The Richmond Bottle Shop is the first grocery store in the city to sell beer. Today, the shop has doubled in size, offering 800 beers, eight taps, and 300 wines in 2,500 square feet of space.
Trenton Road Take Out
Trenton Road Take Out has "well over" 1,000 beers, six taps for growler fills, and snacks. As far as rare brews, the store typically gets in shipments from Russian River, Hill Farmstead, and Burley Oak.
Craft Beer Outlet
Billed as the Far Northeast's first high-end bottle shop, Craft Beer Outlet has 22 coolers and 7 taps with more than 1,000 beers from hot national breweries like Singlecut and Russian River, locals like Evil Genius and Flying Fish, plus imports and domestics.
The Beer Store
With more than 3,000 beers in the Malvern location alone, followed by 2,000 in Philly, and 1,500 in Southampton, The Beer Store has something for every hophead. Each location offers draft pours and growler fills from at least 24 taps, with a focus on "super-limited" craft products.
East Falls Beverage
A no-frills place where folks thumb-gun (or shotgun) sought-after beers. While the single bottle/can selection is limited, the list is closely managed, with a focus on hazy and Northeast IPAs. If you can’t choose, pick up a master pack, a curated four-pack of new releases or new-to-Philly brands.
The Ways Restaurant & Brewery
This is a family affair, with two red-headed brothers from Jenkintown turning their shared passion for craft beer into a family business. The 75-seat brewpub taps into the talents of both Ways brothers, with Tim covering plenty of stylistic ground on his taut brewhouse setup and chef Steven offering up clever pub fare and salads.
Wissahickon Brewing Company
An unpretentious, family-owned shop with plenty of reasons to visit: live music, bar games, beer yoga, and regular food trucks. Wissahickon offers flights of eight beers and tours in a lively setting.
Philadelphia Brewing Company
Philadelphia Brewing Company offers one of the best local beer experiences, with a flight of five beers for $10 and free tours on Saturdays. There’s a deck, occasional live music, and a friendly staff.
Urban Village Brewing Company
Excellent brick-oven pizza and outdoor fire pits make this a good game-day option. Sample multiple drafts in a setting with neighborhood brewpub vibes, and don’t sleep on the happy hour.
Triple Bottom Brewing Co.
Triple Bottom Brewing delivers four-packs and crowlers of its creatively crafted beer via cargo bike to Philadelphia neighborhoods each week, in partnership with Bloc Delivery. They’re also part of Joy Box, a customizable care package filled with treats from local small producers.
Yards Brewing Company
Yards Brewing delivers orders of six-, 12-, and 24-packs, sixtels, and even half kegs of its crowd-pleasing beers to many Philadelphia neighborhoods. Delivery is offered from 11:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. every day of the week, and deliveries are fulfilled within 48 hours of ordering.
Love City Brewing
Love City features "approachable" beers (pilsners and lagers) in a 9,000-square-foot former industrial space. It’s an especially good spot for those weary of too-weird beers who want to imbibe in a charmingly arty and low-fi spot.
Second District Brewing Company
This hip, convivial bar and brewery serve inventive beers and mighty delicious nosh in a rustic-chic warehouse space. Noteworthy vegetarian and vegan bar food (think: vegan pork rinds) pair with eight taps in regular rotation.
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Breweries with food menus
Philadelphia is a haven for craft beer lovers, with more than 100 craft breweries spread across nearly 150 locations in the five-county region. Here are some of the best breweries with food menus:
Dock Street Brewery
Dock Street Brewery is a Philadelphia staple, being the first craft brewery to open in the city since Prohibition. They have multiple locations across the city, including South Philly and Fishtown, but their Northern Liberties location is the grandest. Their food menu includes creative pizzas, sandwiches, and salads, along with a dozen styles of hand-tossed pizzas from their brewery's Earthstone wood-fired oven.
Chestnut Hill Brewing Company
Located inside the Market at the Fareway in Germantown, Chestnut Hill Brewing Company offers some of the best wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas in the city. Their menu features several plant-based, vegetarian, and vegan options, such as falafel sandwiches and lentil toast.
