Curious about the best breweries in Grand Rapids? Welcome to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where craft beer might just outrank Michiganders, making it appropriately named Beer City, USA!
Spending just a day in Grand Rapids is not enough time to experience its more than 20 breweries, but if that’s all the time you’ve got, we’ve got a few of the must visit breweries for the time you have.
QUICK SIPS: Quick tips on which breweries to visit when you only have time for one or two.
Best Breweries in Grand Rapids
From artisanal brews to go-to classics, Grand Rapids has a plethora of breweries to match any craft beer lover’s palate. Not to mention the delectable food that is often served side by side.
Albeit, meager, this sampling will at least get you to some of the best of the best breweries in Grand Rapids, Michigan, so you won’t feel too left out of experiencing Beer City, USA.
Brewery Vivant
Welcome to church! Brewery Vivant is eclectic and charming from the moment you set eyes upon it. And even more so when you walk through its doors. Located in a refurbished historic funeral home, there is no doubt that this is one of Grand Rapids’ best breweries. Funeral home, yes, but there’s only life to be found here inside one of the first LEED-certified microbreweries due to the company’s dedication to sustainability and cultural impacts.
Inspired from a trip to Belgium and its many French-inspired farmhouse ales, the owners here are focused on both beer and food infused with culture.
BREWERY VIVANT AT A GLANCE:
Brewery Vivant
925 Cherry St. SE
Grand Rapids, MI
Best attributes: The ambiance shines through almost as much as their beer and food with stained glass windows and tall wood-beam ceilings.
Serving: Many varieties including IPAs, stouts, and more, but with a focus on farmhouse and European inspired ales (even serving with a unique Czech side pull faucet for Czech pilsners). You’ll also find a variety of wines, cocktails, seltzers, and NA options. And their food is just as exquisite as their beer.
Setting: A true brewery vibe with a sense of community and place. There’s a small patio, but the taproom is where it’s at. More specifically, the circular bar centered perfectly around the stained glass window.
Speciation Cellars
Artisanal ales in a vintage auto shop make for a distinctive pairing bringing all of your senses into play. This is definitely one of the best breweries in Grand Rapids. With an ever-changing tap list full of a colorful array of flavors to match any palate, Speciation is a must-stop.
We can’t say it much better than the folks at Speciation can. “Because of these variations in nature, along with the joy of experimentation, every release is unique, informed by the past while looking towards the future.”
SPECIATION AT A GLANCE:
Speciation Cellars
928 Wealthy St. SE
Grand Rapids, MI
Best attributes: The uniqueness of the brews here are what will draw you in. The ambiance and beauty of the place will keep you here for hours.
Serving: Oak-aged sours, crisp lagers, artisanal and unique brews meant for the ages, all while keeping up with the future. And they have a house-made NA option, as well. Oso Provisions is onsite to serve handcrafted herbed comfort food you won’t soon forget.
Setting: A greenhouse like setting gives this taproom an outside in feeling. Enjoy the bar or many of the tables dotted throughout the intimate space. Or find a space on the patio.
City Built Brewing Company
Ask almost any local which brewery is their favorite brewery in Grand Rapids, and their answer is quite often – City Built. Where the locals go, we go! Centrally located and easily walkable, City Built is a quintessential brewery with classics and trendy styles all playing quite nicely side by side. It’s easy to see why this locals’ favorite is one of the best breweries in Grand Rapids. No themed frills. Just damn good beer with damn good people.
Although the artwork is not something to miss. In fact, you might just want to get some cans to go just for the stunning art.
CITY BUILT AT A GLANCE:
City Built Brewing Co
820 Monroe Ave. NW Suite 155
Grand Rapids, MI
Best attributes: A classic brewery that was made for the people. It’s everyone’s third space. The location invites lingering, especially on a warm summer day.
Serving: A variety of taps from classic IPAs to fruited sours, dark beers and more. There’s also seltzers, wine, and several NA options. Food is a must here, too with its Puerto Rican flair for a variety of food options.
Setting: Seat yourself indoors or out. But the patio is especially inviting alongside the river walk.
The Mitten Brewing Company
Looking for a flight of pizza to go with your flight of beer? How about some baseball to go along with both? And all done well? The Mitten Brewing Company serves up all of the above and more.
And that flight of beer? In the shape of a mitten (the shape of Michigan), of course! The theme here may scream baseball, but you can strike out with your knowledge of the game, because this place also screams beer and pizza!
THE MITTEN AT A GLANCE:
The Mitten Brewing Co
527 Leonard St. NW
Grand Rapids, MI
Best attributes: Mittens down, the flight of pizza with a flight of beer is the coolest thing ever!
Serving: Over 20 beers on tap from classics to sours to ciders and seltzers. And pizzas from classics to artisanal, along with sandwiches and more. But don’t miss out on the pizza flight!
Setting: Set in a refurbished and expanded historic engine house with baseball memorabilia everywhere, this is a classic brewpub for a good beer and pizza meal.
Founders Brewing Company
While Founders doesn’t have that quaint, eclectic craft brewery vibe many of us craft brewery lovers have come to expect, it still remains on the list for many as a must-visit brewery as an OG in the beer scene. Known for its big boozy beer options, you’ll also find plenty of light beers. A restaurant as well as a brewery, there’s plenty of food choices alongside its well made brews, many unique and truly sip-worthy, making Founders one of Grand Rapids’ best breweries.
Just be sure to get here with enough time to enjoy those big boozy beers without having to guzzle them. Closing time here means closing time. They don’t fool around. At least that was the case when we paid a visit.
FOUNDERS AT A GLANCE
Founders Brewing Co
235 Cesar E. Chavez Ave.
Grand Rapids, MI
Best attributes: An OG in the craft brewery scene in Michigan since 1997 with well known brands such as All Day IPA, KBS, and Backwoods Bastard.
Serving: A multitude of taps, some unique to the taproom, along with wine options and a draft cocktail. There’s also a full service restaurant onsite.
Setting: Restaurant seating in a German beer hall style setting with ample seating both indoors and out, along with bar seating.
Which brewery will you deem the best brewery in Grand Rapids?
We believe that these breweries are some of the best breweries in Grand Rapids. So if you only have a day or two to explore this vibrant city, you at least know which breweries to start with.
We also believe that a day or two in Grand Rapids is not enough time to explore the craft beer scene in Beer City, USA. With other exceptional breweries such as Greyline, New Holland (original location in Holland, MI), and Perrin, to name just a few – not to mention the many beer bars in town as well, you really do need to plan a beercation to Grand Rapids.
However, we get it. Time is limited. So, which brewery will you choose? The best brewery in Grand Rapids, in reality, is really up to you.