Guadalajaras Top 10 Craft Beer Bars

Guadalajara’s craft beer industry has seen explosive growth in recent years as plucky micro-breweries take on Mexico’s beverage giants for a slice of the country’s beer industry. Visitors to Mexico’s second-largest city are spoiled for choice when it comes to beer, with a range of exciting brands and vibrant bars in which to try them. Here’s our guide to the best places for craft beer in the city.

LaCer Laboratorio Cervecero

Bar

Since 2008, Guadalajara’s annual craft beer festival has grown in both size and popularity. The LaCer Laboratorio Cervecero is a bar that takes this concept and makes it a year-round fixture. Less a bar than a series of bars under a single roof, patrons can wander from one to another, enjoying the huge variety of craft beers in the venue.

Patan Ale House

Bar, Snacks

One of the most stylish places in the city to knock back a craft beer, Patan Ale House has an extensive drinks collection and a fun, relaxing vibe. The waiting staff are enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the subject of beer and will happily guide you through the drinks menu. The venue also has a pleasant rooftop terrace and regularly hosts local live DJs. In addition to beer, Patan Ale House has a great menu. The torta ahogada de camarón is highly recommended.

El Grillo

Bar, Pub, Pub Grub, Mexican

This tiny bar on Guadalajara’s trendy Chapultepec Avenue has friendly staff, great music and a lively pub atmosphere. Its burgundy walls are festooned with beer coasters and witty phrases and it wouldn’t be hard to imagine Jimi Hendrix or Jim Morrison stopping in for a drink. El Grillo also has an extensive range of local and American craft beers on offer. The bar’s popularity means downstairs can get pretty crowded, but there is a second-floor terrace upstairs.

Brewe

Bar, Pub, Mexican, Pub Grub

Part dive bar, part serious craft beer venue, this centrally located spot has a laid-back atmosphere and an impressive variety of local beers on tap. The venue also hosts “pop up” food nights, when visiting chefs offer dishes from other parts of Mexico or beyond. In recent years, Brewe has also earned a reputation as one of the best places for live DJs and music.

Casa Híkuri

This cozy craft beer venue offers more than 30 beers on tap and has an excellent tapas menu. As one of the few venues open before 6pm, it’s a great place to visit for afternoon drinks with friends. The venue is named after the peyote cactus, a hallucinogenic plant sacred to the Wixárika, or Huichol people who are native to western Mexico.

La Taberna Minerva

Bar, Pub, Pub Grub, Mexican

In front of the factory that produces Minerva – one of the biggest names on the Mexican craft beer scene – La Taberna Minerva offers the pioneering company’s eight regular brand fixtures along with numerous rotating special edition beers. Inside, the venue has a glass wall that looks out into the factory, with its huge cylindrical brewing kettles and vessels. The bar has an extensive food menu and Minerva’s imperial stout or pale ale offerings are highly recommended.

Cervecería Escala

Bar, Restaurant, Pub, Mexican

Another restaurant, bar and brewery in one, Cervecería Escala offers 11 excellent craft beers on tap. The Vanilla Porter, with its vanilla aroma and coffee and chocolate aftertaste, is a particular favorite. The spacious bar also offers food, although the menu is limited to salads, pizzas and hamburgers.

Cervecería La Blanca

Bar, Mexican

This popular craft beer hangout has great variety, excellent service and a fun atmosphere. The bock beer is highly recommended and the bar also offers excellent pizzas. Cervecería La Blanca is also regarded as one of the city’s best venues for live music. Regular visitors include the jazz group Trioker, one half of Troker, who have performed at the Glastonbury Festival in the UK.

San Lúpulo Cerveteca Artesanal

Bar, Pub, Pub Grub, Mexican

One block from the Templo Expiatorio, one of Guadalajara’s most impressive churches, the San Lúpulo offers at least 60 brands of Mexican craft beer. The menu is not extensive, but the bar does offer delicious German-style hot dogs. Surprisingly for a Mexican bar, the San Lúpulo also offers mead, an alcohol made from honey and water – so the perfect place for an off-duty Viking.

Malta 33

Bar, Pub, Pub Grub, Mexican

A little bar with tons of craft beers and a cozy atmosphere, Malta 33 is set in the Santa Tere neighborhood near Chapultepec Avenue. The venue does a great deal to support local microbreweries, and all of the beers are from the city of Guadalajara or the surrounding state of Jalisco.