Barley And Hops Tavern

So happy my boyfriend introduced me to this fantastic place! I absolutely loved the cheddar beer biscuits along with the in house made butter! I also enjoyed the friendly service we encountered both times we went together and the help our waitress gave with our many questions about the extensive beer menu! Will be going back as soon as possible!

The Chef, Sue, I believe is an incredible talent! Every bit of my meal Friday night, was delicious! The music however was far too loud. I heard they are opening the next door place to hold the music gigs! That will be much better for the diners.

This was a great haven from the Rainstorm as we traveled up the coast towards sea ranch. There’s a great selection of beers, the bartender was welcoming and helpful. She recommended a great porter for my bf and a sour for me. I had the Bavarian pretzel and the poached pear/​goat cheese salad. The pretzel was delicious and served with a spicy mustard. The salad was a bit small for the $ 14 price rage but there were two nicely fried balls of goat cheese at least a inch in diameter each. My bf’s fish and chips were delicious. Would stop by here again for a late lunch if you’re driving through Occidental.

Best chicken sandwich of my life; and the jalapeño cheese dip?! Come on! So freaking good.

Quaint atmosphere, decent brews on draught as well as in the bottle and THE VERY BEST soft pretzels on planet earth.

Always a great stop for me — the beer selection is great, rotates frequently — and a good way to

This was my favorite place to come eat in Occidental but sadly I have to say tonight was a big disappointment, first of all the bartender was rude and unwelcoming when we walked in and our server wasn’t the most pleasant server. It seemed as if neither of them wanted to be there working… at all.
The food was OK but possibly the recipes changed? The pretzel chicken was my favorite and tonight I’d have to say it tasted more like Alfredo sauce then pretzel, and there was a long hair in my friends French fries!!! That was a done deal!
I hope our next experience here is like it used to be, very warm and welcoming servers and bartenders and delicious food!!!

I just moved to the area and stopped by Barley and Hops for dinner for one. The tavern is warm and cozy and the food is great. My server, Amanda, was attentive, friendly and knowledgable about both the menu and impressive beer list. Dinner turned into a very warm welcome. I may have to become a regular.

Oh sweet, eccentric Occidental, California. I love this town. It is an alternate universe to my busy urban working world. I mean I guess that would be influenced by the fact that I visited while on vacation, but still-​this little hamlet is a place fit for my dreams.
Barley and Hops tavern didn’t disappoint. Filled with friendly locals-​humans and dogs alike-​We sat down at a table near the bar and were lucky enough to find a Giants game on TV. This seems to bring people together in this hood. The beer was flowing and the burgers were amazing.
We had just sat down after 13 hours travel day from the East Coast and I has happy to find this place. I could swap a veggie patty for any of the meat variety, and it was truly a wonderful experience. The beer cheese biscuits and the deviled eggs were awesome starters. We were hungry, to say the least.
Not that I should have been surprised, but when I sat down and found that Pliny the Elder was on tap… well I guess it just hit the ball out of the park for me. Good thing the Giants were able to do the same that night as well, as happy locals tend to equal happy tourists.

Neither one of us felt like cooking tonight, so we figured since we rarely eat out we’d order some takeout. The menu was very easy to look up on their website and they bartender picked up in the first few rings. My fiancé and I both ordered The Shroomer (I got mine with the homemade vegan party). He ordered the burger with brew house fries and the girl on the phone allowed me to order my fries an old way they don’t offer anymore which was awesome of her!
When I got there I was helped right away and my food was ready! The atmosphere was awesome and the band was entertaining and energetic!
The vegan patty is by far the best I’ve ever had! Definitely something to try for takeout or eat in!

This is a fine example of a local bar. My husband and I were visiting Occidental for the weekend, just hanging out. We wound up at the Barley and Hops Tavern early afternoon. We decided it was too early to start drinking.
I settled in at the one high-​top table on the lovely front porch overlooking the town’s main drag. My husband went inside to get some beverages. He came out with a diet soda for me and a ginger soda for himself. Turns out that the diet soda was flatter than a pancake. I went inside to get something else, and the bartender replaced it with another item at no charge and the friendliest attitude possible.
We enjoyed watching the world go by from our perch for quite a while. Even as the place started to fill up, we never got hassled for taking up space with just a soda. Pretty cool. Eventually, «cocktail hour» arrived. We had (ahem) a few rounds of white wine for me and IPA for the hubby. We continued to have great time interacting with and/​or eavesdropping on the locals and tourists in the place. The lady bartender was a hoot. At one point she described the place as «Adult Day Care» and her job of watching over the 3 drunk locals at the bar as «Herding Kittens.»
We really enjoyed the atmosphere of the place, fun but not too rowdy. Can’t comment on the food because all we did was drink. :)

Was there for dinner tonight. Group of four.
The curry fried chicken sandwich was good. Somehow reminded me of a bahn mi sandwich. It was good.
The pulled pork on the Three Little Pigs could have had a bit more sauce but was good. It was not dry, just a bit bland. Not a deal killer though.
The elbows and cheese was good also. Creamy without being to gooey or overly cheesy.
the home made pickles are good but beware, they are spicy. I put them on my chicken sandwich and they were great.
We also had the Bavarian Soft Pretzel and the Cheddar Beer Biscuits which were quite good.
Service was good. Attentive and genuine.
As we were leaving there was a guy with a harmonica and guitar starting up in the bar area.
Total bill, including a couple of drinks and tax was about $ 100. Completely worth it.

