Axelrad

One of the best spots in Houston. Awesome lounge space outdoors. Great beer selection and some good food trucks plus a pizzeria on location. What’s not to love? The hammocks are super chill and comfy. Very clean and the staff are professional and helpful.

I’m writing this hanging in a hammock at Axelrad. A hammock! It’s my favorite vacationy thing next to the beach itself! This is already a biased review.
And to add to this —
Beer. Luigi’s pizza. Coffee. Food truck. Outdoor. Sun. Evening breeze. And just to reiterate — hammocks. Does it get much better than this?
I only wish I had found this place about 4 months earlier so that I could’ve enjoyed the beautiful spring we had this year right here in this place.
Two parking lots around the corner off Alabama and La Branch in addition to street parking. Good stuff!

Awesome Sunday Funday time! Great selection of beers on tap.
Pizza is really good. And they also have a few other food trucks surrounding the compound.
It’s mostly outdoor seating but there are indoor seating at the bar as well and a few seats upstairs in the patio for a better view.
What I really like about this place is that they usually Have live music and the hammocks that you can chill on with the combination of pizza and beer? It just doesn’t get any much better than that.
Anyways, you definitely have to come check this place out yourself (:

Awesome atmosphere, great beer variety but I encountered exactly the same service every time I visit Texas. Crap. I cannot believe that places with no mixed drinks, with no food service can take so much to service patrons. If Colorado can service people in less than 5 minutes PER person everybody can.
Bartenders service patrons on an unorganized way, people get faster service depending on where they stand in the bar. Getting a beer is not synonym to play the lotto. Lucky one gets the beer. Get your crap together, the faster you service people, the more money you make.
Typical Texas service…

Love. So glad we have a place like this in Houston. It’s open, laid back, serves more than just beer, has hammocks, and you can order pizza here. It’s always a good time at Axelrad. No complaints!

I’m very impressed with this place! It’s so spacious in their back patio which makes it feel like two bars in one. They have so much seating around including hammocks which make the place very inviting to big and small crowds. They have a variety of beers and cocktails. They also have an area for the band to play in indoors and outdoors settings and a huge projector. Apart from the usual adult crowd, I did see some children around which made the place seem very family friendly (at least for the early evening hours).
An added plus is that Luigi’s pizza is in the same patio area and they have AMAZING pizza! I will definitely be going back soon.

Love, love, love this place! My pup, my boyfriend, his sister and I finally made it out to the infamous Axelrad. We had an absolute blast just hanging out, enjoying the fresh air in the modern chairs and hammocks. Everyone was incredibly down to earth, everyone seemed to be right at home and we loved how convenient it was to eat from Luigi’s! This will definitely be our new spot!

This place is huge! There’s a lot of seatings inside however, hardly anyone sit inside because it smells like old rag & feet People are only inside to get drinks. Majority are beers, and a small list of wine and cocktails. Cheap drinks!
If you get there before 1030, the parking lot across the bar (grass area) seem to be free. Or the guy went to the restroom when I parked my car lol. Because we left at 1130 and saw a guy wearing a construction vest standing by the entrance (looked like he was charging).
They play awesome music and have open mic/​live band which is pretty awesome. The backyard/​patio area is huge! It felt like I was at a festival concert. What sucks is there’s no dance area. There are lots of seatings outside and plus they have hammock!
Last but not least, you walk toward the back by the stage and it’s connected with Luigi pizza (which I heard it’s super good). Pizza and beer can never go wrong!

Came early last Saturday night and still didn’t get a chance to snag a hammock… Or any seat outside for that matter. Will try earlier next time. There are tons of sitting space but there’s also tons of people so get there early! So we ended up having our drinks inside (which smelled really bad btw… No seriously what is that smell? Like dirty mop water that hasn’t been changed in ages. Peeyew).
Their specialty cocktails will run you about $ 8.66/drink and they’re pretty small and light. But who comes here for cocktails right? Stick to their craft beers. It was a clusterfcuk getting drinks. Even though the line moved fast, you’re literally blocking the walk-​way as you wait to order. So people are constantly touching and brushing past you to get through. How annoying. The tiny bar is L-​shaped, but one side was closed… on a busy Saturday night. Why?
Loved the vibe. Loved the atmosphere. Will be back.
P. S. You can find plenty of parking across the street.

