When you want to grub on delicious food while enjoying handcrafted brews, spiked seltzer, and more, put Kona Brewing Co. on your radar. This beloved brewery has served as a staple in the Kailua-Kona community for over 25 years.
In 2021, they got the chance to expand their operations by opening up a new 30,000 square foot brewery just down the road from their original location. They still operate their original brewery and brewpub, which allows them to offer whirlwind tours of their operations.
Want to see all the magic happen? After a long hiatus, tours are back on schedule and better than ever. You can book your spot online by going to their website. Plan to get there about 15 minutes early, and then spend an hour learning all about their beer-making process. You’ll get a complimentary gift and four beer samples at the end of the tour.
After that, you’ll definitely want to continue your experience by landing in the brewpub. Although they have limited indoor seating, their beautiful 2,000 square foot lanai is where it’s at. While chilling out on the patio, you can order appetizers, entrees, and desserts designed to go with all their freshly brewed creations. Not sure what to get? You cannot go wrong with a meal consisting of their Pele’s Fire Wings, Bacon-Crusted Mac ‘N Cheese, and a few slices of any pizza of your choice.
As for their drinks, all their most popular brews remain on regular rotation. Plus, they bring in specialty concoctions on the regular to see what people think before rolling out big batches. If you prefer something a little lighter, they have hard seltzer, too, in fun flavors like Starfruit Lime and Strawberry Guava.
You’re welcome to sip on your selections onsite or take a variety pack to go. They offer 64-ounce growlers and 32-ounce growlers as well. You can get a discount on new glass growlers and refills by stopping by between 5 pm and 7 pm daily.
Their top brews include:
Fire Rock Pale Ale
Made in honor of red-hot lava hitting the ocean waves, Fire Rock Pale Ale always promises to tantalize your taste buds. This hoppy delight comes with full-body flavor that goes great with a slice of pizza or a big plate of nachos. With 5.8% ABV, it’s easy to sip on this brew at your leisure while simply enjoying your meal.
POG Spiked Island Seltzer
For a taste of all the best island flavors in every sip, treat yourself to the POG Spiked Island Seltzer. This zero-sugar drink comes packed full of passionfruit, orange, and guava flavors plus a fizzy pop at the end. The 5% alcohol content comes from organic cane sugar, while all the bright flavors come from natural sources as well.
Kulana Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza
When you cannot decide between burgers and pizza, set your sights on the Kulana Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza. Available in small, medium, and large sizes, this pizza starts with their BBQ sauce on the freshly made dough. Then, they add mozzarella, cheddar, ground beef, bacon, and sweet onions before popping it into the oven. Once it comes out, they pile on the shredded lettuce and tomatoes before adding a drizzle of their housemade BBQ aioli.
After making it big in Hawaii, the brewery sent their offerings nationwide. After that, it just made sense to treat Canada, Australia, and other international markets to their top brews. So, when you need another taste of their smooth, refreshing creations, you just have to check your local supermarkets and liquor stores. You should be able to find their most popular beers, like Big Wave Golden Ale, plus all their hard seltzers.
Insider Tips:
-To get the inside scoop on what’s happening at the brewery, just sign up for their newsletter through their website. Upon doing that, you’ll be the first to know about new releases, sweepstakes, and so much more.
-They close down the kitchen on Sunday and Monday to make room for their Food Truck Fun Days. On those days, you’ll get a chance to chow down on even more locally made goodness while enjoying your brews.