Was here on a weekday afternoon so there weren't too many other patrons in the bar, but I can imagine this small-ish bar gets pretty crowded in the evenings, on weekends and during Chargers games. Â Definitely a casual beach bar.
Great beer bar with a fantastic selection of beers both on draft and in bottles. Â I tried a great Belgian golden ale, but I would recommend spending the $10 on a sampler -- get a taste of any four beers on draft and choose randomly or based on alcohol content.
No full bar.
Cute small swanky bar with craft beers on tap. I'm a north county beer drinking kind of girl and this tavern really hit the spot. It's  off coast highway passing J street heading south.  It's small, on the right but it's set up pretty nicely. The food looks amazing (didn't try it but it looks like they have some pretty awesome burgers & salads) and the beer list is countless!!
New little drink spot :)
We stopped into Encinitas Ale House for the first time today while wandering through Encinitas. Â I instantly loved this place. Â It's small, but we were there early and it was the 4th of July, so it was not crowded. Â We sat at the bar and were greeted by both a man and a woman who was our bartender. Â Both were SUPER friendly and that was a plus right off the bat. Â
The other thing I really like is that you can get 5 oz tasters of any of the beers on tap for $2.50. Â We each got two of these as we were just in for a quick sip and all four of the beers were delicious. Â They have a really huge beer selection and these aren't boring beers, which is great.
They also told us about their 80 beers in 80 days club, where if you can drink 80 beers in 80 days you get a lot of cool perks. Â If I lived closer, I think I'd give it a try! Â But, we don't, so I think it would be pretty hard to do... and EXPENSIVE! Â
ON this trip, we didn't have any food, but the menu looked yummy and we have already decided that we WILL be back. Â Loved this place and wish it was in my neighborhood!
I wrote my first 4 star review of this place over two years ago, and it's gotten even better since then. It's still my favorite place to go for excellent beer. The extensive list is made better by staff who know what they're talking about and can provide informed recommendations. I haven't had a lot off their food menu, but the snack-y type selections (fries, onion rings, salads, mac-n-cheese) are great.
Review Source:If you love beer, this is the place to go. With a gigantic beer menu (bigger than the actual food menu), there is no shortage of options. It's rather small and can get pretty crowded in there, but that kind of keeps with the hole-in-the-wall beer pub vibe. The food is awesome. They have some serious burgers (also have some more gamey burger specials every once in a while like wild boar, buffalo, etc.), the fish tacos with a mango salsa are some of the best I've had (and I've tried A LOT of fish tacos), crispy chicken strips and a fried seafood platter with a spicy marinara sauce (and I don't even like tomatoes) are also really great. I suggest getting there early if you want a seat to enjoy some tasty food, if not, there's always plenty of beer!
Review Source:If I could only eat at one place for the rest of my life, Encinitas Ale House all the way.
The list of beers is overwhelmingly huge and fun for a gamble (request keystone light if you want to get strange looks), and they wheel in new beers weekly so the menu never gets old. The food is also great, I always got the burgers they served with exotic meats, and everytime it's been a knock-out. Exotic beers with exotic burgers are a recipe for a great dine out! Only negative is the prices are up there but all things considered, it's definitely worth it.
Great food, great beer and great service! Here is the problem, I had lunch here and there were dogs roaming around inside with hair visibly falling on the floor while the dogs were barking inside the restaurant. I can understand if the Ale House had a patio, but all of the restaurant is indoors and I find this unsanitary and abnoxious. I will give up the beer selection for a sanitary and peaceful place to eat and drink beer.
Review Source:The choice of a venison or buffalo burger is what makes me go back. The meat is all delicious and perfectly cooked. DELICIOUS onion rings!!!! I strongly suggest you try them. They are extremely hot, temperature wise, but once you cool it down and take that first bite, your belly is going to be happy. The beer selection is great and they have this hard cider that I order every time i go! It is Julian Apple Cider. Anything made with Julian apples is incredible, in my mind.
Review Source:This is hands down my favorite place to grab a beer in North County. Â Usually come with the intention of only grabbing a drink or two, but the food is just too enticing, and I usually cave and get something to eat too. Â I haven't had anything on the menu that isn't amazing. Â My favorite entree is the fish tacos.
