Taplands

Taplands isn't just a bar; it's the heart and soul of Santa Clara. Stepping inside feels like coming home, a testament to the incredible community and the best craft beer in town. Owner Matt has created a genuine tap room that stands head and shoulders above the rest, fostering a neighborhood vibe where you can literally run into anyone—from the mayor to a police officer, to your best friends. ​The food is just as much a part of the experience, thanks to Jose, the best cook around, who makes everything feel like a home-cooked meal. ​But at the core of it all is the incredible staff. Bartenders like Christopher Foley, Chrissy Pooh, and RAV are part of what makes this place so friendly and welcoming. And of course, a special shout-out to Courtney. She is so much more than a bartender; she is the embodiment of what makes this place so special. Courtney is incredibly attentive, genuinely nice, and truly caring. Her warmth is contagious, and it’s obvious how much she loves her friends and family, and she extends that same love to everyone who walks through the door. Taplands is the best in the world, and it's because of the amazing people who work there. And there's this one random guy named Paulo that's always there and every time they do underbergs he says it still tastes like shit. He's so funny 😂

This is the place to go to when you’re looking for fine craft beer. Odds are, the 24 beers on tap when you walk in, will not the the same 24 beers when you leave. They constantly rotate beers & refresh their beer menu multiple times during the day.

We arrived too late (Sunday night) and the kitchen was closed but the hummus and chips were tasty. They have a wide selection of beers available. A few games to play for those that are interested. Very chill vibes. Bartender was pleasant. Highly recommend.

Good size, dog friendly, patio. Shaded and partially heated. Nice and spread out for the pups. Beer selection is great and always changing. They do a very good job of keeping a lot of different styles on tap. Check out their homepage for the current taplist.

This place is such a little gem. Your local neighborhood tap room with a great selection of beers and a nice food menu! Came on a weekend to watch the Warriors game, TVs are on and great crowd. The owners are super awesome and everyone is friendly. Great vibe - if you haven’t visited yet please do, you’ll want to come back 😀 Convenient parking right behind the place and plenty of seating inside and out. If you like spicy - definitely order the Spicy Turkey Panini, it is a 5-star. I’ll be back

Very nice atmosphere! Great selection of beers. The meat and cheese platter was excellent but the portion size was too small. Great bar staff. Good street parking and a lot is very close.

This place is great, Matt the owner was very friendly and welcoming, they have a great tap selection and excellent food! Will definitely be coming back!

Very nice bar, great selection of beers on tap and very good pub food and snacks

Amazing rotating beers and love the pita and hummus trio! It's always busy inside with locals, so you know your experience is going to be great because who you are surrounded with. My boyfriend and I like to go here when we are in this side of town.

There was no service because the skinny dude with the glasses closed the taps at 9:50 PM. There was no ambiance since all the music was off and the chairs were on the tables. Overall this is not good customer service and it suck's because this place is wonderful during the daytime.

Cool place to visit after walking the Campbell Farmers Market. Fairly busy at 12:45 on a Saturday but still no problem getting served or finding a spot to hang out. They have bar, indoor, & outdoor seating and a kitchen if you're hungry. All ages are here & families grabbing a bite but it's 21+ after 9pm. A mix of music is playing inside & outside, it's Durand Jones & the Indicators at the moment followed by CCR. Give it a try & see what you think.

Great place to grab some beers, kick back, and enjoy the game on tv. Food is also pretty tasty, I got the Big Joe sandwich and it left me plenty satisfied. Staff here is super friendly and nice and helped give me great recommendations for beers and food. Awesome place if you want a cool, modern place with good ambiance and good drinks!

Pretty cool place. Randomly went here for a drink or two while watching part of the Warriors game. Lots of seats and tables. Bar size is decent. Service was good too. Good beer selection even tho I'm not much of a beer drinker. I was confused on when and where to order food. Since I was not offered a menu when I was at a bar. Wish I was asked or offered or directed to the right direction.

