Alvarado Street Brewery & Grill

Good happy hour specials but food wasn’t very appealing to me. Had a drink and left. Would come back for drinks but that’s it.

Loved it here! The bartender was fantastic and really cared about the product you were serving. We had a great experience. Mac and Cheese was to die for!

Oh man do I love their beer!!! They have great house brews, and a great selection of guest beers. It’s big and well staffed, so we always get seated pretty fast and the service is always on point. They always give great beer advice, and if you plan on ordering food (you should), ask what they recommend for pairings. My favorites are the garlic fries, fried lemony brussels sprouts, grilled cheese and tomato soup, and the duck-​ham flatbread. Honestly, if they had better, healthier food options they would get a 5 star rating.

We love checking out local breweries, and we went to Carmel but it has none… so we made it a point to swing by Monterey on the way back and check out the (relatively) new Alvarado Street Brewery!
Even better that it has a full food menu! We wanted beers, but it was time for brunch, so we got both!
First off: the beers! A lot of them have kind of corny music jingle-​related names. I don’t mind a little cornball, just as long as the name doesn’t upstage the product. Fortunately, that didn’t happen! They have a lot of different beer styles, and we liked everything we had! We had a «Fresh Pressed Hop Juice» IPA which was respectable, not a lot different than other Galaxy IPAs though, «Boysen Back In Town» Kettle Sour w/​Boysenberries which was very juicy, just a tad sweet & sour, which made it a a perfect replacement for a mimosa with brunch, and my favorite, «The Best Part of Waking Up» which was a stout on nitro with cocoa locally roasted coffee!
Next up: the food! We wanted to order almost everything on the menu because it looked really good… but we ended up getting the Vietnamese Lamb Burger with garlic fries, and the Loco Moco! The Lamb Burger and fires were really good. The Loco Moco was epic! They let me substitute a lamb patty for a couple bucks extra, which made things even more delish. Instead of plain white rice… it came with a bacon fried rice (yeah!) and had a couple avocado slices underneath the egg, which was fried so that the egg white was crisp but the yolk was perfectly runny. I loved all the extra touches they put on it, and the gaminess of the lamb made it even better… and the beer gravy pulled everything together!
They also have plenty of guest taps, but we want to try more ASB beers! We’ll be back for that, and for more of the delicious-​sounding items on the menu that we didn’t get to try last time such as the coconut curry mussels!

This is the happening place in Monterey. It’s always busy and lively, so the environment is great to get drinks or a bit of food with friends.
The beer selection is cool if you like trying micro brewery selections. I recently had a milk stout they brew here that’s really good.
The food leaves something to be desired. The selection isn’t great, portions aren’t great, but I’ve never had anything bad here and compared to some places in town it’s very affordable.
Go here for drinks and apps with friends. Go somewhere else for date night.

The place has a cool atmosphere and great beer, but my fiancé and I did not really enjoy the food. We’re visiting from out of town and were meeting friends there on their suggestion.
We ordered the calamari appetizer which was pretty good, very spicy. Then he had the chicken pot pie which was just kinda ordinary, nothing special. And I had the fish tacos (I originally wanted the Sword Fish but they ran out and were replacing with Salmon, which I don’t like), the fish tacos were so over cooked and had way too much batter, I had to send them back. The waiter was cool but I didn’t get anything else.
I would not recommend this place for food at all and we probably won’t be back.

We found this place for date night. Super friendly and busy place. The hostesses, bartenders, and servers were professional and efficient.
My boyfriend and I ordered the Brown Noser! Loved it! I ordered the Lamb burger and my boyfriend ordered the Alvarado burger. We wanted a simple meal and got so much more! The flavored meld beautifully together. As a chef I really appreciate good food even if it is simple. Simple it was not and was so delicious we cannot wait to come again for date night. Highly recommend!