Generous portions. Â Phenomenal draft beer selection that changes daily & a huge cellar of bottles. Â Servers who are knowledgeable about beer and friendly. A handful of friendly regulars who you will run into over time. Â Great perks for being a member of the "80 beers in 80 days" club.
Be warned that it is a cozy little place with limited seating. Â After the place was listed in a few food/beer publications as being a top bar, it's definitely been more crowded during peak times (SD Beer Week, Fridays & Saturdays after 7pm). Â I prefer going during off hours, sitting at the bar and striking up a conversation with the awesome bar tenders or other patrons, and enjoying their amazing beers.
Great bear selection but the service is really bad.  The staff have a sort of cavalier, greater than thou attitude about them.  It pains them to bring you a beer and you always have to ask to place an order.  It's as if they feel the customer is lucky to have the opportunity to even set foot on the premises.  NEWS FLASH.. lots of places these days have amazing draft lists, especially in San Diego County.  You are quickly gaining a reputation for  exceptionally bad service.
Review Source:Came here recently on a Saturday for dinner. Arrived around 630 to a full restaurant. A friendly guy at the bar moved so my friend and I could sit. The bar staff was friendly and knowledgeable about the beers on tap with some great recommendations, however it did take a few minutes to actually get a beer and put an order in. Â My friend and I both got burgers (mine was the veggie and his was a kobe). Both delicious however SUPER MESSY. I would suggest that these be eaten with a fork and knife (which we were not given) because they are so huge.
I would go back here for sure, great local spot and feels comfortable.
I'm taking back my previous one-star review. I don't know what happened (I'd like to think it's because of my previous one-star review) but the service at this place has TOTALLY turned itself around. I begrudgingly returned for a burger one night, with the knowledge that the service would SUCK but at least I would have my burger fix, and much to my shock and surprise, the service was lovely. I didn't sit at the bar, because there used to be a mean girl bartender who scared the crap out of me with her evil face, but sat at a high top instead. The service was fantastic, the food was great, and I was super happy.
About a week later, a friend and I were walking through Encinitas and decided to drop in for a drink. Again, no crappy weirdo bartenders with creepy face, though we still opted for a high-top since I've been so traumatized in the past and once again, great and super friendly service.
I've returned several times since my last post and my impression of this place has totally been turned around. I even had their white pizza the other day and now I have a new obsession.
I am so thankful that I gave it another (like 14) chance!
Cozy little beer bar. Â Tap list was ok. Â I had a nice Grassroots / Mikkeller collab Saison. Â Cost me $7.50 which was about a dollar more than I would have liked to pay.
Looks like they had a food menu, but I didn't eat there.
It'd be a great neighborhood bar, but I'd still drive the extra 10 min to goto O'briens, or Toronado.
This was my first time going here and I loved it! They have so much beer to choose from it is insane. I stuck with the Nitro Beer-Murphy's Irish Stout-AMAZING. I love nitro beer it is so hard to find. I had the beer battered chicken tenders with fries which was delicious!. The service was also awesome! They have this interesting contest called 80 Beers in 80 Days. You can win some pretty cool stuff if you complete it. Â The place itself is long and narrow which doesnt make it that easy to move in when it is really busy but it is not a big deal. Great atmosphere, selection, food/menu, and service!
Review Source:I just love this place. I don't even know what it is about it. It's small, and I tend to like cozier places. It has a less pretentious feel, which I also like. I will admit I have only had wine here, as beer is a rare treat for my belly. But my friend and I ordered the margherita pizza without cheese and it was so good! We ate the entire thing without slowing down. I'm a fan of this place.
Review Source:I love the Ale House!! My boyfriend and I come here at least once a week, sometimes 2 to 3 times. It's definitely "our spot". Â We are having so much fun completing the "80 Beers in 80 Days" Challenge (ask about it!)! They have delicious food (we are aiming to try everything on the menu at least once!), great happy hour menu (the calamarie and the seared ahi is amazing!!), huge beer selection that gets updated daily (Belgians, IPA's, lagers, stouts), and the staff is so friendly and chill. Â Gets packed on weekends and dinner so be prepared to stand for a little bit while you wait for a seat to open. Definitely recommend!! :)
Review Source:yes the beer selection is great and yes the food is great and yes the service is good too.  my only complaint is I had the mussels the other day, I just think that the pasta sauce is overwhelming.  way over done  keep it simple and go with a garlic/herb butter to give the mussels the show.  also had the crab cakes, good but over cooked, they were like little hockey pucks.  chef needs to make some adjustments Â
gh
We came in with a party of 8 on Easter for dinner, and I haven't had a server as polite and friendly as the one we had here in a long, long time. Nothing fancy, nothing formal, nothing fake.. just refreshing, and truly appreciated.
