Best-of list · Craft Beer
The best craft beer bars in Beirut for 2026: Smoking Bun in Mar Mikhael and December 22 in Hamra, the city's two reliable Lebanese craft beer rooms.
The short answer
2 ranked rooms follow. How we picked is at the end of this guide.
Beirut's craft beer scene is small and honest about it. Lebanon's pioneers, 961 Beer and Colonel, brew outside the capital, and several rooms that once poured local craft have closed. Two bars still carry the flag for homegrown beer in the city. We verified both against current listings and their own taps before publishing.
Smoking Bun keeps it loose in Mar Mikhael, a burger room that treats its beer as seriously as its patties. The tap list rotates Lebanese craft alongside imports, and the kitchen runs late. Order a burger and whatever local brew is freshest on tap, take a stool on the street side, and let the Mar Mikhael crowd spill past. Best after 9 PM.
December 22 is Hamra's craft beer hold-out, a pub built around a strong rotation of Lebanese independents while most of the street pours the same lagers. The room is small and the regulars know their beer, so ask what is new on the board. It rewards a curious drinker over a quick pint. Best on a weeknight, when Hamra's students and writers settle in.