We came on a lazy Sunday lunch, the last day before my in-service begins for school. The beers were outstanding as always. They always have taste and are exactly what you expect. Ordered Italian, the seafood cannelloni and baked lasagna. Beware it will take 20+ if there is only a few people there and longer if you had others in line in front of you. The lasagna was great. Seafood cannelloni, bland, bland bland and certainly not worth $18. This needs to be kicked up several notches, have describable and possibly visible seafood in it before charging that much. It was acceptable but certainly forgettable. Try something else unless the menu board says it's, 'New menu item". They could also add countless items to their non-alcoholic selection. A couple of Izze sparkling sodas and water isn't much of a choice. Always coming back, no worries. The ambiance is fantastic with the pandemic necessitated outdoor seating in the front parking spots. ********I would suggest some tape to mark the curb since two people including myself stumbled from the sidewalk to the seating area. ****** read more

Awesome!!! Food was awesome!!! Service was awesome!!! Got there at opening on a Sunday and it filled up pretty fast!!! We had our one year old and they have high chairs and books for kids!!! GOOD FOR KIDS! The food was delicious and presented very nice!!! The broccoli is a must get, so good!!! My loved it!!! Chicken and waffles and kimchi fried rice were awesome!!! BEER WAS GREAT TOO! read more

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They have a nice selection of food the beer was ok, none of the tasters wowed me so I didn't pick up anything else. Patio area was nicely set up with high chairs for the smaller kids. quail waffle was drowned in syrup. Killed the waffle and made it soggy, not what we really liked. Pork belly tacos had a nice spicy kick Cubano was decent read more

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With a rotating menu, it's hard to know what we're going to get, but we always love it! Our go to are the charcuterie and cheese boards. The pork pate is to die for and my fiancé wishes they sold their mustard...it's that good. They seem to always have the Pork Belly sliders as well and we really love those. They've perfected cooking it over the times we've been there and it's quite flavorful and moist! I'm waiting for the day their poke comes back! So good, fresh, and marinated just right! Not too heavy with their sauces and oils. We've also loved their braised octopus, duck and crudo! The shimmer pilsner, ten million flowers and all of the ciders are great! read more

Omg I looooove this place! The gnocchi with truffles kill!!! I would go everyday if I could, but only when Bruna is is in the kitchen! Everything was amazing! read more

Came here with a bunch of friends for lunch and boy were we in for a treat. The finger foods were spot on and delish! The beer selection was great and the prices were decent. I recommend eating at their beer garden! read more

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Risky pairing an Italian kitchen with a brewery. The food is fair at best Go for the beer though. It is excellent. read more

What a rad little brewery! Made the great decision of taking a pit stop here after the beach. They have a great variety of beers to choose from, I couldn't decide so I went with a flight. Their flights are served in old muffin tins - what a great repurpose! We also ordered a cheese board and the bread is came with is indescribably tasty. They also have a nice little patio outside to enjoy your brews. Will be back next time I'm in the area! read more

Great beer, excellent food and amazing service. I love the pizzas and sandwiches from Sugo, the restaurant that runs the food business at Discretion. Absolutely delicious! I'm an Uncle Dave's guy but love to try all of the other fresh beers on the menu. There are about 20 beers available all the time. Super good. The staff is incredible, and there is live music 4 days a week. read more

Love this place. At one point we were here and they created these amaaaaziing mushroom tacos I forgot to take a picture of. Today we enjoyed a beer read more

Discretion Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

Extremely disappointed. I have been brewery hopping today in the Santa Cruz area and this brewery was recommended by multiple people. Unfortunately, out of the 5 breweries I have been to today this was by far the worst experience. We ordered both food and beer... the beer was decent and the staff was nice. However, the food was disgusting. One of the food items we ordered was the margarita pizza and I can safely say this was the worst pizza I have ever had in my entire life (dead serious). Worse than a cheap frozen pizza from the grocery store. What a waste of money. Also, the ambiance was terrible. The lighting was good, but the place was dead on a Saturday night and no music was playing outside. Inside had music, but no seating so it didn't really help. All of the seating was outside, but complete dead silence outside besides a couple tables talking. I do not recommend this place. There are way better breweries nearby. Ambiance 101... good lighting and music. Super easy to do. Get it together, Discretion. read more