Belgian's aren't really my forte, but I was happy to see Maharaja and Pliny on tap, which was more than enough to appease my dry mouth. The only downside was the price.. $7 for Maharaja seemed a bit steep, which would be my only complaint.
The kobe wagyu sliders were very tasty, and perfectly cooked.. with the exception of my third slider, which was wayyyy overdone. I was already full by then, so I left that one for the boyfriend to devour. I'd definitely order them again though, since they were simple, easy to eat, and yummy. Per the boyfriend, the patty melt was also delicious. The fries with the "cajun" seasoning were also nice to munch on, even though I suspected no hint of cajun whatsoever. They were just good simple fries. Sweet potato fries were also good, but lacked a bit of flavor so I'm not sure if the upcharge is worth it.
Overall, a solid spot for food and drinks if you're in the area.
I came here on a Saturday between 9 & 10. It was pretty packed, but we were still able to quickly find a table in back that was cleaned right before we sat. Service overall was very quick for everything too. There's also a pretty good beer selection on tap.
My wife wasn't that hungry so she just had the crab cake appetizer for a meal and I had fish & chips, which was actually the craving that brought us here. Her crab cakes were just ok; nothing special, but not bad either. The fish & chips were good and I haven't really found any that were great in the area so that's a plus. Although, I'd much rather have either larger pieces of fish or an extra piece than the shrimp they put on there (it comes with 3 pieces of fish & 2 shrimp). The portion size wasn't bad, I'd just rather have only fish & chips over fish & chips & shrimp.
Overall, food was a 3 or 3.5, but service, beer selection, and lack of finding any other good fish & chips within 10 minutes of my home bump them up to 4.
I have been to the Encinitas Ale House many times since they opened a few years ago. Â There selection of beers is what sets them apart from the rest. Â They are constantly rotating tap handles and every visit has something new in store. Â The other positive is the good mix of beers from strong porters, belgians and local IPA's. Â
The food is good for pub food. Â They are known for their bootlegger burger, which is a burger with bbq sauce, onion rings, bacon and cheese! Â Had it once and don't think I even finished it since it was so big. Â It was a tasty burger! Â They are always serving other wild game burgers such as ostrich or bison. The service is okay nothing great, but what do you expect from a pub.
The place is tiny. Â There are about the same amount of seats at the bar as there are tables. Â Can be crowded on the weekends, showing up sometimes is a gamble. Â I would recommend this place to many others in Encinitas, defiantly one to check out!
Went here on New Years Day with the Burger Runners for lunch. They saved us a table which was great due to the same place.
My husband was thrilled they had his current beer obsession on tap: Societe Brewings The Apprentice. Apparently he dreams of that beer.
Most of the crew had burgers which looked big and tasty. Points for the house made buns!
I had fish and chips which also includes a few shrimp. Piping hot, tasty fresh fish in beer batter. The fish tacos looked really good too. My friend next to me had them and they came with a salad.
Great beer selection. Chill atmosphere.
How can an ale house stay packed all of the time? Encinitas Ale house has a huge selection of amazing beer and a friendly waitstaff.
The happy hour has some great deals on food which you might need to help absorb some of the great beer. The variety of beer offered is impressive and you will want to try several of them. The bartenders know about the product and suggested some new brews that I loved.
You can oftentimes tell when a restaurant (or pub) is a great place by the patrons inside. This small establishment is almost always bustling despite the building being a little bit drab. If they moved into a nicer facility you might never get a table. For now I am happy to have the Encinitas Ale House in my backyard.
My friend and I stumbled upon this spot as she was shopping at some of the local shops for yarn and knitting supplies. I know absolutely nothing about knitting, so of course I had my eye out for the next place to stop.