The Good: The atmosphere of this place is great. They have a very nice vibe going on with outdoor seating, benches, and hammocks. The lit tree definitely sets the mood here as well. I’ve gone here a few times and I’ve usually been entertained by the live performances. Axelrad doesn’t have a food menu, but you can order Luigi’s next door. Brilliant!
The Meh: The draft beer selection is really limited here. You can choose from Double IPA or stout… or cider, but that doesn’t count. They have a fairly large selection of bottles for everything else that isn’t IPA or stout, but there’s an appeal to draft. They also serve wine here if beer isn’t your thing. One more meh detail is that sometimes they serve your beer in plastic cups. What’s with that? Buy more cups.
The Bad: I can’t say there’s anything wrong with this place. Seating is limited, and I can never seem to get a hammock haha. Parking is also limited, but it’s free (at least for the times I’ve been) and there’s an attendant (so those are pluses).
Anyways, I enjoy this place. The ONLY thing I have to knock on it is the lack of draft selections. I want to give this place five stars, but please up your draft selections to expand on variety.

I’ve been waiting for a place like this to open in Houston. Pretty much similar to a beer garden. There are games, blankets you can sit on, hammocks, long wooden tables and occasionally live music! It’s right next to a pizza joint and you can bring it outside their patio to eat. Lots of craft beers on tap. They even had the ballast point pineapple scuplin!

Axelrad is a gem of high proportions. Perfect location, romantic view of downtown and the best outdoor seating this city has to offer.
The owners really took their time constructing a space that people would be able to genuinely enjoy. From the vast picnic table area to the hammock section to the deck seating above the actual building… it was flawlessly executed.
I’m not a fan of craft beer, but they offer more beers than one person should need in a lifetime. Also, if you buy 4 $ 5 beers, they’ll give you a 5^th one free and throw ‘em all in a bucket for ya! I opted for the margaritas and was not disappointed. Warning: These are NOT for play play. A few of these will get you bent!
So…I bet you’re wondering how can I sing these high praises about Axelrad and not give them 5 stars? Unfortunately, it was due to the service. I waited for 15 minutes at the bar on Saturday around 4pm. It was extremely busy, however there were at least 5 bartenders and none of them would even acknowledge my presence, let alone greet me or ask to take my order. When I inquired to one bartender about the margaritas, she rudely asked me to give her a minute while she helped someone who walked up after me.
There’s nothing worse than a nice establishment having bartenders with elitist attitudes, so hopefully the management can address that hiccup. It takes away from the virtually perfect experience. But make no mistake… Axelrad is the place to be this summer!

For the past month, all I have heard about was Axelrad. Axelrad. Axelrad. Axelrad!
Well, I finally ventured into Houston’s newest and most talked about hotspot. It’s quite spectacular outdoors with a giant lighted tree and plenty of seating. Think picnic benches and adirondack chairs underneath strung fairy lights. For those wanting a more quirkier seating arrangement, try the colorful hammocks littered throughout the beer garden. When sitting outside, it’s hard to resist the smell of fresh pizza wafting over from Luigi’s next door. Buy a slice and it’ll be brought to you — what more could you want?
Is pizza not your thing? Try the crêpe station inside the building located catty-​corner from the bar.
Axelrad specializes in beers, but they also have a really nice wine menu. With over 30 beers on-​tap and a 3-​page drink menu, you are sure to find something that’ll please your thirst without breaking the bank (I don’t think there is a drink that costs more than $ 11). Everytime that I went, I received my drink within 5 minutes of approaching the bartenders who are friendly and willing to offer advice on what beer you may enjoy. Even with a packed bar, I feel that the staff is still super helpful.
On my visit yesterday night, I sat inside for most of the time (couldn’t find a spot outside with the pretty weather), but thoroughly experienced the vibe that Axelrad is trying to go for. Inside was a little over air-​conditioned, however I feel that will be a useful trait once the weather turns warmer. They have board games for you to entertain yourself with and the YouTube videos on the TV are a bit trippy, yet entertaining to watch. The music selections created a wonderful relaxed vibe, and whenever I became too cold I used the chance to survey the outdoor entertainment.
Overall, Axelrad lives up to the hype and Houston is truly improved by the newest addition to Midtown!

