Out by San Francisco’s Ocean Beach, there’s a small business corridor teeming with lively bars and restaurants. But the one-block haven for elite breakfast sandwiches, late-night Korean eats and an Irish pub dating back to 1978-ish just got even more vibrant with the opening of a buzzy brewery’s new taproom. However, it’s not just any taproom — it features a $3 beer, arguably the cheapest in the city. And you can pair it with one of the most popular smash burgers San Francisco has to offer.
Two Pitchers Brewing Company held the grand opening of its second Bay Area outpost last week at 3821 Noriega St. After experiencing success in Oakland by teaming up with Lovely’s Burgers, owners Tommy Hester and Wilson Barr collaborated with Maillards, the popular smash burger concept from Max Ponzurick that has been popping up at the Outer Sunset farmers market and Heritage Restaurant & Bar on Clement Street for the last three years. If the line out the door was any indication, the residents of the Outer Sunset were stoked to have a new hangout that will likely bring folks from other parts of the city to the quiet, beachside strip.
“I got really excited when I heard the news that it was opening, because there’s not really a spot in the neighborhood to hang out with your friends to drink beers and also get just a fantastic mouthwatering burger,” William Bouzek, a San Francisco native who now works in analytics for GoodRx, told SFGATE while waiting in line. “But I feel like my eyes are bigger than my stomach right now so it’s hard to pick which burger I want.”
It was a rare sunny day in the Outer Sunset district. As wispy clouds sat idly across the bright blue sky, Hester opened the door of his first SF business built inside a former grocery store at 4 p.m. on the dot. There was no cheer or any sort of celebration for the grand opening, only the shuffling of footsteps as the line halfway down the block made its way inside the light-filled space…