For patiently spending a few hours surrounded by spool after spool of pretty yarn, my friend graciously treated me to a drink or so. They have an extensive selection, so we both decided to go with the flight of four 5 oz. tastes for $10. This still didn't help narrow it down, so we let the bartender choose after giving very, very vague descriptions of our indecisive cravings.
Our very kind lady bartender used excellent mind-reading skills -- 3/4 of the tastes were brews that had caught my eye when skimming the list! Started with the Bear Republic Red Rocket (perfect for Amber-lovers like me!) and ended with the Santa's Butt  (I think she could tell I was still in the mood for some Christmas Cheer). Â
I ordered the garlic parmesan fries to snack on and was pleasantly surprised at the quantity and flavor. The crispy thin fries were topped with large shavings of real parmesan cheese and sprinkles of tasty garlic, served in a sizable basket that lasted us beyond the flights.
This little spot was very cozy and worth a visit if you're in the area. Also random note: it may have just been because it was raining, but they let a large pet dog hang out inside while we were there! Woof.
The draft quality and selection is awesome!
The place is a little small/cramped, but if you can find a low key night it is an awesome place to check out. Â Plus, it's more for the beer connoisseur than the beer guzzler.
The staff is friendly and knowledgeable. Â I've been a few times and been treated with a little "too good for you" attitude, but the atmosphere and ambiance of a traditional ale house/pub that isn't a complete dive is refreshing.
And, yes, the food is amazing!
Definitely a great place to start the night.
I like the idea of the Encinitas Ale House. Â The food is fantastic and the beer selection is second only to Churchill's Pub in San Marcos. Â The Encinitas Ale House definitely has a "pub" feel to it but there's a California twist to the menu. Â Rather than just having the usual wings and nacho platter, Encinitas Ale House offers fish tacos, mussels and seared ahi. Â But never fear beef lovers, they have burgers and pizza too! Â Lots of the standard classics mixed with options such as "pesto" or "white stone" pizza (both excellent).
As I said, the beer selection is fantastic if you're into craft and seasonal selections that pack a hefty punch. Â If you want large quantities of cheap Coors, you should probably go elsewhere. Â There are at least two dozen beers to choose from and the menu constantly changes.
So, these are all things that I like about the Ale House. Â What I don't like (and this is a big one) is how small the place is. Â Realistically this pub needs to be three times bigger for the number of people that patronize it. Â It's always packed, there's nowhere to sit and there's very little air circulation.
There's also this sketchy sign-your-name-on-a-board-to-be-next-for-a-table system. Â Basically, you have to stay on top of the table situation or you're never going to sit down. Â So if you happen to wander in around dinner time, this makes for both a slow and somewhat exhausting dining experience.
For the record I like popular, crowded places. Â I get that people want to feel like they're out "doing something." Â But 6 times out of 10 the Ale House is too crowded for my taste. Â The beer selection will draw me in but after standing around for twenty minutes drinking, I frequently end up eating elsewhere.
On the East coast there is a famous little pub in Philadelphia called Monks or the Brickskellar in DC, where the beer list is 5+ pages long and most of them you've never heard of and are from places you've probably never visited. Â Drinking there is always a mini cultural vacation and their food is a rich and flavorful match to the wide variety of fluids flowing from the taps or bottles. Â I had thought this was unique to the NorthEast, so imagine my suprise when we ended up at the Encinitas Ale House and saw all my favorite beer menu options but in a warm climate!
The place is small and you're not here for the ambiance. Â The staff is tolerable, by no means "friendly", but not exactly rude, I'd describe them as indifferent. Â The crowd very mellow and laid back (wearing t-shirts and jeans). Â There are a few TV's behind the bar that had various sporting events on, but really, I don't think anyone was watching.
The beer list speaks for itself, do you need another reason to come here? Â Don't bother asking for a recommendation, the waitress replied to almost every question with "I've never tried it but it's popular for people to order".
The food though could be a reason to return during non-drinking hours. Â Sampled both the shrimp and the Costa Rican taco's, both well seasoned and unique flavors. Â The wings we ordered with the sauce on the side (so we didn't end up licking our fingers all night), and they were served perfectly crispy on the outside and moist and meaty on the inside. Â The sliders were good enough to order a second order, although I think they might be able to do better on the roll; it was a little bland and overpowering in size. Â The pizza seemed to appear on everyone else's table, so we ordered one just to try it. Â It was good, and very good if you take it in the context that this wasn't a pizza shop, but it's not the best thing on the menu.