It's a "counter service" beer bar. Good beer selection, very small food menu, a couple screens, and mostly outdoor seatings. It's good for local or nearby workers to get a drink or two. If the weather is good, it can entertain few groups. Otherwise, bar stools are pretty much it. There's no waiting staff. You order at the bar/counter and bring your own drinks back to the table. The beers are good choices. As a bar, it is really too minimalistic. For yourself plus the internet or few afterwork before dinner. It's not a bad choice.

We stopped her after a short shopping trip. Spontaneously decided to try a new place for a beer. We walked in and the manager, Courtney, noticed us and handed us a menu versus having to look at the screen that was scrolling too quickly to read what there drink options were. Courtney was very pleasant and was thoughtful to let me taste the cider before choosing it. The bar was completely full. That's great to see for any for any restaurant you walk into. I had a delicious hard cider, it wasn't sweet at all! Loved it! My boyfriend had an Oatmeal stout. He also enjoyed his choice. We sat outside on their high chair seating patio! It's very quaint outdoors with the covered patio and the breeze flowing in. Plenty of street parking. We were there just after 1pm on a Saturday afternoon. There's a Farmers Market that's happening right there next to Taplands. I'd definitely plan to stop in after a stroll at the Farmers Market. It was a nice treat! Looking forward to another cider!

Great place with new selection of beers everyday. they were doing bingo and I won a t-shirt on completing someone else bingo card lol. Matt and Chris are great and always welcoming ! There are some regulars who are always pleasant company and the place has varied seating including comfy couches and games to play with good for groups. And yes Santa Clara has its own downtown !

Overall really like this place. Go every once in a while with our dogs and sit on the patio, or also a good place to meetup for a casual drink. Good beer selection and if you're not into craft beer they always have a cider or sour (at least one of each) on the menu. You order at the bar so not much to say on service. Staff is friendly enough. Can be busy at times -- it's fairly close to Santa Clara University and they have trivia night sometimes (I think on Mondays but don't quote me).

We come here all the time! And we used to brewery hop around the bay. But we found a spot that feels like home and reduced the amount of driving we need to do to experience our favorite beers from our favorite breweries around. I highly recommend Taplands if you are looking for YOUR new place for beers! Special shout out to the manager Courtney for being the best, stop by soon!

Awesome beer selection at this beer bar with light food. The place was very popular on a Friday night. It is near a college campus and Jesuits aren't Baptists. Hallelujah! The low rating is for a kitchen that is clearly overwhelmed. It took 40 minutes to get a charcuterie plate and pita with dips. None of our food needed to be cooked. The kitchen really needs to be streamlined especially since they are starting a no outside food policy. One place to start is by not heating the olives. I've never been serviced hot olives before and they are not better for it. But by all means come here for a beer or three.

Overall I enjoy this spot. It's a close walk from my apartment with amazing beer selections you can't often find like Trillium and Moksa. I'm a cicerone and bjcp judge and been home brewing for 15 years now so I know a thing or 2. I fluctuate between a 3 and 4. The vibe is nice, the staff is pretty average; some going above and beyond, Chris I think his name was, tall and skinny with glasses. Super nice guy. Other staff I'm left waiting and treated like someone who just turned 21. What's keeping me from giving a 4 was the food. I came for Oktoberfest and paid $7 for a soggy microwave pretzel. For a couple more bucks I could've gotten a Costco pack of the same thing! Just sat there looking at it thinking I'd look like a dick if I returned it lol. I just wanted to be like, "seriously?" I'm not broke or anything but yeah, $7 for a microwave pretzel kinda makes me feel suckered. Tried the food again on taco Tuesday and again was very underwhelming and not worth it.

