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Patio Porn: Beer Gardens Edition

A quick selection of ten spots offering beer and the great outdoors. Here's a taster's choice of beer gardens and happy hours in Shanghai.

By SmSh Nightlife

TELL EVERYONE

1 .

1.
Daga Brewpub (Fuxing Lu)

This place has like 40 Chinese beers on tap (some are great, some are works in progress), and the third floor here is one of the nicest rooftops in the city, perched high up in the canopy. They have domestic beers like Master Gao and NBeer on draft, and you can sample as many as you like until you settle on something good. Some flavors, like the "Zhong Nan Hai Stout", get pretty eccentric (read: questionable). The service is friendly, and while they have food, it's hit and miss. Avoid the hummus. Their daily happy hour involves 35rmb-45rmb drafts for a selection of 8-12 beers.

Daga Brewpub (Fuxing Lu)

100 Fuxing Xi Lu, near Yongfu Lu
2 .

2.
Beergrdn

Just a few blocks north of Jing'an Temple, the courtyard at the URBN hotel has three arcade machines and a couple decent brews on draft, including imports like Brooklyn and some local ones like their Beergrdn Choclolate Stout, the Shanghai IPA, and the Reburg Wheat. During happy hour from 5pm-8pm, beers are 5rmb-15rmb off (that Shanghai IPA will run you 35rmb then). They've also got some bar food on deck.

Beergrdn

183 Jiaozhou Lu, near Xinzha Lu
3 .

3.
Mr. Beer

First, the bad news about this beer shop in north Jing'an: everything except the patio. The prices are all over the place. 49rmb for a bottle of Duvel at a beer shop? We're talking double the price of Just Cool or Beer Lady for several varieties. But there is some good news: they have around 200 kinds of beer by the bottle and the patio is massive. The patio might save 'em, in fact. They do buy-one-get-one on select drafts before 8.30pm on Sunday to Wednesday as well.

Mr. Beer

495 Jiangning Lu, near Kangding Lu
4 .

4.
Foam Heaven

Do you like cats? This is the beer shop with the cats. It's next to a pet shop and an apartment building full of felines. The beer shop people often leave some food for the cats, and sometimes 3 or 4 of them are just chilling in the shop and out on the patio. The humans stock about 300 kinds of bottled beer (Vedett is 35rmb). Decor is random but the patio is pleasant, if you're into Dagu Lu.

Foam Heaven superBARket

390 Dagu Lu, near Chengdu Bei Lu
5 .

5.
Beer Lady

You know Mrs. Zhang. She's been deep in the passport photocopy game for years, and her shop off Fahuazhen Lu sells a few hundred beers. All kinds of craft beers, from cheap, common bottles to the hard to find and painfully expensive. Mrs. Zhang drinks too. She claims she's tried every beer in the shop. At night, and daytime by request, she puts tables outside and this place turns into a laid-back street bar. Sometimes it's hard to get a seat. Occasionally, they host events and parties too. Read the whole story. No happy hour, but you can drink for cheap here anytime.

The Beer Lady (Fahuazhen Lu)

455 Fahuazhen Lu, near Dingxi Lu
6 .

6.
The Brew

If you live in deep Pudong, this is your go-to for craft beer. Even if you don't live out that way, it's worth the 30-minute ride on Line 7 just to sample their beers. It ain't cheap, but the patio and beer garden are huge, the bar food is solid, and their brewery has been making quality beers for years. Solid wheat beer and IPA, and a few more experimental varieties like a sour beer. Their brewmaster, Leon Mickelson left to pursue his Cider Republic venture, but it seems their new dude, Nathan is doing a fine job. Happy hour is buy-one-get-one from 3pm to 8pm daily. The bad news: they charge a service charge and tax. Oof...

The BREW

The Kerry Hotel, 1388 Huamu Lu,...
7 .

7.
Boxing Cat (Yongfu Lu)

Long-running Shanghai pride brewery, Boxing Cat has patios on Yongfu, at Sinan Mansions, and out in Hongqiao at The Place. All solid and usually busy (okay, the service can be really hit-or-miss at Sinan Mansions). Happy hour deal is great: On Monday to Thursday, 5pm-8pm and Friday to Sunday, 3-8pm, they have 35rmb pints and 100rmb pitchers of any of their house beers (go for the Contender). Food is decent if you order right -- go for the chili or the breakfast burrito. Also, you can get Boxing Cat beer at a dozen venues around town, and even in Hong Kong these days.

Boxing Cat Brewery (Yongfu Lu)

82 Fuxing Xi Lu, near Yongfu Lu
8 .

8.
Paulaner Brauhaus (Fenyang Lu)

For a lot of Chinese drinkers, Germany sets the standard of beer is all about, and Paulaner was at the vanguard of that trend 20 years ago or so. A bit expensive for our wallets, the German restaurant has a really nice beer garden at their Fenyang Lu location -- the place where they host the annual Christmas Market. Their long-pouring three draft beers are just alright, but from 4pm to 7pm daily, they're 50% off. So 500ml glasses are 40rmb instead of 80rmb, and those 1 liter steins are 75rmb instead of 150rmb.

Paulaner Brauhaus (Fenyang Lu)

150 Fenyang Lu, near Fuxing Lu
9 .

9.
Tap House (Taixing Lu)

Okay, so definitely more corporate, expense account vibes at the second outpost of Tap House. But, they have 24 kinds of draft beer on tap, which change often, and the rooftop and courtyard are busy in the warmer months. Bar food is hit and miss. Avoid the burger. Carl's Jr. is just around the corner and that's probably a better option. They've got a nice and long happy hour that runs from 4pm to 11pm, and involves buy-one-get-one on select bottles, and 50rmb pints of four select drafts.

Tap House (Jing'an)

Zhangyuan 99, 99 Taixing Lu, near...
10 .

10.
Just Cool

Just around the corner from The Beer Lady is a less crowded place that sells imported bottles for even cheaper. Selection is good, but not as vast as Beer Lady's. It's also a good café to get some work done in the daytime. They've always been known for cheap pizza, but they recently brought in a consultant and really stepped their pie game up. No happy hour, but prices are low, like 18rmb to 30rmb for some quality bottles.

Just Cool

B1/F, 432 Dingxi Lu, near Xinhua Lu

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