Westbrae Biergarten

Nice place, I enjoy the beer there, but the food… rough. Saturday ²⁄₆ was busy, but not crazy slammed. Paid $ 17 for a beer and a sandwich — had to wait over 45 minutes for the sandwich. The people around me were waiting just as long for their food. When the sandwich finally came, it was straight-​up soggy, as though it had been made long before and just sat.
If I’m going to pay over $ 10 for a sandwich, I want it to be fresh and well-​made. Regardless, a sandwich shouldn’t take 45 minutes.
Again, I like the place for beer and outdoor hanging out, but the food system could use serious improvement.

Great tri-​tip, seasoned fries, beer and sangria! All the meat is juicy and delicious! It’s got a great community vibe going on, but if you want a quieter experience you can check out their sit down University ave location. I recommend the rice bowl :)

We had an awesome time together my dad and I. I can’t really remember any time I’ve had a better experience at any restaurants that I can think of. It Was just really one of the most wonderful and awesome times that I’ve ever had. Specially what really made my day was when I just got there and the first thing all of them did was greet me. My dad and l had a great-​time together sitting by the fire pit and talking. It’s just so nice sitting in this great outdoor restaurant talking together.
–Dylan Tams, age 8

Beer? Check
Food? Check
Sunshine? (Mostly) check
Kid friendly? Total check.
What a fun place. It’s hard to find drinking establishments which allow small people so Westbrae is great in my mind. I visited here recently and loved the collection of local beers, ciders and even mead (!). They went well with the tasty (albeit rather pricey) food and gorgeous sunny day.
There is even a kid play zone in the back to keep the small people entertained while parent type people relax. Best visited during the week when it’s super quiet.

Popular, hip, little beer garden nestled in Berkeley on Gilman St. They are located on a dirt/​gravel, outdoor lot along the Bart. They only offer street parking but are bike and dog-​friendly. They are also family-​friendly & even have a small sand pit for the little ones. They have 2 clean restrooms & offer a fair amount of seating via picnic tables with umbrella shades.
My husband and I met up with some friends here over the weekend. They were very busy, but we were able to find some empty spots. We got a chipotle chicken sandwich, tri-​tip sandwich, and 2 drinks. Our meal cost us over $ 40, which I thought was quite pricey! Both sandwiches were flavorful & filling, but the chicken sandwich was super spicy, so take caution. Also, the cashier forewarned us, but service was SLOW. It took over 20 minutes to get our food.
Overall, it was a cool experience. Personally, I don’t feel compelled to go back, but I can see their appeal. However, as they are an exclusively outdoor venue, I wonder what happens in inclement weather?

Variety of beer is what intrigues me. Tell me that there’s a large selection somewhere and you’ll most likely find me there within the next few days. I sampled a few, drank a few, and ate a lot. I’m not too much of the Brazilian café fan but I was able to stomach a sandwich. Otherwise, you’re left with limited options on food.
Out door seating is your only option along with a play area for your little human babies to play in. I see that fur babies are allowed too so I’m happy with that.

I loooooove this place. I wish I could feed my beer habit here more frequently (but groceries, you know) because it is so awesome. The hubs and I have come here in the daytime, in the evening, on weekdays and it’s great every time we come. I think we purposely stay away during the especially sunny weekends though because it does get super-​duper crowded.
Best part about this place? The entire venue is outdoors. It takes up a small corner in a lovely neighborhood and the space is used to the max. There is a little something for everyone, which makes this place that much more appealing. There are picnic style tables with shade, a sectioned-​off area just for the kiddies to play, and relaxing adirondack chairs too. We don’t have a backyard, so basically this place subs as our backyard. True, the BART tracks are above the biergarten, but I barely notice it when it goes by.
Beers — pretty good selection that seems to rotate frequently to serve all tastes. You can also buy beer by the stein which is a plus for us since that’s what the hubs likes to order. Food selection is great also whether you’re looking for a sandwich, some hot chili, or simple bar bites. The flying pig thingys are really good and the fries are delicious and crispy. Also, a little place called the Brazil café serves food here. I hear it’s the bees knees. And, unless I am mistaken, there is a nice gentleman serving BBQ plates on Thursdays. It always smells like heaven when we’re there and he’s Q’ing it up. So many choices…
Seriously, you should come check this place out. Except for when its raining — they are closed when it rains.

Looking for a dog-​friendly place with large amounts of beer and food? Then you’ve come to the right place! All of the seating is outdoors but covered to protect you from any potential rain or the hot sun beating down. There are a series of beers rotating on tap and you can even get Steins if you’re real thirsty. The food is good, slightly pricey, would aim to come at happy hour next time. I was really looking forward to the pretzels on their menu when I came but they had run out or weren’t serving them when I went :(
Would come with my dog in the future on a nice sunny day.

