Los Angeles - it’s HUGE and I only have 2 days

OK, so my wife and I have a measly 2 days in Los Angeles. We arrive from New Zealand at around midday on Thursday, April 9. And we take the coaster down to San Diego about 11am on Saturday the 11th. We want to pack as much beer goodness as possible in during that time but the place is HUGE. Here are the constraints:

1. We’ll be reliant on Uber/public transport, and not wanting to spend too much on getting around
2. We definitely want to visit Beachwood BBQ in Long Beach
3. We love visiting breweries, but would probably prioritise great beer bars over breweries.

So.

Where should we stay to optimise beer tourism?
What’s on the "must visit" list?
Any tips at all about overall travel efficiency in LA?
Anyone want to hang out with a couple of beer loving kiwis for a couple of days? ;)

We’re considering a beer tour on the second day which will hopefully get us to Beechwood and others, and maybe be the most cost-effective method of visiting/sampling. If we wanted to put together a custom tour, we might need more than two people. If anyone would like to join us, we’re friendly, fun, and our accents aren’t too annoying or unintelligible. ;)

Cheers,

Greig (and Alexandra) McGill

http://www.ratebeer.com/p/38-degrees-ale-house-grill/14505/

http://www.ratebeer.com/places/regions/los-angeles-long-beach/4480/5/

A big question here is: where are you staying in LA?

There aren’t too many breweries in LA itself. You basically have Golden Road (which is really more in Glendale but that’s LA still, I guess), Angel City, and Eagle Rock.

For the sake of reference, I’ll use Union Station as the starting point for transit times. Golden Road you can really only get to by bus and would take way longer than necessary (basically an hour). Eagle Rock is possible by metro, but would require some switching of trains and would take about 30-40 minutes.

Angel City would be a very quick metro ride and you’ll be essentially in Little Tokyo. Meaning you’re also close to Wurstkuche and Far Bar.

You can also take the train to Beer Belly (Korea Town), Blue Palms (Hollywood) and then walk around to a number of spots from there, and if you’re willing to then hop on a bus after taking the train, Surly Goat is pretty doable. It would be a pretty decent train ride, but you could also get to The Hermosillo Club/Highland Park Brewing.


From downtown, you can take the Blue Line to downtown Long Beach to visit Beachwood LB. There are a few other places there that you could visit like Congregation and I guess Rock Bottom if you guys really want some ticks. But you’d basically be signing up to ride the train an hour each way to essentially go to one place (though admittedly a really great one).

Thanks brokensail. We haven’t decided where to stay, but your answer has helped clarify. I guess it makes sense to stay downtown, near Union Station. I’ve been through there once, and it was kind hell on earth, but I guess it’s a good hub! :)

We’re not so much ticking as looking for what the locals think is best, though I have to admit, I’m a shocker for ticking!

Thanks loads for the info (and also to @BBB63 above).

You don’t necessarily have to stay near Union Station, I just used it as a point of reference. If your plan is to use the Metro system, then just stay near-ish to one of the stops/lines. The weather is nice and all that, so a little walk is no big deal.

Awesome, thanks. :)

http://media.metro.net/riding_metro/maps/images/metro_metrolink_map.gif

Here’s a map of all the stops on the various lines.

I don’t know LA that good, but Monkish and Smog City kick ass. I would spend a day in Long Beach and then go up to Monkish and Smog City, if you have time, you should get over to Naja’s in Redondo Beach. THat was truly a kick ass beer bar. This is all doable with Uber without breaking the bank.

Public transportation sucks in LA, so IMO you gotta kinda pick and choose your spots. I would personally avoid downtown and stay somewhere nicer.

Tim

Originally posted by TimE
I don’t know LA that good, but Monkish and Smog City kick ass. I would spend a day in Long Beach and then go up to Monkish and Smog City, if you have time, you should get over to Naja’s in Redondo Beach. THat was truly a kick ass beer bar. This is all doable with Uber without breaking the bank.

Public transportation sucks in LA, so IMO you gotta kinda pick and choose your spots. I would personally avoid downtown and stay somewhere nicer.

Tim

I’m a pretty big fan of Golden Road...really good beer, good food and good staff.

@brokensail: Good point. What is the correct name for the whole urban conglomeration of suburbs? LA county?

@TimE: Thanks! I’d heard great things about Monkish, but almost nothing about Smog City. I think between the metro and Uber we have it covered, thanks to the great advice given here.