The South Bay is one of the densest craft beer areas in Los Angeles County. What surprises people is where the beer actually is: almost none of it is on the sand.
Torrance has eleven breweries. El Segundo has four. Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach, between them, have none.
Why are there no breweries in Manhattan, Hermosa or Redondo?
Industrial zoning, or the lack of it. A production brewery needs warehouse space, loading access and floor area at a rent that beer can pay for.
The three Beach Cities are built out almost entirely as residential and small commercial, with very little industrial land and some of the highest rents in the county. The cities that have breweries are the cities that kept their industrial districts.
El Segundo is the clearest proof. It has Smoky Hollow, a light industrial neighborhood a few blocks from the beach, and that is exactly where its breweries went. Torrance has industrial parks along Columbia Street, Del Amo and Western. Hawthorne, Gardena and Lawndale have the same.
So the map on this page is a land use map, not a taste map. If you are moving to the sand and this matters to you, the practical answer is that you will live at the beach and drive ten minutes inland to drink. If you want to walk to a brewery, look at El Segundo.
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Where is the center of the South Bay beer scene?
Torrance, with eleven breweries. The cluster on Columbia Street means you can visit two on foot.
The eleven, with what each one is known for. Two of them are second locations of a brewery already on the list.
Addresses are as published by each brewery. Taproom hours change often and several are closed early in the week, so check before you drive.
Listing and addresses from the Discover Torrance visitors bureau, page last updated August 20, 2026.
Which breweries are in El Segundo?
Four, and they are the only walkable brewery cluster this close to the sand.
El Segundo Brewing Company, 140 Main Street. Right on Main Street rather than in an industrial park, and known for hop-forward ales.
Boardroom Brewery, in the Smoky Hollow neighborhood. House-brewed beers, seltzers and natural wines, with food trucks and trivia nights.
Five Point Five Brewing, named for the city’s 5.5 square miles. Indoor and outdoor taproom, trivia nights and food truck Fridays.
Sugar Monkey Brewing and Social Club. A large taproom and patio with shuffleboard, ping pong, fire pits and TVs for sport.
Four breweries in five and a half square miles is a remarkable ratio, and it is not a coincidence that the city with the industrial district is the city with the beer. Listings from the El Segundo tourism board.
Which breweries are in San Pedro?
Three, and the setting is the reason to go to all of them.
San Pedro Brewing Company, 331 W. 6th Street. It opened in November 1999 in the former John T’s Tavern and is one of the oldest brewpubs in Los Angeles.
Port Town Brewing Company, 285 W. 7th Street. Small and local, one block from San Pedro Brewing, so the two together make an easy walk downtown.
Warehouse No. 9, a taproom in a historic warehouse near the water.
Brouwerij West has closed. It opened in a former Navy warehouse on the Los Angeles Waterfront in February 2016 and shut after nearly nine years. Most brewery lists still show it as open. The beers still turn up around Southern California, but the taproom and the lawn are gone.
The closest brewery to San Pedro that is not in San Pedro is Burnin’ Daylight Brewing, at 24516 Narbonne Avenue in Lomita.
What about Culver City?
Los Angeles Ale Works runs a Culver City taproom at the Ivy Station complex on Washington Boulevard, beside the Metro line, with 25 rotating taps and food vendors.
Smog City has announced a Culver City taproom and kitchen at Culver Commons, currently slated for early 2027. Worth knowing if you are buying in the area.
Culver City sits in the Silicon Beach group rather than the South Bay proper. More on that distinction on the Silicon Beach page.
Is Hermosa Brewing Company in Hermosa Beach?
No. Hermosa Brewing Company is at 1855 Del Amo Boulevard in Torrance.
It is the most confusing thing about beer in this area and it wrecks search results. If you are meeting someone there, put the Del Amo address into your phone rather than driving to Hermosa Beach.
There is a second trap. Common Space Brewery is at 3411 W. El Segundo Boulevard, but it is in Hawthorne, not El Segundo.
What happened to King Harbor Brewing?
It closed in December 2022, after eight years in Redondo Beach.
Worth stating plainly, because King Harbor still appears as open on several South Bay brewery lists, including one that presents itself as complete. If you have seen it recommended recently, that is why.
Its closure is also part of the answer to the first question on this page. Redondo rents and the shortage of industrial space are hard on a production brewery.
How should you plan a South Bay brewery day?
- Walkable, near the beach. El Segundo. Four breweries in a small city, and dinner on Main Street afterwards.
- Two on foot. Absolution and Scholb on the same block of Columbia Street in Torrance. Park once.
- The name everyone knows. Monkish on South Western Avenue. Check the release schedule first, since that drives the queue.
- Bring people who want dinner. HopSaint or Red Car in Torrance, or San Pedro Brewing Company. All proper restaurants rather than tasting rooms with a food truck.
- Somewhere to sit outside. Five Point Five in El Segundo has an indoor and outdoor taproom, and Boardroom runs food trucks in Smoky Hollow.
Hours change and taprooms close earlier than bars. Check before you drive, particularly on a Monday or Tuesday.
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Continue exploring
Verified September 15, 2026 against the Discover Torrance and Destination El Segundo visitor bureaus and each brewery’s own listing. Breweries in Hawthorne, Lawndale, Lomita, Gardena and Inglewood are not yet listed here. Breweries open, close and change hands often, so confirm before you go.
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