The easiest way to plan a Cleveland brewery crawl is by neighborhood. Ohio City, the Flats with Duck Island and Tremont, and downtown each have breweries close enough together to cover in an afternoon or an evening, and nearly all of them serve food, so you can eat as you go.
This story groups the breweries that way and suggests a first beer at each one. For every taproom across Northeast Ohio, including Lakewood, Euclid and the west suburbs, open the full Cleveland brewery guide. Whatever route you choose, line up a ride home before the first pour.
Neighborhood by neighborhood
Where to stop on a Cleveland brewery crawl
Ohio City
Great Lakes Brewing Company
Best for: The first stop in Ohio City
Great Lakes Brewing Company is Ohio’s pioneering craft brewery, set in a pair of historic buildings next to the West Side Market. Start here with Dortmunder Gold or Edmund Fitzgerald Porter and a pub meal from the kitchen.
There is a patio for good weather. Christmas Ale is its seasonal release, so ask whether it is pouring.
Ohio City
Market Garden Brewery
Best for: A rooftop bar across from the market
Market Garden Brewery is across West 25th Street from the West Side Market, which makes it the natural second stop after Great Lakes. It has a big patio and a rooftop bar.
Try Progress Pilsner or Citramax IPA with a sandwich or a pizza. The rooftop is the draw on a warm afternoon.
Ohio City
Saucy Brew Works
Best for: Pizza and a hazy IPA with a group
Saucy Brew Works is a large glass-walled brewery on Detroit Avenue in Hingetown, a short walk north of Market Garden.
The order is the Juicy ASAP hazy IPA with a New Haven-style pizza, and the size of the room makes it an easy place to meet a group at the end of the Ohio City leg.
The Flats
Collision Bend Brewing
Best for: Beer on the river
Collision Bend Brewing sits on Old River Road in the Flats, with a patio on the Cuyahoga where you can watch freighters pass. Order Lake Erie Sunset, a blood orange wheat, and take a table outside.
On weekends it runs a brunch with a fried green tomato sandwich, French toast and mimosas on the patio, which makes it a good place to start a daytime crawl.
Duck Island / Tremont edge
Forest City Brewery
Best for: A beer garden near Tremont
Forest City Brewery is a small brewery on Duck Island, at the foot of Tremont, with one of the city’s best beer gardens. The tap list sticks to traditional German and English styles, and the brewer is often behind the bar.
When the weather is good, this is the stop to linger at.
Tremont
Mosaic Brewing Company
Best for: A neighborhood taproom in Tremont
Mosaic Brewing Company is a community-minded taproom on West Seventh Street in Tremont, pouring its own house beers.
It has the feel of a neighborhood bar, and pairing it with Forest City gives you a Tremont leg without much driving. The trip between them is a short ride or an uphill walk.
Downtown
Noble Beast Brewing Co.
Best for: Lagers and a scratch kitchen downtown
Noble Beast Brewing Co. is on Lakeside Avenue at the edge of downtown, near the Warehouse District, and it is one of the most talked-about breweries in the city. The tap list leans European, so start with Pappy’s Pilsner or Kapitan Altbier.
The kitchen cooks from scratch. The House Burger is the order, with a Beyond Burger swap for vegetarians.
Downtown
Masthead Brewing Co.
Best for: Hazy IPAs and wood-fired pizza
Masthead Brewing Co. is a big brick-walled brewery on Superior Avenue in downtown’s Campus District, known for hazy IPAs and barrel-aged releases.
Order a wood-fired pizza with whatever hazy is on. The size of the room suits groups, and it works well on a game day downtown.
Downtown (East 4th Street)
Butcher and the Brewer
Best for: Charcuterie before a game
Butcher and the Brewer is a brewpub on East Fourth Street that butchers its own meats. Pair a charcuterie board or a sandwich with Stop Hop Kaboom IPA.
East Fourth is a short walk from the ballpark and the arena, so this is the pre-game stop on the downtown leg.
Putting it together
Ways to plan the day
For an Ohio City crawl, start at Great Lakes, cross West 25th to Market Garden, then walk up to Saucy Brew Works in Hingetown. All of them serve food, so you can pace the day around meals. If you only have a few hours, this is the leg to pick, since Great Lakes and Market Garden are steps apart near the West Side Market and Saucy is a short walk north.
For a river and Tremont day, begin with brunch at Collision Bend in the Flats, then head to Forest City on Duck Island and finish at Mosaic in Tremont. Expect short rides between the Flats and Duck Island.
Downtown, Noble Beast on Lakeside, Masthead on Superior and Butcher and the Brewer on East Fourth are spread across a longer walk, so this leg works best as a pre-game plan or with a ride between stops.
Worth a separate trip
Breweries outside the main clusters
Terrestrial Brewing Company in Detroit Shoreway, near Battery Park, has a large dog-friendly patio and is known for Public Pilsner, Canopy Crusher IPA and fruited sours. In Lakewood, Birdtown Brewing pours ales and lagers in a converted century-old church in Birdtown, with Geraci’s pizza on the menu.
West of the city, the original Fat Head’s Brewery & Saloon in North Olmsted pairs Head Hunter IPA with oversized headwich sandwiches, and the Fat Head’s beer hall in Middleburg Heights is the production brewery, home of Head Hunter and Bumble Berry, with a full pub menu. See every brewery on the map.
Good to know
Questions before you go.
Is there a brewery on the east side?
Collision Bend has a second location in Euclid on Babbitt Road, pouring the same core lineup as the Flats original, including Lake Erie Sunset.
Can I tour a brewery in Cleveland?
Great Lakes Brewing Company in Ohio City offers tours. Check its schedule before you go.
Every taproom
Find a brewery anywhere around Cleveland
See taprooms from Ohio City and downtown to Lakewood, Euclid, North Olmsted and Middleburg Heights on one map.