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant is a regional powerhouse with multiple locations across Philadelphia and the surrounding counties. Their extensive food menu includes classic pub fare, gluten-free options, and a dedicated kids' menu. Their Center City East location, with its spacious taproom and outdoor seating, is a must-visit.
Urban Village Brewing Company
Urban Village Brewing Company combines excellent craft beer with delicious brick oven pizza and outdoor fire pits, making it a perfect spot for game days. Their menu features unique pizzas with naturally leavened sourdough and cold-fermented for three days, along with other rotating menu items that pair well with their freshly brewed beer.
Crime and Punishment Brewing Company
Named after a Dostoevsky novel, this Russian-themed brewery serves up dishes like dumplings and a beet Reuben with Russian dressing. Their beer selection includes Polish Grodziskie, made with smoked wheat, and a softly citrus-tinged pale ale.
Bar Hygge
Bar Hygge, pronounced "hoo-guh," serves up adventurous beers like cream ale, witbier, and rauchbier, along with an eclectic food menu. Their signature offering is the Hygge boards—charcuterie-style sharing paddles with a mix of meats, cheeses, veggies, and desserts.
La Cabra Brewing
La Cabra Brewing, with locations in Berwyn and Bryn Mawr, offers Latin American and Spanish-inspired dishes alongside their craft beers. Their Berwyn location features a taproom and a scratch kitchen, while their Bryn Mawr spot, La Cabra Brewing Smokehouse, specializes in Kansas City-style barbecue.
Other Half Brewing
Other Half Brewing, a Brooklyn staple, opened its Philly location in Fishtown, across from The Fillmore. Their food menu includes unique takes on pub fare, such as smoked trout dip, a double smash burger, and homemade white chocolate Cap'n Crunch treats.
Love City Brewing
Love City Brewing, located just down the street from Roy Pitz, offers "approachable" beers like pilsners and lagers in a charming industrial space. Their small in-house pub fare snack selection and rotating food trucks make it a perfect spot for beer lovers.
Victory Brewing Company
Victory Brewing Company's newest location on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway has become an instant hit. With two indoor bars, an outdoor bar, and a rooftop patio, it offers stunning views along with elevated pub food, including roast pork tacos and hot honey popcorn shrimp.
Yards Brewing Company
Yards Brewing Company's massive taproom in Northern Liberties is a cheerful, family-friendly space. Their ambitious food menu includes foie gras poutine and ramen, as well as Philly favorites like soft pretzels, cheesesteaks, and loaded fries.
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Breweries with outdoor spaces
Philadelphia is one of the best large metro areas for craft beer lovers, with more than 100 craft breweries spread across nearly 150 locations in the five-county region. Here are some breweries with outdoor spaces:
Evil Genius Beer Company
Evil Genius Beer Company is a funky, eclectic brewery in Fishtown, Philadelphia. They have a 6,000-square-foot taproom known as "The Lab" and a side yard that operates as a beer garden in the warmer months. Their innovative styles and funky names, like the Purple Monkey Dishwasher Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter, have made them a beloved fixture in the city's craft beer scene.
Urban Village Brewing Company
Urban Village Brewing Company is located in Northern Liberties and offers handcrafted beer and a full menu of locally sourced ingredients, including wood-fired pizzas. They have ample outdoor seating, allowing guests to enjoy their drinks and food in a relaxed atmosphere.
Chestnut Hill Brewing Company
Chestnut Hill Brewing Company is situated in the Chestnut Hill neighbourhood of Philadelphia. They offer a large outdoor beer garden, some of it covered, where guests can relax with their craft beers and wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas. The space is family-friendly and pet-friendly, with fire pits and games available for entertainment.
Manayunk Brewing Company
Manayunk Brewing Company has been a fixture in Philadelphia's brewing scene for over 20 years. They are located on the Schuylkill River and boast one of the largest outdoor decks in the city. Their diverse beer styles and delicious food menus make them a popular destination for locals and tourists alike.
Wissahickon Brewing Company
Wissahickon Brewing Company is a family-owned and operated brewery in Wissahickon, Philadelphia. They have a spacious and welcoming outdoor area that is both family-friendly and pet-friendly. They often host food trucks with rotating cuisines, adding to the fun and variety of their guests' experiences.