I can't believe I haven't reviewed Taplands yet! My husband and I come here all the time since it is in walking distance from us. Taplands always has a great selection of beers from across the state as well as other states. And they sometimes have their own brews on the menu as well, so look out for them! In the way of food, check their Instagram to find out about upcoming food trucks schedules...we have always found something good, and they consistently have great taco trucks. Also, they host events here from time to time, and they also will do fun themed things sometimes like beer cocktails and micheladas (using a delicious local mix from Gilroy!). It can get quite busy here, but we have not had trouble finding a spot--everyone who comes here is generally friendly, and people are happy to make room. Bathrooms are clean, and beertenders are nice too. I hear they host trivia, so need to come soon for that!

3 of us showed up and as soon as I we walked in, the bartender and a few people at the bar looked at us as if had interrupted a private conversation. We walked around the bar and began looking at the menu while it was dead silence. Decided it was best to walk away and find a better place to drink and watch the Sharks game. It definitely had a feel for locals only. Not welcoming at all. I would stay away from this place. We're locals BTW. Smh.

Went here to watch the warriors play offs and it was great! I loved their tap menu and their food was great as well. I had the buffalo chicken dip and it was a good portion, recommend the West Coast Hazy IPA, for those who like and for those who don't like IPAs, solid choice.

I went to Taplands on a Friday night around 8:30pm and was pleased to find a chill vibe and a lowkey taproom. Loved the 90s ska music playing, and when I looked around the room it honestly did feel like an elder millennial crowd. My people! It wasn't super busy during that time, so my friend and I had plenty of spots to choose from including indoor and outdoor. Around 9:30pm the energy of the place definitely picked up as more people came to the bar. I saw that they had a solid selection from local breweries. I don't love sours, but I was looking for something with sweet notes. The first sour that I tried nailed the flavor palate I was looking for, so I was content for the rest of my evening. Customer service was great. The server at the register was friendly and helpful. I didn't try the food at Taplands. Frankly I didn't know that they even had a kitchen since the server told us that the tacos from the food truck outside the restaurant were amazing, hah!

Was tempted to give 4 stars because they don't do flights and let's be real, ya girl LOVES flights. But, that's not their business model so taking that out of the picture this place deserves 5 stars for sure! They have a pretty large tap list with a variety of beer styles - I think there were between 24-28 on the menu when I went. I tasted a sour, which I liked, but ultimately ended up with a hazy IPA. It was a nice evening so we opted to sit on their large outdoor patio. Seems like they have an original patio and then what one can assume is the added covid-era patio, both of them were covered and had heaters. No heaters on while we were there, but I'm sure they would've obliged if we asked. Instead we moved inside the taproom which was full of beer and Santa Clara decor - made for a fun and homey environment. Didn't order any food but was nice to see that they do have a kitchen. Street parking was fairly limited and most of it is only 24 minutes to an hour. Since we were there on a weekend we parked in the big lot on the side...not sure if this would fly on a weekday, but all was good when we returned to our cars. Definitely would come back here sometime!

A neighborhood gem! Love this spot...our only place in Santa Clara area that you can walk on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon with doggos and grab a cold drink of beer (Hazy IPA), Sours or Sauvignon Blanc and enjoy some music and amazing food (great paninis with chips, cheese boards, pita and hummus, olives, etc). Never disappoints! The ordering is super simple at the bar, you get your drink right away and grab a number for food and they bring it out to you! Just make sure you grab your ID! They do take Apple Pay :)

We love this place! Drinks are always good and their food menu is pretty good also. Children are welcome but after 9PM it's 21 and over. There's an inside and outside. Service has always been amazing everytime we've gone.

Stopped in for a beer last night. I've been broadening my range of brewery's in the Bay Area and this place doesn't disappoint. It's a very intimate vibe and everyone gives off a very welcoming vibe. It's a good place to come by yourself or with a group of friends.

My favorite local beer bar! They have big TVs for viewing the latest sports, trivia nights on Monday with Not Joe Average Trivia, a great selection of rotating beers of all types (and wine too for those who don't want beer). Their food selection is a bit limited to charcuterie boards and paninis but they do make a mean panini! Patio is dog friendly and it's a great time here. They do some really cool things and events, sometimes a food truck rolls by. I love Taplands as a neighborhood hang out!

