The rumblings started in February. Chuck Stilphen — co-owner of Trappist, ØL, Trappist Provisions and Mikkeller SF — was opening a place in downtown Berkeley, this time with Mikkeller executive chef Michael O’Brian. I heard a lot of reactions like, “Cool, a Trappist in Berkeley!”
Not quite. Perdition Smokehouse, which opened its doors in June, has a different flavor than Chuck’s other bars. You can bring the kids, the beer list leans American, and it’s more bright and airy than dark and cozy. What it has in common with its more European half-siblings is a beer list that will make you lose your mind. You can see the most recent taplist here. Many beers are available in either 10 ounce or 16 ounce pours, with prices on my most recent visit ranging from $3.50-10 for 10 ounces or $5.50-$7.50 for 16 ounces. There are also “growler hours,” where growlers are used as pitchers for on-site consumption. (Only breweries can sell growlers to go in California).
Hey! It’s beer.
While I can claim some regional expertise on pizza, subs, and Mexican food, I don’t pretend to know anything about barbecue. I enjoy eating here, but I’ve learned that people from other parts of the country have very strong opinions on barbecue, so talk amongst yourselves. For what it’s worth, a friend once asked about the origins and an employee produced a handwritten list of sources ending with the declaration “no factory farms.” The entire menu, minus rotating lunch specials, is here.
Soon to be fuel for smoky goodness
While there are only four seats at the bar, there is ample seating indoors and out. Vegetarians (and anyone who doesn’t like their beer to smell like BBQ) can almost entirely escape the delicious meaty smells by going outside. There are even sometimes a few taps open back there, and servers check in on you.
There have been many failed restaurants and bars at this address, but none of them used the space out back (or had 43 beers on tap).
Perdition has been a great addition to a neighborhood that was already drowning in beer options I like. It’s quite close to Downtown Berkeley BART and a lot of buses, but good luck finding parking nearby. You’ll probably want to walk off all that beer and meat later anyway.
Perdition is at 2050 University Boulevard in Berkeley, near the intersection with Shattuck. It’s open noon-midnight during the week and noon-1am on Friday and Saturday. Follow them on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
