lewes

Brewery Hopping Through Maryland and Delaware's Beaches

The Delmarva Peninsula is home to portions of Maryland and Delaware with nice beaches and some great breweries. This guide goes sequentially driving south to north from Berlin Maryland to Cambridge Maryland after adventuring along the coast.

Burley Oak Brewing

Burley Oak Brewing

Berlin, Maryland

  • Burley Oak Brewing Company: This hype brewery is Sour focused but also makes tasty IPAs. They have a large outdoor space with frequent events. They do not have any food and they do not allow dogs inside or out. Located 15 minutes from Ocean City.

OCean City, Maryland

  • The Other One Brewing Company: A solid brewery with a small food menu and non-beer options. They have a dog-friendly shared patio space and are on the south end of Ocean City.

  • Stay at the Home2Suites Ocean City Bayside: This is a nice hotel in a good location and is reasonably priced for the area.

  • Grab ice cream at King Kone, it’s fantastic!

  • Check out Northside Park—this is a great spot to walk, run, or take your dog.

Dewey Beer Co

Dewey Beer Co

Dewey Beach, Delaware

  • Dewey Beer Company: Dewey has two locations—the original space is a block from the beach in Dewey Beach and their new space in Harbeson, about 30 minutes inland. The beach location has a ridiculously delicious food menu and Harbeson has their newest venture Pizza Machine next door for ‘za. Parking at the beach location can be a little challenging, while Harbeson has ample spots. Sours are what Dewey does best but their IPAs are also good. Dogs are allowed on the patio at the beach and inside and outside at Harbeson.

Big Oyster Brewing

Big Oyster Brewery

Rehoboth Beach, Delaware

  • Dogfish Head Brewery has multiple locations—Brewing & Eats is their restaurant and taproom in Rehoboth, emPOURium is next door with cans, and Chesapeake and Maine is the next building with seafood and cocktails. Dogfish Head’s main brewing facility and tasting room is in Milton, DE.

  • Stay at Home2Suites Rehoboth: A nice, updated hotel with tasty breakfast and great amenities.

  • Thompson Island Brewing Company: A restaurant-style brewery with average beers. It is a beautiful space with a small outdoor space in both the front and back. The space is beautiful, but the location is a bit odd next to a gas station. No dogs allowed.

Lewes, Delaware

  • Wander downtown: This is an adorable small town full of shops, restaurants, and parks.

  • Olive and Oats: A cute spot for coffee, breakfast or lunch in the heart of downtown.

  • Dogfish Head Brewery has an Inn to stay at right downtown!

  • Big Oyster Brewery: The beers here are solid but the vibes are not great. They have a full food menu and operate in the style of a restaurant. Half of the seating is in an outdoor tent with plastic dollar store chairs. Skip the pretzel, eat the oysters.

  • Grab the ferry to Cape May, New Jersey to extend your adventures. Reservations required.

Wave goodbye to the beach, it’s now time to head inland—

RaR Brewing

Delmar, Delaware

  • Loakal Branch Brewing Company: This is a subsidiary of Burley Oak Brewing and more of a local’s dive bar than anything else. I found this to be a very odd spot and not worth visiting.

Salisbury, Maryland

  • Burnish Beer Company: A restaurant-style brewery with a full food menu and a large outdoor space. The food here is tasty and the beers are average. Dogs are allowed outside.

Cambridge, Maryland

  • RaR Brewing: A Sour focused brewery in downtown Cambridge. Their taproom, their Chessie Burger restaurant, and their cocktail bar The LaboRaRtory are all in a shared row. They have a ton of guest taps and guest cans in the taproom alongside a large house-made beer selection. RaR has a cool space with artwork and chill vibes, but the beers were a bit disappointing. There is no dog-friendly space here.

Have you explored The Delmarva Peninsula? What are your favorite spots? Let me know in the comments! Cheers —Alexis