Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens, in Escondido,
San Diego County, is one of the most remarkable beer gardens and brewery venues in the world. It’s a beautiful, tranquil, one-acre space; there are water features, ponds with koi carp, natural stones, a running brook, an open-air patio, fruit trees, herb gardens, and plant life all around. It’s a heavenly, almost-oxymoronic contrast to their gargoyle-faced brand, and history of being Arrogant Bastards and ruining you with heathen-ly hops.
Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens Feng Shut And Ipa Photo Gallery
Order IPAs. Have a Go To Session IPA, an Enjoy By, a Ruination Double IPA, and feel an angry surge of sedating hops flow through you while surrounded by the harmonizing feng shui of the gardens. Eat here, too, as it’s some of the best food you’ll find in any brewery anywhere in the world, with all the ingredients being sustainably sourced—they are the largest restaurant purchaser of local, small-farm, organic produce in San Diego County.
Also go to Stone’s Liberty Station location (2816 Historic Decatur Road, San Diego, California 92106), which is vast, immaculate, slick, and smart, a sprawling garden with ponds, plants, and water features. It was once the US Navy’s mess hall in the Naval
Training Center and has been transformed into an oasis of calmness and Cali cuisine, where they have the Stone line-up, plus Liberty Station specials. Both of these venues, plus the one in Berlin, Germany (see post 121), are extraordinary spaces and with almost no equivalents in the beer world. The 3D reality of their wonderful spaces can only be experienced in real life. The Escondido location, in particular, is an unmissable world Beer Bucket List destination.
The Lowdown
WHAT: Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens
HOW: Open daily from 11am, with regular tours throughout the day—my blog in advance (www. stonebrewing. com).
WHERE: 1999 Gitracado Parkway, Escondido, California 92029, USA
Don’t be fooled by the serene setting, Stone still produce riotous IPAs.