Neat find! We were looking for a quick bite in the afternoon as we had just arrived in the area for a weekend staycation and was not disappointed by what this place had to offer! Beer on tap (taste before you buy) and a good amount of food options. We tried their fried chicken & waffles and the pork belly sliders - the popular items! Again - delicious and a great snack. Didn't fill us up, but hey - it's an appetizer. Hipster place with awesome decor and plenty of indoor/outdoor seating. Restrooms available (and clean!) and water available in the dining area so you can help yourself. read more

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Love the logo and the fact that they are organic and solar powered. The space is also a big open space and there are both inside and outside seating. It's all good and I'm feeling the love....but... The beer is ok but it's not my favorite. It's kind of a mixed bag. I do like Uncle Dave's rye, that is usually my go to here. I loved the red called song in my heart but they decided to remove it from their list. Like the wooden ruler imperial stout it's very strong stout with a whisky barrel finish. It's a strong guy at 10.6% . The other beers I have not been as much a fan. The shimmer pils has a strange funky aftertaste and is not true to style of what you would expect from a pils from Germany. I got that as a growler and took to the beach and nobody really liked it. The saison is also not to what I consider true to style. I'm not sure if it's the malt they use or the yeast but it doesn't taste anything like a saison to me. Food is the reason they go to 3 stars. There are no vegan options and everything is very veggie unfriendly. Can't even get a salad without dairy. Sorry but they try to support local and all but it would be nice to be more inclusive to other tastes. Roasted nuts and popcorn for $5 is not going to cut it. I liked that the people who work here are cool and chill and it's got a nice atmosphere and good music playing in the background. Overall it's a good local spot to check out. read more

Discretion Brewing - Uncle Dave's rye IPA - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

Very cool place took my family on a trip to Santa Cruz and Capitola. The vibe was cool and appealing. The couple cooking in the back are so sweet. I recommend their Lasagna and Pizza they were both very authentic and so good. For desert try the tiramisu and cannoli. Beers on tap are all quality and their IPA paired perfect with the Pizza. I recommend and can't wait to try it again. read more

In my opinion, Discretion has the best beer in town and they USED to have the best food at any of the breweries as well. I haven't been there for a while and recently visited and was hugely disappointed from the food that the new chef is serving (maybe not so new anymore). I'll still visit for beers only, but if definitely won't be ordering food. 5/5 for beers, 1/5 for food. I hope they replace they chef so I can update this review to a 5-star. read more

Really nice spot with a beautiful patio! The Kitchen makes great food that pairs well with the beer. We got the tasting flight with the 15th Conversation, 16th Conversation, Glorioski Amber, Uncle Dave's Rye IPA, Good Faith and 2nd Conversation. Also, I got a glass of the Cruzerweisse with lemon ginger syrup added to it. I really enjoyed the Cruzerweisse - tastes very similar to a champagne. Very flavorful, bubbly and delish! From the flight, my favorites were the 16th conversation (you get hints of the Darjeeling) and the Good Faith (strong ale). For nibbles, we had the popcorn with sea salt and chili oil and the sweet potato fritters. Popcorn was to die for! Not too buttery and the salt and chili oil made this even more addictive than popcorn already is. Sweet potato fritters we're ok. Quite greasy. Presentation was beautiful though. read more

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I love all of their beers especially their hop bebop ipa. I have yet to try their food but I hear it's delicious. Also they are dog friendly which is always a big plus. Service is always quick and friendly. read more

Discretion Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

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Great beer, decent food. Friendly service. An alright outdoor seating area but a bit hot in warmer days. There is a distinct smell from dumpsters and I'm unsure if it's behind the seating area. Not their fault but how unfortunate read more