So, the-​guy-​who-​happens-​to-​be-​a-​parent in me loves this place unabashedly. The parent in me feels guilty about bringing my toddler here. It feels like I’m being somehow negligent and selfish. However, aren’t bowling alleys the same thing: an activity where families take their kids to play while the adults drink?
This is a really cute location. They have meat and vegetarian plates. All plates are available as a sandwich, bowl, or salad. We had the sandwich carnitas and the bowl tri-​tip. Both were really good. There was beer, of course. They had a good representation of beer styles with varying levels of alcohol levels. We went on a Saturday at 2pm and didn’t have any trouble finding a spot.
They had two, single, well kept bathrooms. Both were unisex.
The BART passes right over the place and is a nice punctuation for the kids.
My residual guilt is keeping me from giving the place 5 stars, but I’m probably going back and will get over my puritanical prudery.

I’m not a beer drinker so you may wonder why I like the biergarten so much… but it’s such a cute spot that it even makes me want to drink beer! It’s an entirely outdoor space which is great, especially in the summer, but they also have heat lamps which are helpful when the weather is cool. There’s a small fire pit near the center of the biergarten and sandbox for kids in the back.
There is a wide selection of beers (a very limited selection of wines) and some food options, though I haven’t tried the food.

Awesome location. Great setup. Nice décor. Plenty of seating. Once I pop, I’m sure I’ll be back to enjoy the beer selection.

The way that Westbrae Biergarten patrons flock to, spread out, and take ownership of this space is testament to the way they feel about it: they’ve claimed it as their own.
On a Thursday night, just after the sun had set, the place was full and I had to ask someone to scoot over to make room for me, my beer, and my Brazilian Vegetable Salad at their picnic table. Even the tables that were swarming with small children — tables in which I had no interest — had no space at them.
Once seated and engaged in conversation with the local beside me he and his friend inquired how I, not being a local, knew of this place. He explained that he was constantly surprised at its popularity and couldn’t imagine how people landed upon it. I’d passed it many times, during alternate routes to North Berkeley BART but he’s right, it seems like a place that’d be inhabited largely by neighborhood folks.
So, welcome to the neighborhood. I think they’re all here.
Westbrae Biergarten is an outdoor, fence-​surrounded lot outfitted with picnic tables, heat lamps, food (Brazilian, always, and BBQ on the night I visited), and drink (beer, wine, sangria). It’s an inviting space when the weather is warm and semi made up for my not being able to visit an outdoor biergarten in Berlin last October (closed due to cold weather).
The selection of beer on tap (tap wine too) was wide and good and I appreciated them letting me sample before ordering. The Brazilian Vegetable Salad ($ 9.50, from Pedro’s Brazil Café) was something else: really interesting and completely unlike any salad I’ve ever before sampled. It was filled with warm parts and cool parts, green olives, sauteed onions, and other things I couldn’t identify in the dim lighting. It seemed more sauté than salad but maybe that’s a Brazilian thing. Whatever it was, I ate every last bit. ‘Twas delicious.
When my kids were small, friends and I confined our meals to kid-​friendly/​adult-​tolerable sites like Chevy’s and Fresh Choice. Berkeley parents have a far nicer option and seem to have embraced it. Even those without kids could be found (over)imbibing and stumbling back on foot to their nearby home. It’d be nice if this place had a section for kids vs no kids and nicer too if everyone scooted down a bit rather than spread out and assume the whole table is theirs but these are small complaints. If you want to get to know the people in this quaint Berkeley neighborhood (and their dogs, which are allowed), Westbrae Biergarten is a great place to start.

Have you ever had a surprise party and it wasn’t your birthday? Are you planning a surprise party and looking for a venue for a non Berkeley native? This might be the right venue for you.
There I was cueing up into bridezilla mode with less than 24 hours left as a single lady. I had been whining about taco trucks. After wedding rehearsal — BAM surprise rehearsal dinner! Two birds… one stone & bridezilla was quelled!
Food was awesome! I need to return to sample some more! ;-)

Pretty cool spot to sit and enjoy a beer on a sunny day. As long as you’re not sitting near the kids pit, it can be a relaxing day. There are signs asking parents to watch their children, but you know that never happens.
The brews we got were $ 6 each– not sure if there’s a happy hour here but i’d be curious to know about it because this girl’s not about spending that much on a beer every time. We’re pretty familiar with Brazil Café as well, having stood outside on University Ave one time for their tasty treats. With summer approaching, I see many a future for me spending time here, soaking in some vitamin D.

An awesome place for a group meet up, especially if you or your friends have kids. Very relaxed vibe with great food, drinks and bike parking.
Their beer & cider selection are great, and there’s plenty of deliciousness on the menu to eat & share. Come with a group and order the Coxinha, (Delicious brazilian croquettes filled with shredded chicken) The Flying Pigs, (Bacon-​wrapped chicken bites) and a basket of their seasoned-​fries to share and guzzle down all the delicious beer in the sunshine.
The vibe at Westbrae Biergarten is family-​friendly and relaxed. They’ve made an effort to create great spaces to enjoy yourself and the company of others. There’s a beautiful fire-​pit and a pond with a waterfall, plenty of tables with or without shade and on cold days they bring out propane space heaters to warm you as you enjoy the garden. Come early if you have a big group as they fill up fast.