Definatley not a family type place, leave the kids at home, great if you want to just grab a drink with friends or experiment with some new options in beer.
Ah yes!
My friend and I were famished. We were both busy until really late, and were hoping to grab dinner at another nearby popular Encinitas restaurant... only to find its wait absurdly long! So we began to walk down the street, and all of a sudden memory of Encinitas Ale House came to mind!
Mind you, my last time I was there, it was well before I was a beer snob of any degree (those days were so much more lucid... but no longer). Thus, when I was there before, I had no idea how to enjoy its awesome beer selection that was pricier than your average beer.
And that's what's really great about this place! The beer selection here astounding! This is really hard to admit as a proud San Diegan... but I'm getting a little tired of San Diego Beers :(. No fear! EAH has WONDERFUL selections from all over the country and the world! I had great beers I've never seen anywhere else except for the Pizza Port Bottle shop! WONDERFUL.
But NO! that's not all! The beer is not the only good thing here! The pizza is great! Their burgers are JUICY AND WONDERFUL. I had their special, the Lamb Burger. And WOW. I love lamb, I think I love it even more now because of this burger! It had the great gamy flavor of lamb... the tartness of the yogurt almost was like a soft cheese... and this is very simple but wonderful.... THE ARUGALA. i'm a sucker for this veggie. It's like the bacon of vegetables!
Overall, this place is AWESOME and I can't believe I had come here and wrote it off! Great place for some good dinner and drink!
This is going to be far shorter than my other reviews. I came here to meet a friend who had since moved from Union Kitchen over to this place by the time I arrived. I actually prefer this place to Union Kitchen because I think Union is trying a bit too hard to be cool, among other reasons like being very loud at times.
The vibe he was very laid back and relaxed, the patrons seemed amiable, and the bartenders were friendly. The beer selection is pretty awesome here too. They have a large booklet with all the various bottles they carry and it really is an impressive list. Certain bottles seemed pricey for what they were, but this was balanced out by the fact that some were cheaper than they should have been. Bottom-line is that you need to know your shit.
I didn't get to try the food, but it smelled and looked delicious. Also seriously, they had and Alligator burger and a sauce called PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals.) Awesome.
If I'm in the area I would stop here again.
The joint makes me feel right as rain every time I walk in here. This place is like my security blanket for delicious man-beers. I swear if I hear about you walking in to this place and ordering a domestic draft beer I will be severely disappointed in you, NO SOUP FOR YOU!
Open your mouth, insert food, close mouth:
The eats here are hearty, which is good because your heart won't be working by the time you leave this place. I may be going out on a limb here and say that a piece of crispy bagette, steak, diced tomato all covered in blue cheese dressing would NOT constitute as bruschetta but hey when you're in America you can call a sandwich a sandwich when it doesn't have bacon in it (which is a sin against all man-kind but thats neither here nor there)
The burgers are the true stars up in this joint. Think of the most heavenly combination of drool inducing deliciousness that can be found either on a farm or processed at the butcher and you will find it expertly prepared on a burger here. Don't even risk taking a full bite out of these monsters burgers fit for the size of Andre the Giant on stilts wearing a fat suit, your mouth will be aching from the massiveness before you can say "cholesterol"
Be a gentle lad and make sure and tip the young lassies that bring yer ale to yer table.
WOW! I was sure surprised when I came here for my first time. When it comes to local microbrews and rare beer from around the world, I go NUTS! I felt as if I was a kid in a candy store. There were so many different beers to choose from. It's a little overwhelming at first, especially since you wouldn't expect such a large list from a small ale house. Where do you put all of them?!?
They have Dogfish head 120 minute IPA in bottles! I knew as soon as I saw it on the list I had to have it. The price on this particular microbrew is sold here at a premium, but it is worth every sip. 18% ABV, OH, YES! Â
As for the food here, it's good. They have the usual beer food and BURGERS, salad, pizza, etc... The Kobe Wagyu sliders were really good. Probably one of the best sliders I have ever had. The patty was juicy and filled with flavor! You can really taste the difference.
If you are ever in Encinitas, Encinitas Ale House is a must. Have a beer or two and be blown away. Please note that 18% beer will make everything taste good!
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