Finally had an opportunity to visit Discretion Brewing yesterday after numerous recommendations from friends. Unfortunately, we did not have the same experience my friends have had. My wife and I came in yesterday afternoon for a late lunch (around 2:00 pm) and based on our visit we won't be returning. The experience at Discretion was strange. They have no servers and you have to order all food and beer at the counter. After ordering, you're given a buzzer and you're supposed to pick up your food at the kitchen window. Next to the kitchen window, there are bus bins with dirty dishes and silverware. So when you've finished your meal, you're supposed to bus your own table and drop off your dirty dishes in these bins. So...if I'm serving my table and bussing my table...why do I need to tip? Also, my wife and I were sitting at the bar and we over heard staff complaining about patrons and how annoyed they were with the patrons. We could not believe what we were hearing! We planned on ordering more beer, but hearing this interchange with staff members just turned us off and we were ready to leave. This was a shame because the food was pretty good and the beers were decent, but this ruined our experience. The staff member that helped us (Chloe) was actually really nice. Overall, we won't be coming back. And honestly, our experience was just another example of poor service in Santa Cruz County. It's just so frustrating because we want to dine in Santa Cruz County because we're local, but why should we spend our hard-earned money on average food and terrible service. 1 Star for the food...the highlights were the pork belly sliders and the bok choy. The quail & waffles was not good, soggy waffles and the quail was a bit gamey. First and last visit for us. read more

I took my brother here when he came down to visit since he likes beer a lot more than I do. We came at a weird hour so it's hard to say whether it gets crowded or not, but I was starving regardless. We sat ourselves outside, plenty of shade and seating both inside and outside. They definitely have food options which was great for me. Everything was super flavorful and well seasoned. My favorite was the chicken and waffles, my brother tried to steal some! I can't quite remember what he got, but it was still good! Onto the beer! They have got a large selection, so for those new to the area/brewery, a taster set is definitely a must! All of their beers were pretty hoppy for me, even the lighter lagers. But worked out in my brother's favor as he drank everything. If I'm ever back in the area I'd totally come back for the food. read more

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The food is amazing! My wife had the salmon, crispy skin meat not over cooked. I had a steak with a pesto sauce. Very good Service was slooooow. read more

Oh Black Oh Black Oh Black!!! Love this place and all the fantastic people who work here! Thanks for making amazing beer and creating a awesome atmosphere! 5/5 would recommend! read more

Not a huge menu but all of it is good. My favs are the pork belly sliders, wings and when we went the first time there was a spanish octopus pasta special that was amazing.Good beer selection and they all taste great. I live coming here on a date or with a group. Its first come first serve so no reservations and theres not always a table where you would like but its worth waiting or sitting elsewhere. read more

One of the many local breweries making up the awesome santa cruz brew scene. While they do have their own private parking lot, it fills up during peak times. It's also hard to tell where discretion parking starts/ends and the surrounding businesses begin. There is a giant strip mall parking lot across the street in case of emergency. I feel as though I should mention this isn't the easiest place to find if you aren't too familiar with the area. The parking and tasting room/kitchen are actually behind 41st ave. The tasting room-which us really what the reviews here are for-has both inside and outside seating. The outside seating is perfect on sunny days, and offers a pleasing beer garden experience. Once past the landscaping however, the view is of the parking lot. Inside they've gone for a rustic look-concrete flooring, wood paneling and lots of table/chair/bench combos.Seating both inside and out can be intimate, shared, or family style depending on what/where you chose. A counter area is available for those who are serious about their beer drinking. There is a children's play area should you be needing one. Also a small bookshelf and various games -connect 4, chess-that you'd be more likely to find at a coffee shop as opposed to a beer place. There will be about a dozen beer options ranging from your pilsner/lager options to the regional IPA's to stouts along with some specialty big beers-saison, tripel, imperial, rye, scotch ales, etc. Beer selection rotates on a regular basis, especially for seasonal of strong ales and as such will almost certainly be different on your visit. The kitchen-also known as THE KITCHEN-offers some serious grub. It seems they have their own pet chef (Santos Majano. He's one of those Michelin five star types) in charge of the restaurant section, and the food on offer here is the best of any brewery in santa cruz. The beer is good, but the food is spectacular. Menu changes all the time based on what's in season but you can never go wrong with a plowman's platter. Chicken and waffles? Yes please. Service both for beer and food is of the self order at counter variety. Food will be brought out to your table when ready, but the beer will be handed over on the spot. It's by no means a fast food place but the wait sin't any too excessive either. The food will be there before you finish that beer is what I'm saying. Pricing for the beer is reasonable enough, but the food starts to add up quick. I'd say a 20-30 dollar tab for a beer(or two) and a meal is what to expect on the low side of things. I've had their beer on tap at other places, and also had their cans at home. Wasn't too impressed either time, but there is something about that taproom.....fresh beer and fresh food in a perfect gasthaus setting make it truly something to savor. read more