Such a great spot! Beer list was great and cold. Friendly, knowledgeable staff. Good vibes and great soundtrack playing! Would definitely come back

Plenty of outdoor and indoor seating. We stopped by Friday around 8-9pm. We sat indoors with our mask on since it was cold outdoors. There's board games/cards available to play. They are nice to let us sample before we ordered a pint. I got the Far West: You Guava be Kissing- Off Dry Guava Cider. It was good and freshing. Street parking but there's plenty and it's easy to find them on the main street.

Came here to hang out since we had some time to kill. Pretty nice and cozy. Great open outdoor patio. Inside felt a little small, but wasn't really a big deal. I decided to just ask the bartender what he recommends and told him the kind of beer I wanted to try. His recommendation was great. For my second, I told him the recommendation was great and I'd like to try something new and similar. Second recommendation was just as great. Too bad I can't remember what they were now. =( The patio is great for larger groups to hang out. We saw a few dogs, so bring your dogs along to hang with you! If I'm in the area again, I'll be back to try their food. I hear it's pretty good.

Great mellow chill brewery! the crowd is live! Music is great the food are delicious!

A nice cozy neighborhood tap house with a really great beer selection! Perfect place to go to when you want to catch up and hang with your buddies. There are plenty of outdoor tables to sit and catch some rays. They also sell snacks as well! I have only been here twice and I don't know why I haven't been coming more frequently. Definitely no complaints, will return soon :)

Came here with some friends on a Wednesday evening and we had a pleasant experience! There was a great selection of beers and the food was delicious and well-priced. I got the pear cider (I forgot the exact name and couldn't find the name online either) but it was definitely one of the better ciders I've had! My friends got stouts and sour beers and enjoyed them as well. We also got the Traditional panini and added prosciutto for an extra two dollars. The service was efficient which is always a plus!

"Friendly People, Pleasant Patio Seating." I was looking for a place to have a quick beer or maybe a snack, and this restaurant fit the bill perfectly. There's a good reason this place has so many great reviews. I was greeted by the friendly server Matt, who quickly found me a table. Another server quickly came over to make sure I had been helped. Another server, coming back from a break, checked on me as well. In other words, they're looking out for the customer. I appreciate that. Great service does not happen by accident. I also appreciate that they're following the covid rules carefully. They're very careful with masks and have sanitizer right at the front desk. Thank you. I was looking for a light beer such as a kolsch or lager and they had several suggestions for me. Just what the doctor ordered! So altogether a fantastic visit. Friendly people and a great environment. Hard to find anything to criticize. There was even free parking out front.

Great drinks great vibe. Always a good time and it's nice you can bring your own food.

Good selection of craft beers. Nice outdoor patio. TVs available. Lots of parking available. 10/10

Awesome place, Good food and great beers + service. Will definitely be coming back. Outdoor seating is great as well

Recently found this gem an establishment. The owner, Matt, is a wonderful human.. sharing different beers and selections that they make as well as other local breweries. Being from Tampa, I would highly recommend. Clean bath rooms too! I didn't get to try the food as the kitchen was closed but aim to next time!

Cool tap house! Great beer selections from all over California. The owner was very knowledgeable about his selection of beers. Parking was pretty easy but we went on a weekday and after lunch, so not sure if street gets packed. That's the time to get a good beer without the crowd.

Total Score 4/5 Food/Beverage (2/3) - No food review here, only the beer! This is a perfect example a tap house, a place where people can meet and enjoy beers from all around. Their selection was widespread, mostly from different parts of CA, even some smaller breweries I have been to before. They also have have a beer they make themselves, which is why I have to give this 2 out of 3. Unfortunately, for me when comes to breweries and wineries I give an automatic -1 star when you offer your own stuff but have to use others as a crutch. Its a rule I've made and I have to follow it. Service/Staff (1/1) - Friendly, can't really say much more. Location (1/1) - Great location if you are local and want to walk and have a pint, or even if you are driving there is ample parking available. There are places to sit inside but they are communal and some areas are tight, but there is plenty of outdoor space as well.