This place is terrifyingly packed with children and delightfully packed with dogs. So many dogs! Arf arf arf beer beer beer. Makes sense though if you’re a parent. Have some nice beer outside, eat some good food (and everything comes with Brazil Café’s impossibly good sauces) and let the kids fun wild in a pretty safe place.
The fries are great. The flying pigs are just ok. The chicken is pretty surprisingly tender for white meat but at $ 9 you should just get more fries.

Perfect place for a parent’s night out with the kids, but that is not me.
As much as I wanted to really enjoy this place, the constant noise of kids wailing, running around, and bumping into you was not my idea of a biergarten experience. Perhaps if I secured a seating area, I would have had a better time, but it was packed.
It took us 40 minutes to get through the line and if it wasn’t a little one zooming past, it was someone else to rub shoulders with. I tried to dig the community vibe, but I can’t enjoy my time when all I hear are kids crying. Or maybe I just came on a bad irritable day for all these tykes…
Anyway, food was good but a bit overpriced. The $ 7 white sangria was nothing too special but the cheese corn fritters with the green sauce is DE-​LISH.
Not excited about going back but maybe if I’m with a group of friends and we’re in the area, we’ll stop by to chug down an ale in those iconic mugs… if.
I’ll return when I have kids. Til then…

I was so excited when this place opened, and then I started coming a lot and feeling it hit my wallet and wasn’t as excited any more. This is a definite destination place to bring people visiting or meet up with friends, and the bike, dog, kid-​friendly atmosphere makes it feel like you’re part of a community.
I remember when it was first proposed, there was talk of there being multiple, rotating food vendors. My gf thinks that b/​c it was so immensely popular, they realized that they should just use that other food truck space for seating for more people. It’s too bad, b/​c the Brazil Café food is hit or miss, a little pricy, and I never really crave any of their veggie options. The corn fritters are excellent, but the veggie sandwich and veggie rice bowl are one notch above myeh for me, and really worth about 2 – 3 dollars less. But, the beer garden more than makes up for it.
I was pleasantly surprised today to see a lot of different beers from the summer, and some other non-​beer options, as well as some PHENOMENAL pattiserie items from some guy named Sam. I loved everything he was serving, and it helped round out the other not so great food items.
I agree with people that the line situation needs to be worked out, b/​c it can take a while and get bottlenecked when it’s a long line, but it’s not the end of the world.
So, my plan would be to eat a real meal elsewhere and come here for the brews and ambiance b/​c they really can’t be beat.
Also, the bike parking situation has gotten better it seems, though they could probably use a little more. The sign says that you have to park your bike in backwards, which I’m sure there’s some good reason for, but that can be frustrating and awkward in the wrong situation. Don’t tell me how to park my bike, bro!

I didn’t do a very good job at trying to keep this place to myself, so I might as well tell all now.
We were counting down the days until Westbrae Biergarten opened from the moment that they announced the opening. I heard about the Brazilian food truck and couldn’t wait for a place near our house that had a nice patio area.
My guy and I came here throughout the summertime, bringing friends and family. We sat at communal tables and ordered our favorite beer, Golden State of Mind from Ale Industries, it’s a summer time favorite offered all year round. I also love the local Sonoma Cider and the Bite Hard Cider in a can, perfect for summer time sipping.
We watched the World Cup here, which was so fun. So much excitement and great Brazilian music, a great break from a regular sports bar. The people who work here are very nice and the service is always fast and easy, even with a line.
The Brazilian food truck is delicious! My favorite is the flying pigs, bacon wrapped chicken with a flavorful and crispy twist. They are served with this cilantro sauce that is so delicious on anything and everything.
My other favorites include the chicken croquettes, the corn risolis and the beef empanadas. The tri-​tip sandwich was good, but messy and fell apart with too much mush going on to keep it together.
My least favorite was the pretzel, which is sad because pretzels and beer belong together. They taste day old and dry, could really benefit from being made fresh and served with flavorful mustards or a beer cheese (please?).
I love the Westbrae, it might just be one of my top ten favorite new places of 2014. Catch me there when the sun is out, or with a beer trying to stay warm. Cheers!

Have passed this place a number of times and finally decided to stop to check it out. Its essentially an outdoor bier garden with picnic tables and umbrellas. If its raining you will be sitting in the rain. If its sunny, you ll be sitting in the sun.
They have a variety of beers on tap from light to wheaty to dark.
Though you might expect German Food at a bier garden, here they serve Brazilian flare by the Brazil Café. The food is served from a small food truck adjacent to the beer stand. The dishes include rice dishes or sandwhiches. Variety is not great but the food is tasty.
So come on out on a sunny day and relax with a beer and Brazilian food.