I’d been here about 3 times since it opened and wasn’t impressed. Not bad, not great. But I’m not into beer so why return? Besides they refuse to help with separate checks.
But a friend made friends with the new chef and mentioned it to me. She is a foodie (read very picky) and bounces up to the Bay Area most weekends. When she stayed in town for New Year’s Eve, I asked why. It was for dinner. The lady who spends months planning for a party and takes her crew on brunch cruises like it’s a trip to Mickey D’s stayed in town for dinner at Alvarado Street Brew?
If it’s enough to keep her in town, it’s gotta be good so I finally came in to try it.
Five of us shared from the appetizer menu. It is fun and delicious! Crawfish mac n cheese — something about it makes it so good. Pork sliders: the BBQ comes through without overpowering, the meat is tender and the sauce is awesome, add the lightly toasted bun and I can have just these — a lot of these (and I’m not highly carniverous). They have a variety of flatbread and I don’t remember the one we had but it had brie and cranberry. Complemented our assortment of appetizer nicely. Sausage platter featured 3 varieties. Generous serving and a side of pickles; including onions, garlic and cucumbers plus a dash of blue cheese. The mustard was perfect (not too horseradishy). Even a plain ol’ calamari had the special touch of adding deep-​fried lemon and deep-​fried jalapeño for a unique touch.
I’d recommend coming here for an appetizer sharing party. We didn’t try the tacos or tartare on this vist, but my friend vouches for their tastiness.
On to the entrees (but at this point, we didn’t need them. The appetizers were filling enough.)
I started with the Manhattan Chowder. What a refreshing difference! I love tomato-​based soup. Theirs is fresh and delicious with chunks of bacon scattered throughout and garnished with mussels. Accompanied by two extra-​garlicky toasts of bread. A couple of us had this and it comes in two sizes. My ‘cup’ was more like a bowl and the bowl is huge (like cioppino size). I’d come back just for this alone when I want a healthy meal.
I had the Chicken Pot Pie. It came on a cute wooden cutting board. A picture doesn’t do it justice. I was full at this point, but had a few bites. The crust is good. I thought it was phyllo, but it’s not. It’s a similar crust but thicker and less buttery than phyllo. The pie itself is thick, creamy and full of healthy chunks of free-​range chicken. I try avoiding processed meat and sticking to the hormone-​free non-​commercial meat and poultry. This is a good winter comfort meal.
Others at the table had the special of the night (puttanesca pasta), bolognese, and butternut squash soup. They all gave their meals a thumbs up.
I can’t resist dessert and my friend said the apple pie is not good, so we ordered the shortcake and s’mores parfait. Meh. So the dessert menu needs a little love so save room for an after-​dinner drink instead.
As someone who really doesn’t drink beer, I find this to be a place to come for great food and people watching. But what’s a non-​beer lover to do? Try a hard root beer or pear cider, in addition to the hard apple cider. Prosecco and other wines, including a Sparkling Rose by the bottle. I stuck with coffee — I’m a tee-​totaler these days And coffee passes muster.
Gluten-​free items are marked but I forgot to ask if they’re prepared separately so call ahead.
Drawbacks: A strong current of air (they blast the fans) keeps the place a little too chilly. And again, no separate checks makes it hard (I usually leave earlier than other people. I have to book trips on a bus for disabled).
But those are minor issues and I’ll be back and inviting others.
Beer Garden coming soon…

Stopped in here while vacationing for the weekend on the 2^nd of January. It was fairly busy, but we got a spot on the high top tables in the center of the room near the bar. Browsed over the menu for a bit and then made our selections, 2 beers and the fried calamari.
Beers came out a few minutes later and then the calamari.
The food was a big portion, I found the sauce to go with it a little different, wasn’t much to my liking, but no big deal. The beer was okay, decent, but what got me was the service. Between the time that we got the calamari and when we ASKED for our check, 35 minutes passed and not one time did our server check on us. She must have walked past us 20+ times, the people on both sides were checked on, but no one ever asked if the food was good, do we want another beer, check, anything.
By the time we were able to flag her down and ask for the check we were pretty much over it.