Not sure about the food but beer and the vibe were excellent. Around 20 beers on tap and prices are not bad for the Bay area. They also offer half pour of any 16 oz beer for $5. I was surprised too see it's also kid-friendly as I saw a family with kids taking the little coffee table with couch. Found out they have a food menu, maybe I will try their food next time and write an update.

This is a cool hangout spot with indoor and outdoor dining, I liked the outdoor setting with fairy lights and picnic benches. When you are in groups you can order rounds of beers and wouldn't know how quickly 3-4 hours went by. I didn't try their food but seemed like they had few samplers and bites but not necessarily food.

Holy guacamole! My date and I came here specifically to try the charcuterie board because it looked like one of the best boards in Santa Clara County. The board alone made this a five-star experience, so the great beer selection, chill ambiance, and awesome customer service were all bonus points. The board was great because it has a good variety of meats, as well as bread, mustard, pickles, and marinated olives. Every element of the board paired well together, and with the beers that we ordered (the names of which I can't remember). They had about 24 beers on tap, with so much variety that it was difficult to choose! There were so many that I wanted to try, I can't remember which ones we actually ordered. There are additional foods and snacks you can order, but we only tried the charcuterie board. The people who came on the night we stopped in all seemed to know each other, despite coming in separate groups, and the atmosphere is friendly and welcoming. There are sofas you can sit on and board games to play, if you so choose. Seems like a local watering hole. If I still lived in this area, I would definitely be a regular of Taplands. What's better than outstanding food, great beer, and good people?

My husband and a co-worker of his were in need of some filipino food so we were over at Toppings for dinner. We couldn't help deciding that we would need to grab a drink afterwards at Taplands because of the vibe coming from the place. Their out door patio was on and poppin! So we had dinner and walked over to Taplands. It's a quaint little place that is conveniently within walking distance of Santa Clara University (so is there every a slow time at this place)? Lots of parking all around this place. Easy to get too. Located in a small strip mall. They have some tables inside, bar seating and a patio area that was nice. I guess the place is dog friendly as a few of the patrons were sitting outside sipping on their drinks with their fur babies at their feet. It was cute because I love doggies. We walked in and the line was to the door but the line went pretty fast. They have an electronic menu of everything they serve with awesome and helpful description of the flavor of each drink. Being a girly girl decided on a fruity beer that I think they call Stem Pear. I might be wrong so don't quote me on it just know that it was delicious and I am not a beer drinker. It was not an overbearing pear flavor just a hint of it that kind of lightly lingers on your taste buds after you've drank it. Delicate and crisp and delicious...like biting into an actual pear that has been soaked in alcohol..hahahahaha! Bartenders were friendly and they were clearing glasses off tables pretty quickly which was nice. They have several big screen tv's and had the Warriors game on. Didn't have the chance to visit the bathroom so can't review that. Nice place to grab a beer and just chill. I'll be back :-)

Decided to hit this place after work with a few coworkers. Place is pretty cool was quiet at first but it got packed quite fast. Ordered the Stout which was an astounding 14.1 proof wow lol! Also order the panini cheese plate which was actually really good as well. Awesome experience and will return!

We visited Taplands on a Sunday night to enjoy some brews with friends and watch a little football. Overall, it was not very busy, but the parking lot (behind the shopping center) had plenty of space if needed. The bartenders were very friendly and it was easy to open a tab - you even get to keep your card! (Just remember to close at the end of the night) Drinks were delicious and there was a lot of selection, including a few cans in addition to the 24 on tap. We also got a panini - they don't offer many food options, but it was a surprisingly good sandwich. Great for bar food! Indoor & outdoor seating with large TVs. Not too loud inside.

