Vancouver –
Brewery Creek
From the Downtown brewpubs to Kitsilano and Mount Pleasant’s diverse range of breweries, restaurants and taphouses, there is a beer and brewery for every taste on the Brewery Creek Vancouver Ale Trail.
Vancouver’s earliest breweries set up along a creek that paralleled present-day Main Street from Tea Swamp (roughly Ontario Street and 15th Ave) all the way down to False Creek, which then extended east to where Clark Drive is now. The City Brewery and Mainland Brewery (both built in 1887) and the Columbia Brewery (1888) were the first to use the stream to power their machinery and provide water for their recipes. Population growth in the 1890s was rapid, and the Mount Pleasant neighbourhood soon became Vancouver’s first suburb beyond the downtown peninsula. The creek itself was covered up by streets and sidewalks, and although that early brewing industry was short-lived, you can find it echoed in a progressive and exciting brewery scene there today.
Downtown Vancouver is home to two brewpubs, Yaletown Brewing and Steamworks Brewing, that helped introduce craft beer to the city when they opened in the 1990s and remain relevant and vital today. South of False Creek, the Olympic Village is your gateway to the Main Street area, where several craft breweries rub elbows with fellow artisans, small-scale manufacturers, restaurants, bakeries, and boutiques. And check out Steamworks Kitchen & Taphouse right in the heart of the Mount Pleasant neighbourhood.
Scout Magazine describes Main Street perfectly: “Known as much for its cool factor as for its diversity and down-to-earth accessibility, Main Street is as honest a cross-sectioned representation of Vancouver’s cultural promise as you’ll find.”
Take your time to explore the options here, including fun and festivity at BREWHALL or the truck stop diner approach at Red Truck Beer Co. Learn more about beer at Faculty Brewing or taste what’s cutting edge at Brassneck or 33 Acres. Main Street Brewing offers a glimpse of the neighbourhood’s brewing history, while Electric Bicycle Brewing and R&B Brewing showcase Mount Pleasant’s eclectic charm with style.
Most of these breweries serve delicious food along with their beer, but some of the city’s best beer-themed restaurants can also be found here, including 3 locations of Tap & Barrel, (Bridges, Olympic Village and Canada Place), the Magnet, and the Cascade Room. And be sure to stock up at the Brewery Creek Craft Beer & Wine Store.
Recently opened in the summer of 2022 is Brewing August, which brings craft beer to the west side of Vancouver for the first time.
Habitat Island near Olympic Village
Yaletown Brewing Company, Vancouver, BC
Faculty Brewing Co., Vancouver, BC
Exploring the Vancouver Mural Festival
33 Acres Brewing Company, Vancouver, BC
Olympic Cauldron on Burrard Inlet
Main Street Brewing Co., Vancouver, BC
Electric Bicycle Brewing, Vancouver, BC
Olympic Village
Electric Bicycle Brewing, Vancouver, BC
Exploring the Vancouver Mural Festival
BREWHALL, Vancouver, BC
Stanley Park Seawall
Main Street Brewing Co., Vancouver, BC
Steamworks Mount Pleasant Kitchen & Taphouse, Vancouver, BC
Tap & Barrel Convention Centre, Vancouver, BC
Science World on False Creek
R&B Ale & Pizza House, in Vancouver, BC
Red Truck Beer Company, Vancouver, BC
Gastown Steam Clock, Vancouver, BC
Steamworks Brewpub, Vancouver, BC
Brassneck Brewery, Vancouver, BC
Gastown
Red Truck Beer Co, Vancouver, BC
Brassneck Brewery, Vancouver, BC
Brewing August, Vancouver, BC
Tap & Barrel Bridges on Granville Island, Vancouver, BC
Day 1
Travel Info
Take the Canada Line all the way to Waterfront Station, and begin your day strolling through Gastown. Enjoy Vancouver’s oldest neighbourhood, which grew from a single tavern founded by John ‘Gassy Jack’ Deighton back in 1867. Don’t miss the famous Gastown Steam Clock!
Serving brunch starting at 11am on weekends, fuel up for your ale-venture at Steamworks. Named after the central steam system that powers its brewhouse and world famous steam clock. Steamworks lives up to its mottos: “drink different” and “brew with a view."
From the Olympic Cauldron you can walk and cycle around the Convention Centre to Canada Place, or in the opposite direction along the seawall through beautiful Coal Harbour toward Stanley Park.
This location of Tap & Barrel offers 36 tap choices and an unobstructed view of Burrard Inlet and North Vancouver.
A great spot for lunch or afternoon appies, sample the beer at Vancouver’s original brewpub, just steps from the Yaletown Roundhouse Skytrain Station.
Hop on the Aquabus or one of the False Creek Ferries which take you from Yaletown across False Creek to the Olympic Village and Granville Island areas.
Just steps away from the Public Market. Bridges has been a BC dining landmark since 1980 and was renovated under the Tap & Barrel brand.
The latest addition to the Kitsilano neighbourhood and just blocks away from the Granville Island market. Brewing beer with all the qualities of August: full sun, long days, and filled with possibility.
