A favorite Raleigh bar has been named one of the country’s best beer gardens
One of the largest outdoor bars in Raleigh has been named one of America’s best beer gardens.
Raleigh Beer Garden is the third best beer garden in the nation, according to new rankings from USA Today, drawing on national beer experts and fan voting to find the best outdoor beer spots.
A cold beer loves the sunshine and the best beer gardens tip toward large communal drinking yards, where the tap list is as massive as the elbow room.
Opened in 2016, Raleigh Beer Garden burst on the Glenwood South nightlife scene as the largest bar in the Triangle at the time. Shortly after its debut, Raleigh Beer Garden went in the record books as the Guinness World Record holder for the most beers on tap at 397.
That world record was eventually eclipsed by Raleigh Beer Garden’s sister spot, the Charlotte Beer Garden, which was named the country’s top beer garden on the USA Today list.
The Raleigh Beer Garden is part of the Hibernian Hospitality Group, which includes the wildly popular Hibernian Irish Pubs, the Morgan Street Food Hall, burger shop CowBar and Watts & Ward cocktail bar.
When the Raleigh Beer Garden first opened in 2016 it was something of a beer spectacle, owner Niall Hanley said at the time, drawing imbibers from around the South and kicking more than 400 kegs in its first week.
“It’s been incredible,” Hanley said in 2016. “In my 20-plus years in the restaurant business, I’ve never seen anything like it. I equated to someone the other day, it was like having Saint Paddy’s Day every day for seven days.”
Today Raleigh Beer Garden is known for its sprawling outdoor drinking spaces looking out on the Raleigh skyline. There are multiple floors of bars, including one level dedicated to international beers.
North Carolina’s beer scene is one of the best in the nation, and there may be no better showcase than the tap list at Raleigh Beer Garden, which features 122 local beers on draft.
