The best beer garden in the East Bay is a perfect match made in uptown

Editor’s note: To close the year Nosh is announcing its 2024 award winners. Thank you to everyone who voted, making it a record turnout for the Nosh Awards. Each day Dec. 23-27 and Dec. 30 and 31 we’ll feature one award winner from the seven categories, starting with the saddest closure of the year and ending with the best new bar and restaurant of the year. 

Head to uptown Oakland on a sunny Friday afternoon and you are likely to find a crowd at Two Pitchers Brewing Company, downing the warm-weather friendly selection of brews (radlers are Two Pitchers’ specialty), along with juicy burgers, crispy fries and other food from Lovely’s.  

Two Pitchers Brewing Company opened in its indoor/outdoor uptown space in a 1919 building that once served as an auto shop in late 2021, and as it enters its fourth year it has earned a devoted following among beer and burger lovers. 

“Amazing burgers and fries at Lovely’s, great outdoor patio for groups, kids, and dogs alike,” one voter commented, summing up the spot’s universal appeal. 

Voters left no doubt that the partnership with Lovely’s, housed in a small shack in the back of the beer garden area, was a big part of the overall appeal. 

“The beer selection would be enough to put Two Pitchers over the top but throw in a Lovely’s burger and you have a home run combo,” noted one voter.

Two Pitchers also hosts trivia and movie nights and other special events throughout the year.

“Great space indoor and outdoor, never choked with kids, and BEST food offering with Lovely’s in the yard!” wrote another voter. 

Hoi Polloi, Headlands Brewing in Berkeley, Ghost Town in Laurel, Fieldwork and East Brother were also nominated for best beer garden/taproom in the 2024 Nosh Awards.