Ballast Point Brewing

"Open for takeout, delivery, and limited patio seating. We don’t have the blueprints to prove this, but we’re pretty sure Ballast Point has the biggest patio in LA County. They’ve got three huge spaces, which have more than enough room to spread out, and they’ve also rearranged tables to ensure proper social-distancing guidelines. The menu is filled with all sorts of brewery-appropriate foods, like burgers, fish tacos, and flatbreads, but you’re really here to sit and look at the ocean for the first time since the beaches closed. Stare off into the distance, feel the chill of the sea brush your cheek, and enjoy this moment, free of any obligations or pressures from a significant other. Feels good, huh?" - kat hong

"At the southern tip of LA County is Long Beach’s Ballast Point. The waterfront brewery and restaurant serve up craft beers and extensive seaside views to go with small bites, including calamari, barbecued shrimp, salads, pizzas, burgers, and a hearty plate of Sichuan glazed ribs." - Mona Holmes, Rebecca Roland

"Sure, you can find Ballast Point IPAs at any grocery store these days—and the atmosphere at their harborside brewpub can sometimes feel like a tailgate party—but once you walk upstairs to their dockside patio, none of that matters. With panoramic views of the Long Beach shoreline, this is what drinking beer in California is all about. There’s more than enough room to spread out, drink one of the 30-plus options on tap, and claim your very own fire pit. The food is what you’d expect on a brewery menu: burgers, fish tacos, and flatbreads. Everything is solid and once you lay eyes on the Pacific off in the distance, you’ll probably forget what you ordered anyway." - brant cox, sylvio martins, nikko duren, garrett snyder

"It doesn’t get much closer to the water than Ballast Point. A true waterfront brewery and restaurant is a Long Beach go-to with craft beers and extensive seaside views to go with the small bites like calamari or barbecued shrimp, salads, pizzas, burgers, and a hearty plate of Szechuan glazed ribs." - Eater Staff, Mona Holmes

"If anyone chooses a regular patio over a patio that looks out over the ocean, they are not to be trusted. Which is why, when given the opportunity, you should spend the afternoon at Ballast Point. Sure, the atmosphere can sometimes feel like an ice luge away from a Phi Kappa Alpha recruitment party, and you can find Ballast Point beer in any grocery store, but once you get up to the upstairs patio, none of that matters. With panoramic views of Long Beach Harbor and the coast, this is what drinking in California is all about." - Brant Cox, Arden Shore, Nikko Duren