Okay, so this was my first time at Taplands Brewery. I was excited to try their IPA. I'm not a beer drinker but if I do drink beer I'd like a double IPA please!!! :) I'm more of a  liquor drinker over ice. Anyways, I walked in and told the bartender it was my first time here and how do I proceed with my order. He mentioned you order at the bar and take your drinks to the table. In other words It's pretty much self-served. Now his attitude sucked. I was asking questions about the beer and I asked him specifically what the stout beer taste like because that was a 12.8 % which is right up my alley in beers lol.. He didn't really answer me, he had that look like I was annoying him asking questions, so my fiance answered for him and said it tastes like a Guinness but more on the darker side. I asked if they have samples for me to try and surprisingly they did. I mean come on buddy you could have offered it to me all along. I tried it and I didn't  like it, so I decided to order  double IPA which was really good and cold. But because his attitude was a huge Debbie Downer and it rubbed me the wrong way, I decided to leave after finishing my first beer. My fiance ordered a soda because he doesn't drink anymore. The place looks like someone's backyard to be honest with you with a weird vibe. That's the best way to describe it, and your view is the streets and residence with off putting patrons. So yeah there you go. Lol, off to Santana Row for some cocktails.

Great place with very friendly locals. Excellent beer selection. I will stop back in the next time I visit.

Awesome bar. Owner is always in and ready to talk to anyone. You can tell he loves his business and enjoys his customer's presence. I found this place 7 years back when I worked at the escape room upstairs. Was invited down stairs by one of the corporate event we were hosting. What a great first experience I received. This place opened my palate to different beer varieties and never disappoints

Not sure how this gets five stars. Very good selections of beer that's for sure. Bartender gives good service. I can't give them more the three stars. It needs some improvement in customer service other then the bar side. But it nice to have a good craft beer available in our neighborhood. Thanks and keep improving.

Fantastic service and great beer selection at great prices! The place has lots of seating area both dine in and outside patio. The patio area was great if for our party as we were still a little iffy about dining in. Patio area is also heated, which is a nice tough. Shoutout to the owner, Matt, for helping me resolve a billing issue that turned out to just be a misunderstanding. Matt definitely will take the time to hear you out and make sure his customers are taken care right!

Nice selection of beers on tap.  They had 2 or 3 house beers on tap.  I tried the serano ale.  It is real peppery.  Not sure I would order it again .  It would pair well with a steak or exotic piece of protein.  A little too spicy for me.  Staff is friendly.  Plenty of space inside and out.  The vibe inside is really laid back.  It is walking distance from a college down the street but I noticed a very mixed group the nite I stopped in.

Finally checked out Taplands and really enjoyed our beers. The bartender was really nice and allowed us to try a few. We ended up ordering most of their IPAs and liked them all. I was trying to look up the names but the menu is not available online. They were out of the deviled eggs so ordered the olives (just okay) and the pita bread with the dips. The green dip was really good and it comes with a lot of pita. I would have given the place 5 stars but the woman "working" completely ignored us and the other non-regulars. She didn't help anyone the time we were there (an hour or so) and was just distracting the guy that was actually working.

First time here, and the staff was very friendly and attentive. I really enjoyed the IPA selection and will definitely be back to try the rest. For snacks, the spicy deviled eggs, cheese plate and warm pita bread is a must try.

HELL NOOO!!! This place is nice. It has a very nice atmosphere, tvs, a nice bar, tables and an outdoor area that's also cool. The bad side about this place is the people that work there. My friends and I were treated like crap! From the guy behind the bar to the guy who brought us the food, and the lady is the worst! She seem to be mad at everybody there. I definitely see place going out of business if the owners don't fire everyone and start all over. This Was my first time there and I will never visit again. This happened the eve of Wednesday the 26th. Our favorite line now is here's your bread. Is not toasted because the machine broke but it's bread.