Novel Brewing Company

The beer is surprisingly good and dependably good—from such a small brewery. Customer service is always friendly. Bathrooms are always clean. The book theme throughout adds a fun element that does not sacrifice on quality. They have some games to play and fun events like trivia nights. There’s also outdoor seating in the side lot and sometimes food catering comes, like Peruvian Hot Dogs. You can get beers by the glass or tasting flights. They also sell beer to go in cans and growlers. There’s a limited selection of non-alcoholic beverages.

Love this place! This was our last brewery stamp needed to complete the Oakland Ale Trail Passport of a total 9 breweries - woohoo! What a great way to end this fun experience! Novel is right in between North Oakland and South Berkeley so it was filled with a pretty cool crowd this Sunday when we visited! They also had food pop up of pizza bagel from Bagel Babes for a small fee of $3! They offer few snacks too and decently priced beers at a typical Oakland rate of 6-7$ for a pint! Their flights are too cute because they come tucked in a book stand. The place is really lovely. Lots of wood work and tons of book to read and games to play. How fun! We felt so comfortable, welcomed and got that cozy home sweet home feel :) Service is fuss free and friendly! Very clean bathrooms :)

Recommended to us while at another brewpub. We walked in through an open garage door, finding books on shelves along with games that many tables were happily engaged in! Loved the atmosphere and choices of beers available. Offer trivia night, too. Only visiting on vacation, but so glad we hit upon this spot! (I work at a library, so I guess I'm a bit biased toward this theme!)

The reviews for this place seem really high right? And it's because they are true! I was skeptical of a 4.9, but the place was great. I tried like 7 of their beers and they were all good. I mean above the norm levels of good. The Single Hop red was a standout as was their stout. I'm fully intending to come back here, and if you've seen my review history, you know I hit a lot of breweries, and I'm telling you this is in my top ten at this point. Go here and get some beer.

Novel Brewing instantly gave me a feeling of being at home. From the mellow and friendly beertender, to the stacks of board games and an overabundance of books, this is a lovely place to grab a beer with friends. I visited on a relaxed Tuesday afternoon around 4:00 pm, which is a very uncrowded time to visit.

Great owners & staff... super friendly. Kid & dog friendly atmosphere. Great beer and great BBQ on Sundays at their new outdoor dining area.

Local, small brewery with great atmosphere and even better beer. They also welcome dogs so it's been my favorite pretty much since they opened. Dubbel and Oatmeal Stout are my current go to choices, but their Amber is pretty tasty too. You should come taste a few for yourself.

The beer is really great. Every style of beer I've tried has pleased my tastebuds. Worth a visit for a flight. Laid back atmosphere encourages you to order take out and hang out for a few pints. Enjoyed greatly! Oh, and dog friendly?YES!