Berkeley’s Gilman Brewing Company Opens Taproom and Restaurant in Santa Cruz | Eater SF

"Debuting in December at 817 Soquel Avenue in midtown Santa Cruz, Gilman Brewing Company's fourth location spent six months dialing things in and now opens a 2,500-square-foot taproom plus a 1,500-square-foot weather-proofed beer garden. The beer lineup mirrors the West Berkeley brewhouse with several IPAs, three saisons, a pilsner, a porter, and a lager. This Santa Cruz spot will be the only one of the brewery’s four locations to serve its own food menu and is intended as the flagship for the restaurant; expect Neapolitan-inspired pizzas, a smash burger, dogs, brats, pretzels, and — most notably — a Nashville hot chicken sandwich that co-owner Sean Wells calls “my baby” and says is as close as he’s yet had to what you get in Nashville. Weekend brunch (including the hot chicken sandwich) is planned eventually, and the expansion down toward Monterey Bay has been personal for Wells, who moved to the beach city with his family in 2020." - Lauren Saria