Yards Brewing Company
Yards Brewing Company is another popular brewery in Northern Liberties with an outdoor space adjacent to the taproom. They offer a range of craft beers and outdoor games, including cornhole, making it an ideal spot to enjoy the summer weather with friends.
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Breweries with live entertainment
Philly is a beer-drinker's town, with a recent boom in new places to sip suds. From no-frills microbreweries to large-scale motherships, these are the must-visit spots for craft beer with live entertainment.
Wissahickon Brewing Company
An unpretentious, family-owned shop with plenty of reasons to visit, Wissahickon Brewing Company offers live music, bar games, beer yoga, and regular food trucks. They offer flights of eight beers and tours in a lively setting. This is a destination brewery on the rise, offering solid beers like the popular Kelpius Kave. Plus, the space is pet-friendly.
Philadelphia Brewing Company
Philadelphia Brewing Company offers one of the best local beer experiences, with a flight of five beers for $10 and free tours on Saturdays. There's a deck, occasional live music, and a friendly staff. Open since 2007, this is an essential Kensington mainstay.
Urban Village Brewing Company
Excellent brick oven pizza and outdoor fire pits make for a good game-day option at Urban Village Brewing Company. Sample multiple drafts in a setting with neighbourhood brewpub vibes, and don't sleep on the happy hour. They also have monthly run club meetups, Music Bingo, and vinyl nights.
Crime and Punishment Brewing Company
Named for the Dostoevsky novel, this relaxed brewery serves up Russian-esque fare like dumplings and a beet Reuben with Russian dressing. The beers on offer include fascinating rarities (at least in the U.S.) like Polish Grodziskie, made with smoked wheat. They also host trivia nights.
Bar Hygge
Pronounced "Hoo-guh", Bar Hygge lives up to its name with a cozy setting, alongside a lineup of excellent beers and a focused kitchen (confusingly, not Danish). Expect curiosities on tap such as a "sourdough" beer with rye, a lemon meringue IPA, and a banana-walnut stout.
Triple Bottom Brewing
Spring Garden's Triple Bottom Brewing has established its own reputation for providing a "crispy pilsner, a velvety stout, and a piney IPA." Even better, their business practices are progressive as a Certified B Corp and a member of Crafted for All — they collaborate with various community ventures and seek to promote equity beyond their taproom.
Yards Brewing Company
The massive Yards Brewing taproom is a sun-drenched and cheerful space designed for the whole family. An ambitious menu features foie gras poutine and even ramen: perfect for Yards enthusiasts who want to see where the magic elixir is made.
Love City Brewing
Situated just down the street from Roy Pitz, the new Love City brewery features "approachable" beers (pilsners and lagers) in a 9,000-square-foot former industrial space. It's an especially good spot for those weary of too-weird beers who want to imbibe in a charmingly arty and low-fi spot.
Victory Brewing Company Philadelphia
This newer venture has become an instant hit on the Parkway with its two indoor bars, one outdoor bar, outdoor seating on street level, and a rooftop patio with amazing views. Lovers of Victory beer can enjoy a vast variety of their signature offerings while discovering the brand's history.
Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant
Local chain Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant just opened its 15th location downtown. The newest Iron Hill includes an onsite brewery that can produce 900 barrels a day, seats for 275 thirsty (and hungry) patrons, and outdoor tables. The food menu is massive, with a section of gluten-free fare and several kid-sized options.
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Frequently asked questions
Philly is a beer-drinker's town, with a recent boom in new places to sip suds. From no-frills microbreweries to large-scale breweries, there are plenty of spots to choose from. Here are some of the best places to buy craft beer in Philly:
- The Bottle Shop: With a broad selection of imports, ciders, gluten-free beers, and ready-to-go six or twelve packs, you can choose from over 500 beers to create your own six-pack or stick around and create your own flight.
- Beer stores: With locations in Southampton, Malvern, and the Northeast, the Beer Store supplies hopheads all over the area with more than 3,000 beers.
- East Falls Beverage: This no-frills beer shop offers a closely managed selection of hazy and Northeast IPAs, as well as smaller local outfits.
- Capone's Restaurant, Bar and Bottle Shop: Capone's has something for everyone, including rare releases and an aged-beer program with more than 2,900 members.
