Friends, we live in heady days for brewery dining. The latest: Golden Oak Barbecue & Taproom in Downtown Phoenix, newly opened offspring of Mesa’s award-winning Oro Brewing Co. and Chris Figueroa of Nicky’s BBQ. Can it crack our Top 3 list of Valley gastro-breweries?
Arizona Wilderness Miracle Mile
Long admired for the hearty salads and baroque handhelds at its original Gilbert location, AW bends faintly Asian at its new Phoenix location, including a brilliant chicken banh mi that leaps with bright flavor; and scads of top-flight vegetarian dishes, like a tepary bean burger on Noble bread. 1422 E. McDowell Rd., Phoenix, azwbeer.com
Peoria Artisan Brewery
Attached to the brewery mothership by secret passage, Barley & Smoke was a PHOENIX Best New Restaurant in 2024, turning out elite global eats. The pork belly with cured watermelon is perhaps the Valley’s premier expression of the dish – crispy, smoky and absurdly good. 10144 W. Lake Pleasant Pkwy., Peoria, 623-572-2816, peoriaartisanbrewing.com
Wren Südhalle
The Südhalle menu always finds a way to pleasantly confound the brewery-food norm. Case in point: the Friday-only fried fish special, made with North Atlantic hake from Nelson’s Meat + Fish). So crunchy and succulent, and so perfectly suited to Südhalle’s crisp, German- and Czech-style lagers. 4025 E. Chandler Blvd., Phoenix, 602-244-9184, wrenhousebrewing.com