Discretion Brewing - Der menu - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

Discretion brewery has a special place in my heart, after visiting their brewery my love continued on. Food and drinks: The food was phenomenal and outstanding like all the other reviews state don't miss out on the popcorn. To add on, its beers are great and for someone who doesn't like to drink a lot of liquid its small size made me very happy. Price: if you're worried about the price you can get small bites instead of an entree and get more for your money, however, food is fresh and Discretion cares about the environment so for me it's worth the price. Service: staff was not friendly and did not make me feel welcomed and for the price of the food, I would personally like my food brought to the table. read more

Nice beers Great atmosphere! Fresh ingredients! Awesome food! We are going again right now P.S. We went, but they have a new cook or something now, and the food was just ok The review I posted, was based on the past five years going there. The last time being sometime in June 2021. I'm real sorry that the food changed read more

Beer for people who hate beer. Uninspired beer with insulting names: Raspberry Smile? Oh Black Lager? Is this beer for kids? I'm offended by how bad this beer is. read more

The food is amazing and gets 5 out of 5. The beer is good but nothing special, more like a 3 out of 5. I honestly only come here for the food. Their food menu changes pretty regularly and it's all delicious! They had some cute little corn breads shaped like ears of corn with lavender butter a year or so back that were SO GOOD. I really hope they bring them back! All the cheese and meat plates are solid. They had an olive oil cake last time I was there that was to die for! Next time you're at Beer Thirty or Sante Adarius do yourself a favor and come here to eat! read more

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We love discretion! Best brewery in santa cruz!! Food is always fresh and tasty, beers are 10/10. The outside seating area is peaceful and comfortable, and in the evenings the live music is always fun. read more

Parking was easy and the employees were accomodating. Free water! I had the Citral which was my favorite out of my flight of Jugo and Dave's. read more

Discretion Brewing - Jugo x2 @6% Citral x2 @7%. I though had the best flavor Good Faithx2 @6.5% - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

Omg, that was the worst food experience I've ever had. Normally I love to come here for beer & bites. I don't know what happened???? $66 later I feel sick. The Caesar salad tasted like a dead fish out of the trash. I wanted to spit it out on the ground. We did send it back and got a mixed green salad that was better, but completely tasteless. The homemade chips were good, but not nearly enough salsa. The Cauliflower was horrible it tasted like mushy cauliflower in a bowl of hot and sour soup. Got the mushroom tacos that were ok, but totally tasteless as well. Luckily, the beer was good as usual although it was served in tiny plastic cups. PLEASE go back to old cooks and menus. Service was very good, no complaints there. read more

This is a brew house located right off 41st Avenue behind some other businesses. I took a bunch of pictures here and really wanted to rate it well but they totally forgot my food order and other than refunding me for the order made no effort to fix problem. The kitchen is run by the Soup Nazi who was rude and said food ready when it's ready and different meals take different times. Well I ordered first out of 6 of us and never got the food. Oh well, this was your chance, so 2-stars for now with an option to upgrade at a later date. But we came here for lunch and the only one you forgot to feed was the guy writing the review = bad call on your part. On the positive the beer was well made, fresh, and cold. Would have like to rate you better Discretion Brewing. read more