I have no clue how the food and beer at this place would be.
Walked into the bar with the wife at about 5:30 PM on a Saturday, place was pretty dead, just a couple of people at the bar and what looked like a couple of tables occupied in the dining area. There was only one high top available in the bar area so we sat down. Nobody was behind the bar, so after waiting about 5 minutes I got up and walked over to look at their beer list on the wall chalkboard. While I’m standing there reading it, a tall blond woman (who I think was the bartender) walks in from the back and says with quite the attitude:
«Do you NEED something»?
Me:
«I’m looking at your beer list, we are sitting over at the high top».
Her:
Do you want a menu?
Me:
«Not right now, we’re just going to have some beers then eat later tonight.»
Her:
«So do you want a menu or not, you are NOT BEING VERY CLEAR WITH ME» (Raised voice, angry sounding).
I just looked at her and started laughing, turned around and we walked out.
Maybe she was hungry or something and just grouchy. But whatever, her attitude means no return try for me.
And I like places with good beer and good food.

I was really surprised by this place.
I had heard good reviews, but still had low expectations for a «tavern» in out of the way, California.
I ordered the Pliny the Elder beer — almost a stereotype for B&HT at this point — as well as a pretzel, sandwich and wings. Really just bar food but was very surprised at how good it was.
I think my favorite part was the ambience. I was the only non-​local there, so got to eavesdrop on some local conversation in the cozy bar area. Felt like an insider to be there in the offseason and listening to the goings-​on in Occidental.
Really enjoyed it and, while it’s not going to win any awards, still really surprised and shined — the best option in this area, in my opinion.

Literally the worst burger i have had the past ten years. I have eaten there before and it was great but the past two times have been super disappointing… salad tasted like nothing, the burger was way over cooked and the patty was tiny. $ 13 burger should be sufficient. The cheese had melted almost completely off so no cheese, and it was supposed to have beans… nothing. The meal before that was pretty much flavorless… i hope the cooking comes back. I love occidental and I’m a local, but i won’t be going back for a while unless the cooking gets better… Let’s pray…

We ordered take out from here while working in the area one evening last week. The Fish and Chip had a wonderfully crunchy batter with just a hint of beer favor. The fries traveled well and were still crisp. The tarter sauce had a fresh flavor to it. The Braised short rib was a very generous serving with some wonderfully prepared vegetables.
The Burgers looked really great too. Hope we get a chance to visit and eat in next trip.

We spent a Friday evening here. They have a covered porch that allows you to have a pooch sit with you while you dine. We did that, and stayed for the first set of tunes played out by a couple of locals — one fiddler, the other guitar. The beer was awesome, and the burger was really great. Given the mistiness of the evening — an unusual September rain — it was a great experience!

A fine pub.
Occidental is a little town. Not a whole lot to offer but looking for a place to hang was easy enough when there is one place open.
We came fairly late in the evening. Our table wasn’t so clean but we were a large group, 16, that piled in quickly.
I only had a beer and dessert. Pliny the elder on tap, a nice treat. The server seemed nice enough.
Chocolate mousse and strawberry shortcake. Both were tasty.

We read they had Pliny on tap so we knew when we planned our stay in Occidental that this tavern would be a highlight.
Our server Amber informed us that they were all out of Pliny the Elder. Crestfallen I looked over the board for a suitable other and even though their selection is fairly broad nothing struck me.
My wife and son ordered a beer and I pouted.
Miraculously Amber comes back out to report they just received a shipment of Pliny bottled! One bottle per customer. Great, bottoms up, weekend saved!
We ordered onion rings and my wife ordered a burger. We also had beer cheddar biscuits.
The onion rings were ridiculous. Among the best, really special. The burger was a disappointment, dry and unoriginal. The biscuits went well with the beer but they were not a stand out.
What I was able to summarize about the Pliny is they hold it for locals. It’s not on the menu but if you read between the lines it is available. Amber is obviously a sweetheart and took pity on this poor traveler.
I like the building, the background music and we love Amber.

Stayed at the Inn at Occidental recently, and after checking out the HUGE number of options for late dinner (this place or Mexican), we chose here. CLEARLY this is THE happening place for locals in Occidental — as far as I could tell, we were the only travelers. We figured out the place quickly enough, though, and checked out a surprisingly large menu… along with an even bigger draft menu.
We tried a bit of everything. My wife ordered a house salad, I ordered a fish/​chips (as did my bud) and his girl ordered rabbit food. We also ordered one appetizer. The food came quickly enough, sans any silverware or napkins or dips, or virtually anything else to eat with. After an interesting ten minutes of waitress scurrying (she was a total Dead Head, and more than a bit buzzed), she finally got everything in order. For the two salads, no big deal. For the fish/​chips, um, yeah. A definite big deal, as at this point, things were more than a bit cold. The fries were inedible, the fish was ok.
Oh…to wrap up the meal — the appetizer was brought out… with the check.
So mixed reviews. Good bar scene, GREAT draft section, and the two salad eaters loved their salad. I think if things had been a bit more organized (read: less stoned) the two fish and chips would have been better too.
So bottom line, go for the bar scene… and know that if you choose to order a meal, you might not be in the best hands?