SF Beer Week Opening Gala

San Francisco, United States

4.1

Closed now

9 reviews

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Website:
sfbeerweek.org
Address:
635 8th St, San Francisco, CA, 94103
b/t Brannan St & Townsend St
SoMa
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
0.5 miTownsend St & 5th St
0.6 miKing & 4th
0.6 miSan Francisco Megabus
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Bussiness info

Good for Kids
No

Today

Today 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (San Francisco) 15:29 Monday, 30 June 2025

Business hours

Monday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Wednesday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Thursday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Friday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Saturday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Sunday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

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Nearby

Near this location:
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9 reviews of SF Beer Week Opening Gala

No registration required
Place rating: 4
Berkeley, CA
Brewers are some of the chillest people you’ll ever meet. But people who drink their brews? Not chill!
There was a sea of about 300 people waiting to get in to the Opening Gala, pressed up against the barriers, until the floodgates were opened at the strike of 6pm. We were very happy to have already drank all the good beer during the media preview, 5−6pm (yes, I’m showing off). After that, the Concourse was packed and it felt like a party — live music, grub for sale, and hundreds of beers to taste from a cute keepsake glass.
If you’re a beer lover, you are required to attend this event. Practically every beer that’s produced in the Bay Area is pouring here. Just be prepared to literally rub elbows with hundreds (maybe thousands?) of other hop-​heads. The event is far from boring, and will leave you walking a little crooked by the end of the night.
Place rating: 3
Denver, CO
I’ve been to a ton of beer festivals in my life, including the GABF, and this one is simply A-​OK.
The Good:
+ An awesome selection of California Breweries!
+ HUGE pours. Hello Drunky.
+ Amazing Tamales.
The Bad:
— Simply too many average to poor beers. I was disappointed at the lack of quality from many of the breweries.
— Not enough food options. Long lines at the food tables.
— Too many IPAs and Pale Ales. I know IPAs and PAs are hot right now, but for the love of Aegir how about we branch out. I bet 80−85% of all the beers served were one form of a PA or IPA. Good effing god I’m still tasting hops today. Blech.
My Favorite Beer of the Event: Boonville’s Sour offering. Amazing.
Place rating: 4
Oakland, CA
I have been to many beer events like this one and this one did it the best yet. The lines were not too long (speaks to tickets not being over sold for the capacity of the space) and I particularly liked how they organized the breweries by region so I could hone in on the ones that were more rare to me due to the distance from Oakland.
This was my first time at the SF Beer Week Opening Gala but I am sure it will not be the last.
Also, of note, I met my current boyfriend while on the final date with the last guy I dated. :)
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
It took me way too long to reflect on the frothy goodness that was SF Beer Week. Maybe it’s because SF will find any reason to drink, in massive proportions, and I honestly just can’t keep up!
As a has-​been inhabitant of the North Bay I enjoyed having Lagunitas and Russian River Brew Co. in my back pocket! I appreciate what has become of local breweries and SF Beer Week was the place to enjoy the best in the bay.
The opening gala housed every specialty you could imagine; spiced beers, sour beers, ipa’s…It was all a little daunting and I left this event spinning a good deal more than I expected.
The only downside from the night was that we stood in line for Pliny the Younger just to miss it by a few pours. Another February shall come to pass I guess!
Place rating: 4
Oakland, CA
I’ve been attending the gala since 2010 I think and I’m quite the fan. I usually volunteer for the event in the beginning & then get to enjoy the event afterwards. Other than the last couple of year’s limited bathroom facilities, this is a great way to Kick Off SF Beer Week. So many great beers to try, especially the limited releases or one-​offs they offer… So Worth It! They usually have good food for purchase at a reasonable price as well. I definitely recommend if you have the opportunity to go to it.
Cheers!
Place rating: 4
Oakland, CA
The beers and the selection were absolutely outstanding. Nice pours and some fantastic rare beers. Loved loved loved it.
Organization was not the best. I definitely echo the bathroom-​line problem — with only four hours, I shouldn’t spend one of them in line for the bathroom. Entrance line was ridiculous but went fast, at least. Didn’t have any food but people seemed to enjoy it.
They could easily move this to a bigger venue next year, and they should.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
This was my first sf beer week event and it was awesome! Went with a group of friends on Friday night and had a blast! Venue was pretty good, plenty of space, never felt cramped, and tons of great breweries. Literally I’d say 50 different breweries from around the bay area. There were some lines for the well known beer but they moved quickly. Too many great options! Food was available but you had to pay and quality was just OK. Really the only negative was lack of bathrooms, which is a big big problem. Lines were outrageous. We still had a great time and was something cool and different to do besides the standard wine country run. 65 $ for a ticket seemed reasonable.
Place rating: 5
Oakland, CA
Simply the best, better than all the rest. This Gala ruined me. Went to a beer festival the day after and I felt empty. Quite simply this event will make all other events I attend pale in comparison. This one was for the Beer Nerds, and my god did I run into a lot of beer nerds. Can’t reccommend this any higher. More bethrooms would have made this 100% awesome.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Sweet, they finally got it right this year with a great new space and of course, amazing beers. It was sold out again this year, but there were crowds at certain spots (actually the entire space) but it wasn’t overly cramped except in a few spots. Good food options but the only two things they could improve are making sure the water stations stay stocked and full and maybe more bathroom options (i didn’t suffer, but many others were in bathroom lines too long)…