Faculty Brewing was founded by a husband-and-wife team: Mauricio, a food engineer, and Alicia, an architect who designed the brewery. Faculty shares information about the brewing process and even publishes all its beer recipes. Like a university or college, the brewery is meant to be a place of idea-sharing and collaboration.
The Vancouver region has more than 25,000 guest rooms, with about 13,000 alone downtown, so from economical to boutique, Vancouver accommodations are sure to suit any traveller's budget and tastes.
Explore More
Just a couple stops away on the Aquabus is Vancouver’s arts and culture hub Granville Island, home to the Granville Island Public Market. Or add a stop at Science World – this Vancouver landmark features exhibits for all ages to enjoy.
Day 2
Travel Info
You’ll need the next two days to hit the incredible amount of breweries in the Mount Pleasant neighbourhood. The area is known for amazing coffee shops, eclectic restaurants, and stylish shopping in the vintage stores and independent boutiques that line Main Street. Easily accessible via either the Olympic Village or Broadway-City Hall station on the Canada line, or the Main St- Science World station on the Expo line.
Whether for a weekend brunch or a sunset dinner, this taphouse has one of the best waterfront patios in the city. Their menu is seasonally inspired and locally sourced whenever possible to showcase the best of the province. Their innovative on-tap beverage program exclusively serves BC craft beer.
Not wanting to brave the waters? Rent a bike and cycle the seawall pathways.
Bringing the community together with fresh beer, tasty bites, fun games, and great vibes. Reminiscent of a giant German beer hall, this facility located in Vancouver’s Olympic Village was renovated as part of the heritage “resurrection” of the Opsal Steel Building, built in 1918.
This brewery’s stylish cafe-like tasting room would not be out of place in Copenhagen, Berlin or Brooklyn. Serving snacks as well as brunch on weekends.
Right next door to 33 Acres Brewing is 33 Brewing Experiment. The same people, brewing exciting and experimental beers.
Mount Pleasant is the birthplace of the Vancouver Mural Festival and features over 100 murals throughout the neighbourhood. Discover the artwork using their mural map, or even their new app!
Eye-catching branding and delicious beer in the heart of Brewery Creek.
R&B makes a wide variety of beer styles, and if you’re hungry, they have great pizza, too.
The Magnet is the younger sibling of Brassneck Brewing. A friendly spot for food, beer and the occasional stiff drink.
The Vancouver region has more than 25,000 guest rooms, with about 13,000 alone downtown, so from economical to boutique, Vancouver accommodations are sure to suit any traveller's budget and tastes.
Explore More
It’s officially known as Guelph Park, but is more famously known as Dude Chilling Park. It’s worth a visit to not only see the recently recast bronze sculpture of a reclining figure, which inspired the name among locals, but the official looking sign that was originally installed as a prank by artist Viktor Briestensky in 2014. The sign was removed, but following public outcry and a petition, it was returned to remain as public artwork. The whole story inspired R&B Brewing to create their delicious Dude Chilling Pale Ale. The park is a great spot to take a break, have a picnic or shop at the Mount Pleasant Farmers Market on Sundays, May to October.
Day 3
Travel Info
Mount Pleasant also has a lot to offer to coffee drinkers, with some of the city’s best coffee roasters and cafés. Try Elysian Coffee, Modus, 49th Parallel Café & Lucky’s Donuts, or Milano Roasters for your morning brew.
Located right in the heart of Mount Pleasant with 20 taps to choose from. Brunch is available on weekends and holidays.
One of the most innovative and inventive breweries in BC, Brassneck is a must-visit for any beer aficionado.
Based in a historic building that once was part of the Vancouver Brewery complex in the 1920s, Main Street Brewing showcases the neighbourhood’s history while brewing up cutting-edge contemporary craft beers.
Not far to the south is Queen Elizabeth Park, where you can find the Bloedel Conservatory, a lush, domed tropical paradise that is the highest point in the city of Vancouver.
This fun brewery has a truck stop-style diner with great food options, and often has concerts out front in the summer.
This modern take on the classic UK pub serves creative comfort food alongside their great craft beer selection. Open for lunch on weekends!
Brewery Creek is BC's premiere specialty liquor store, featuring the best craft beer selection in the Pacific Northwest with both local standouts and favourites from around the world.
The Vancouver region has more than 25,000 guest rooms, with about 13,000 alone downtown, so from economical to boutique, Vancouver accommodations are sure to suit any traveller's budget and tastes.
Explore More
If you are visiting during the summer season, check to see if the Vancouver Canadians are in town and take in a ballgame at nearby Nat Bailey Stadium, considered one of the best Minor League ballparks in North America.
Produced In Collaboration With
Catch a sunset from the top of one of Vancouver’s many wooded parks, and you will see how this city of shining glass towers and vibrant neighbourhoods, hugged by long arms of the Pacific Ocean is like nowhere else in the world.
Proud of our diversity and our open minds, the passion to be who you are and love what you do is integral to the thriving beer culture of Vancouver – on any given day you can walk into a cozy tasting room and try something experimental, such as collaborations with other breweries, businesses, or with a local farmer who has shared something in-season.