Everywhere draws block-long opening-night line at Long Beach taproom

Everywhere’s new Long Beach taproom opened to the kind of first-night crowd that usually takes months to build. On Friday, April 13, a line stretched down the block on Fourth Street for hours, and customers were still waiting about 30 minutes to get inside as the Orange County brewery made its Retro Row debut.

The draw was bigger than beer alone. Everywhere shares the space with Good Time coffee, turning 2122 E. 4th St. into a daytime-to-nighttime stop where a customer can start with espresso, come back later for draft beer or seltzers, and linger without feeling like they need to be a hop-heavy regular to belong. That hybrid setup widens the audience to families, remote workers and casual visitors, which is exactly the kind of neighborhood utility that can keep a taproom busy after opening-night hype fades.

Co-owner Daniel Muñoz said the Long Beach location had taken three years to come together, and the packed opening night gave the project an immediate payoff once the license cleared and the doors finally opened. Everywhere said it wanted the taproom to be a positive force in the community, and the space reflects that goal with a code of conduct centered on respect, kindness and responsibility rather than the usual just-pour-and-go bar mentality.

The city had already cleared the way. Long Beach Planning Commissioners unanimously approved the conditional-use permit because Everywhere does not brew on-site at the storefront, which formerly housed The Hangout on Fourth Street. The site now operates as a beer manufacturing tasting room with off-site and on-site sales, a setup that fits a dense corridor like Retro Row, where Visit Long Beach describes more than 40 independent merchants helping feed all-day foot traffic.

Everywhere is leaning into that repeat-visit model with daily hours from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., draft beverages, to-go options and free Wi-Fi available by asking at the bar. Its Long Beach page also lists a local phone number and longbeach@everywherebeer.com, signaling that this is meant to function as a permanent outpost, not a temporary brand extension.

For beer drinkers, the bigger lesson is how the taproom is being built. Everywhere already carries the cachet of winning Brewery of the Year in its capacity category at the 2024 Great American Beer Festival, but Long Beach shows the company pairing that reputation with a softer entry point, community programming and approachable drinks like a strawberry milk tea slushie seltzer. In a crowded beer market, the model is less about chasing hype than becoming useful enough that neighbors keep coming back.