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This used to be our go-to spot in Santa Cruz, but sadly we will not be returning unless the food changes. Beers here are decent and continue to be decent, and outdoor seating area is nice (dog and family friendly). However, the food has gone drastically downhill. When Chef Santos Majano was there the food was incredible (eg: duck confit, and creative dishes using fresh seasonal ingredients). After he left, the food was still okay, but now at our most recently visit in Sept, the food has become unremarkable and flavorless. It is now bland Italian style food (who serves Italian food with beer?) Chicken Cacciatore was a dry, overcooked, boneless chicken thigh in a puddle of tomato sauce that tasted like it came out of a can with no additional seasoning. Lasagne was also bland and disappointing. Please get a decent chef and also brew more beers that are NOT IPAs. read more

Cool local brewery to check out once, although I didn't find any beers I loved here since I'm more of a stouts person. They do have a lot of beers that have won awards, and I did enjoy tasting the majority of them. Discretion is located in Soquel right off the freeway, so there's plenty of parking and it wasn't super crowded on a Saturday afternoon. There is bar seating and also a dog friendly outdoor patio available. They have a pretty extensive menu for a brewery, but the plates are on the pricier side (upwards of $7 even for appetizers). I decided to go with the "choose your own flight" option, which includes 6-3oz tastes for $9 (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=yA3ZlGqby-jVqedlMxLVrQ&userid=76vIFZcC7owykCBjMfGVXg). I tried: -Shimmer Pils (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=xPhoc34wIQmpgJ4-c1_T_Q&userid=76vIFZcC7owykCBjMfGVXg): Light tasting and crisp but has a slight bitter aftertaste at the end. -First Conversation: Too much sweetness for me, but good flavor. I liked that it didn't have too much spice flavor. -Uncle Dave's Rye IPA (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=GHkIpO8kaBYEJVTqL-wBnw&userid=76vIFZcC7owykCBjMfGVXg): Not my favorite since I'm not a fan of the rye flavor in alcohol. Super hoppy on the finish. -Good Faith Strong Ale (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=erLMCUbRRc0oIkJxYicXLg&userid=76vIFZcC7owykCBjMfGVXg): 9% ABV, and you can tell it's a strong beer. I liked the heavier consistency but it was too sweet for me. -Mickie Malone's Dry Irish Stout (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=amoguOj4p9IavZDxW6lovg&userid=76vIFZcC7owykCBjMfGVXg): Malty but had a lighter consistency than Guinness, and a dry finish (true to it's name). Very smooth since it was poured on nitro. My favorite out of the beers. -Oh Black Lager: Too much carbonation for me and the consistency was too thin. I wouldn't come back just because they don't have the style of beer that I like, but would definitely recommend you check them out once if you're a fan of lighter style beers. Parking was easy since this lot had plenty of spots. read more

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********************* 1324 ********************** Cool spot if you are beer lovers, which I'm not. My friend took me here and I love the spacious place. Fresh bouquets, a long bar, a lounging area, and an outdoor area for all the local hipsters and surfers. Plenty of selection for you to choose from, if you are unsure, the barman will let you try a taste of it first. Food is prepared by the former Soif Wine Bar chef, reasonable and solid. Service was on point. It's a popular spot for surfers and hipsters. read more

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Being from the bay, Santa Cruz has always been the place for an easy beach destination, impromptu hiking adventure, a stop by at Marianne's or penny's for ice cream, or somewhere to party for the night when visiting friends from UCSC. I pretty much laid out a typical Santa cruz day. Never has it been somewhere I thought to look into further and venture the town for the good eats and local gems. Discretion brewing is a one of those cool little finds that more people should visit on their trips to Santa Cruz! It's not exactly a full on restaurant with a bar, it's more like its a bar with above average bar food. If that makes sense... LOL. Their menu changes a little due to season and availability. I'm the type of person who likes to plan where to go down to every detail, even picking out what I want to order ahead of time. You can't really do that much here because they may not have what you were looking for! For example, yelp friend Angel K had a delicious looking corn soup and hot brown that had me itching to go but unfortunately they didn't have when I went. They also didn't have the pork belly pozole that my mouth was watering and tummy grumbling for, but it's okay! It just means I have to keep coming back hehe. Anyways, this place has an adorable patio to enjoy on a nice day! We ordered the chicken and waffles & beer flight, then sat outside to enjoy it all. The beer is great, needless to say. Uncle daves, song in your heart, and shimmer Pils were the favorites. For food, the chicken and waffles are unique in the sense that the way they make the chicken isn't the breaded crispy kind people normally associate "chicken & waffles" with. It's very different and pretty good! The skins very soft and sweet which compliments the waffle because it's like eating waffles with syrup! Except you don't need the syrup because the chicken and sauce it's in is sweet! Mhmmmm. This place is worth a try if you're in the SC area. read more