- Pinocchio's Beer Garden To Go: Considered the first bottle shop in Delaware County, Pinocchio's offers about 1,000 bottles or cans from 200-plus breweries.
- The Richmond Bottle Shop: Located within a grocery store, this shop offers something for everyone, from 12-packs of Bud to the latest craft brews.
- Trenton Road Take Out: This shop offers "well over" 1,000 beers, six taps for growler fills, and snacks. They regularly get shipments from sought-after breweries.
- Craft Beer Outlet: Billed as the Far Northeast's first high-end bottle shop, this shop supplies 22 coolers and 7 taps with more than 1,000 beers.
Many of the bottle shops in Philly also have locations in the suburbs, offering a wide selection of craft beer. Here are some additional spots to check out:
- 320 Market Café: With locations in Swarthmore and Media, 320 Market Café focuses on "craft beer only" with a selection of over 650 beers.
- The Beer Store: In addition to their other locations, the Beer Store has an outlet in Southampton with 1,500 beers.
- Pinocchio's Beer Garden To Go: In addition to their Media location, Pinocchio's has a beer garden in Glen Mills with an extensive selection of craft beer.
- The Larimer Beer Company: This Chester brewery ships four-packs of fresh beer anywhere in Pennsylvania.
- Levante Brewing Company: Levante offers four-packs and bottles of their hazy IPAs and Belgian wheat beers for delivery anywhere in Pennsylvania.
- Free Will Brewing Co.: Free Will delivers cans and bottles of their stouts, IPAs, and more to any address in Pennsylvania.
- La Cabra Brewing: La Cabra offers flat-rate shipping to anywhere in Pennsylvania, with no minimum or maximum cost restrictions.
- Neshaminy Creek Brewing Company: Neshaminy Creek delivers stalwarts and seasonal brews to more than 120 Pennsylvania zip codes.
- Tired Hands Brewing Company: Tired Hands delivers bottles and four-packs to anywhere in Pennsylvania via its Dudley Direct imprint.
- Workhorse Brewing Company: Workhorse offers home delivery to folks within a 12-mile radius of King of Prussia and southern Delaware County.
Several breweries in Philly offer online ordering and delivery to your doorstep. Here are some spots to check out:
- 2nd Story Brewing Company: 2nd Story delivers beer and food to select Philadelphia neighborhoods and countryside spots.
- Animated Brewing Co.: Animated Brewing offers Saturday delivery to Philadelphia residents.
- Attic Brewing Company: Attic Brewing delivers cans for free to select Philly neighborhoods and suburbs.
- Brewery ARS: ARS offers hyper-local delivery to 12 different zip codes within Philadelphia city limits.
- Brothers Kershner Brewing Company: Brothers Kershner delivers four-packs and crowlers to customers within a local delivery range.
- Conshohocken Brewing Company: Conshohocken Brewing delivers four-packs of their beers to Pennsylvania residents.
- Crime & Punishment Brewing Co.: Crime & Punishment delivers to select Philadelphia neighborhoods, alternating between spots north and south of Market Street.
- Dock Street Brewery: Dock Street delivers old favorites and new releases to select zip codes in Philadelphia and the suburbs.
- East Branch Brewing Company: East Branch guarantees delivery within 24 hours to customers in the Downingtown area.
- Evil Genius Beer Company: Evil Genius delivers cans, bottles, crowlers, sixtels, and kegs to various Philly neighborhoods and areas outside these zones.
- Forest & Main Brewing Company: Forest & Main delivers their popular four-pack cans and bottles to Philadelphia and Montgomery County weekly, with deliveries to Bucks, Chester, and Delaware counties as they're able.
- Mainstay Independent Brewing Company: Mainstay delivers four-packs and cases of their double dry-hopped IPA and lager to beer seekers in Philadelphia and Phoenixville.
- Neshaminy Creek Brewing Company: Neshaminy Creek delivers stalwarts and seasonal brews to more than 120 Pennsylvania zip codes.
- Separatist Beer Project: Separatist offers local delivery in Philadelphia and shipping to any Pennsylvania address.
- Sterling Pig Brewery: Sterling Pig offers "Pig on the Fly" delivery of canned six-packs or cases of their beers to customers within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
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