Amazing House Made Micro Brews +2
Wonderful Guest Selection
Food comes out lighting fast
Execution and quality of food are fine
Flavors are standard with no highs or lows
Overall Thoughts
I would definitely come for drinks and snacks; dinner maybe elsewhere

Looove all the bar food selections that they have here.
We went to this place 2 days in a row because we loved everything we had there. Brussel sprouts, fries, tuna tartare, chowder, and the cauliflower were really good.
Service was fast and friendly. Definitely will come back here when I’m in Monterey again.

Nice place but there are a couple of fatal flaws for a brewpub. Balanced pros and cons:
Pros: nice place, food was above average, and the flights were generous for their price.
Cons: For a brewery that advertises «honest pints» this place consistently under pours. See pic. They also have a very nice stout on nitro that that bastardize by pouring so badly that you receive a glass that is ⁴⁄₅ head. Lastly, and I really dislike this, they deliver your bill before asking if you’d like anything else. Really makes you feel like your being rushed out.
The IPA is nice though.

Not too much to say about this place. I found it in one of the hotel guidebooks and knew we had to come here due to the self-​declared MOST IPAS in the area. My bf is an über fan of IPAs, so it didn’t take much convincing to check it out.
It was definitely a happening joint when we arrived around 10:30pm. We got a flight to share and were sorely disappointed when we were told they were all out of IPAs! How is that possible? In spite of this, I did like the peanut butter stout the most, but the flights were mislabeled so I spent most of my night drinking an Oktoberfest. Not the end of the world, but again, false advertising! Glad we tried it but we must have had an off night.

My friends and I rode our bikes from Marina all the way down to Monterey, and just so happen to be farmers market day on Alvarado st. We decided to take advantage of the bike valet and stop and grab some eats and drinks. We roamed the markets got our samples, but what we really wanted was some nice cold beer after a long bike ride! My friends had never been to Alvarado St Brewery, so we decided to stop in for some refreshments and snacks.
I love the vibe in the restaurant– it’s loud, bustling, and open air feel. The women’s world cup was playing on TV also, so you can imagine the excitement in the air. I really wasn’t paying attention to it, but the screaming patrons let me know when the US team scored =P I was too busy trying to figure out what beers I wanted! I opted for the taster flight — 4 tasters for $ 2 each. I can’t remember which ones I got, but I do remember them having lots of hops, and flavor. Some kind of IPA, Amber ale, pale ale, and another dark beer. Got me buzzin’!
We ate a lil at the farmers market, so we just got the curry mussels and poutine fries. The mussels were cooked perfectly and the curry had good flavor. I wish they gave more bread to dip the curry with! The fries were good, but I wish it came in a bigger portion for that price.
Overall, food and service were good. I would come back again. I dreaded the bike ride back with a belly full of beer! haha

Mein Mund brennt vom Habanero Bier. Vorsicht! Aber das Essen ist köstlich. Ich hatte Muscheln mit extra rote Beete Beilage. Mein Freund das Hühnchen mit Kürbis. Köstlich! Ich verstehe für schlechten Bewertungen nicht. Wir bekamen schnell einen Tisch und auch das essen. Alles war frisch und wunderbar. Die Bier Auswahl hat nicht jeden Geschmack getroffen aber wir waren auch experimentierfreudig. :)

Sehr leckere Hähnchenbrust und Steaks. Des Weiteren bietet der Laden eine Menge Bier Sorten und einen Burger der sich jedoch nicht besonders von anderen Burgern abhebt. Der Fisch war an diesem Tag auch eher durchschnittlich (Lachs). Das Ambiente und die Bedienung waren sehr freundlich. Ein etwas gehobener Laden mit den entsprechenden Preisen.

We found this place after we had to walk out of Lollapalooza (for non-​existent service). We were seated immediately, even though they were packed and had quick and friendly service. Everything that we ordered was outstanding. The Brussels sprouts were amazing. The salmon was probably the best I have ever had — because it was cooked flawlessly. The kale salad was also very good. The place has a boisterous atmosphere and is good for a fun night out with friends. I can see why they are always busy. It is nice to have a brew pub that actually has incredible food.