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I really wanted to love this place. My husband and I have had our eye on it for a few months and finally got a chance to try it out. Let me clarify...the 3 stars are for the beer only. The food was...pretty terrible. No stars, really. We each got a "special", basically one was chicken thigh and the other was chicken breast, coated in the same tasteless sauce and cheese, with some very sad country style potatoes on the side. Now, the table next to us had some bruschetta and meatballs that looked pretty promising, so maybe we just ordered the wrong thing. But the beer-- Between my husband and I, we had 2 flights that pretty much covered everything on the list with the exception of pilsners and pale ales, which neither of us care for anyways. So, we basically had every IPA, lager, Hefe, sour, etc...the flagship here is the Jugo Huevo hazy IPA. It was smooth, pretty, and drinkable. Of my flight, the Bay/Porter was the only one I really enjoyed. The Oktoberfest was just "ok", Everything else was just...eh. I'd try again with more variety of perhaps porters and stouts. It's truly a nice facility. The garden area is pretty, it's family friendly and a nice location. read more

Note: My review is MOST relevant to nondrinkers accompanying friends who drink. Also to those who hate poor value being had. We 3 out of towners walked in here so one of us could get a beer while 2 of us just wanted to try out the appetizer type snacks our airbnb host suggested made this place a gem. The place itself is very nice...outdoor patio area and indoor bar with some accompanying tables. We sat at the bar because of poorly filled tables (2 people where 6 fit, everywhere). My opinion of the place goes south from here. I order a diet whatever soda (whichever I guess between Pepsi and Coke, I'm usually wrong). Well, here there was no such thing as right, because they have NO soda whatsoever. The only nonalcoholic beverages they have is tap water and a summer refresher lime juice mystery that costs as much as a beer ($5). So I got the water. No ice, water smelled like wet dog. You mean to tell me you don't have someone involved in this business that can buy cans of any soda and mark them up 250% or at least sell some stink-free bottled water? At least I didn't throw $5 away on lime flavored dog water. I probably should've ceased ordering for myself at this point. But sadly I didn't. We decided to share an order of tempting sounding potato wedges. An $8 order of potato wedges should suffice for 1 male nondrinker and 2 small females who pick at food for 30 seconds before becoming full, right? Wrong! There were literally FIVE wedges of potato. Check my photo! If I pieced the one potato we got for $8 back together, I'm certain we would've been missing 2 wedges to complete the friggin thing. Hungry much, beer chef? So I had my two $1.60 slivers of potato, waited for our beer to go away, and bailed out to Pleasure Pizza pronto. They had a $13 tri tip sandwich on the menu (surely with no fries - maybe they should sell them for $1 per fry) but I can't imagine a scenario where I would try it with stink water. This is definitely a one and done, wishing it were none. read more

Discretion Brewing - 5 wedges × 8 dollars = 1 visit. - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

Not Great. Food was not great. Beer was not great. Friend suggested it and now I'm questioning my friendship with them.

Really enjoyed my experience here. One of the employees spent a good 5 minutes explaining each and every beer in their flight. The place was packed and I thought this was fantastic because he realized this was our first time at their place. I took a few pictures of their beer menu. Really enjoyed the rye IPA a lot. They also serve a very nice small menu of appetizer type foods. Not fried junk. I would definitely recommend stopping in this place if you are in Santa Cruz or Capitola area. Right off the 1 at 41st exit. Nice outdoor seating. Game boards and books inside with smaller quaint tables or longer bench style for groups. Also dog friendly. Woof woof. Chef Chris is in charge of the menu which is affiliated with a place called Main Street Garden. Enjoy!!!!!! read more

Discretion Brewing - Breweries Near Me - Soquel, California

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