Half Moon Bay Brewing Company to Set Up Shop in Berkeley

Half Moon Brewing Company is bringing its beers up North this summer, in the form of Pacific Standard, a combination taproom and bottle shop in downtown Berkeley. This is the first expansion of its kind for the brewery, which also has a restaurant at its location in Pillar Point Harbor, where it has operated for the past 16 years.

Now Bay Area drinkers can experience Half Moon's beers on tap closer to home, as well as a rotating selection of ciders and local wines. In addition to 15-20 beers on tap (about 50 percent of which will be from HMB), the bottle shop itself will offer growlers and bottles of both local and harder to find beers. The brewery's executive chef Federico Godinez will head up the menu, which is will be small, and tailored to match up with the beverages.

The concept and design is a collaboration between the brewery and Joel DiGiorgio of Farm League Design, the Berkeley-based food and beverage company behind Tigerlily and Drake's Dealership. Apparently there will be lots of "natural wood colors and large, communal tables," if that gives an idea of what the vibe will be. Given the taproom's close proximity to Cal campus (2055 Center Street), there will likely be some crossover by the student crowd, though craft beer might not exactly fit a college kid's budget, and beer pong probably won't be on the menu.

Stay tuned for more details closer to opening.