Great place! Awesome atmosphere. Enough beer on tap to satisfy the pickiest of beer snobs! There’s also wine for anyone who may not be a beer lover. They don’t do food, but the pizza joint next door seems like a great option. When I went here the temperature was great. It was super sunny, but some shaded spots. I think the only thing I’d add is more shade. A few more umbrellas.
I’ll definitely be back here when I’m in town.

When my friends suggested we try out this «hip new bar on Alabama», I must admit, I didn’t expect much. Perhaps because I’m a homebody, perhaps because I’m the furthest thing from hip, perhaps because one beer makes me sleepy.
Regardless, Axelrad was SO much more than a pleasant surprise.
Upon walking through the doorway, I was immediately greeted with the buttery, carbaholic aroma of fresh crepes. Crepes at the bar, y’all. The plethora of diverse, quirky Houstonians seemed friendly and animated enough. The inside of the bar is comfortable, ornate, and casual; you’d really have to try to be underdressed here.
The bartenders were quick, attentive, and extremely helpful as I stumbled through a list of beers, ciders, and wines. The menu was around 3 pages, so you should be able to find a brew to suit your palatte and your wallet (my drink was around $ 6).
The girls and I headed outside, and I felt like I was pulled into an Austin-​esque backyard bbq (without the bbq). There are SO many picnic tables! Finally, an owner who built a bar that can accommodate its popularity. In addition to the ample table seating, there are hammocks to the side of one the fences. Side note: I went through the hassle of parallel parking only to find a humongous lot just for the bar around the corner of the bar. Don’t make my mistake.
Feast your eyes on the huge, colorfully lit tree in the middle of the yard, but don’t miss the huge screen in the background (I sure hope they play quirky foreign films on it sometimes). Last but not least, make your way towards the back corner of the outdoor portion to access a pizza parlor that was cranking out pies that smelled like saucy, doughy heaven. Salivation was an issue. Thankfully, there were tons of adorable, derpy dogs to join me in that struggle.
I think Houston has needed a bar like this for a while. This bar is perfect for nights when downtown is too fancy, Midtown is too ratchet, and Montrose is too crowded. Axelrad is the epitome of a chill bar night with friends, and I’m so excited to go back and make some memories worthy of a Ted Moesby tale.

Axelrad is everything you could dream up for a heavenly beer garden.
But what I appreciate most about Axelrad is that it pays homage to everything that is Houston: culturally diverse, artistic, quirky, and historic. It’s a massive outdoor space situated alongside the original 1920’s house of the Axelrad family name. They offer live music with unique lighting at sunset, picnic tables galore, a smattering of colorful hammocks from Nicaragua and the Yucatan, hand-​carved wooden beer taps from El Salvador; it’s kid-​friendly, dog-​friendly, and you can even order food from Luigi’s (my fave!) next door and they’ll bring it over to your table.
As a true beer garden, they only serve beer, cider, wine and champs by the bottle; but that’s all you really need on a gorgeous Texas day. And the beer menu changes practically daily as I was told.
The owners/​investors collaborated all their ideas and successfully made it one of Houston’s top new watering holes. Well done!

It’s like a little piece of Austin got transplanted to Houston! Large mostly-​outdoor beer garden with a variety of interesting beers on tap and bottled to pick from. Atmosphere is hipster with a hint of cigarette smoke. Lovely party lights with a super interesting lit-​up tree in the middle of the garden. Food truck in one corner and a trippy video projecting on the wall of nearby Luigi’s Pizzeria. Walk in and just plop down at any of the many picnic tables and service will come to you with a menu. We tried several interesting brews on tap (heavy on porters/​stouts) and were not disappointed. We also ordered a pizza from Luigi’s and they brought it to our table at Axelrad!
Parking (private lot and street) was plentiful but can still fill up on a busy night. There are several outdoor hammocks that you can sit in if you are into that kind of thing. Heaters are out for cool nights. We saw several dogs in the patio, just make sure you bring a leash. My only gripe is the service. While you can go inside and order from the bar directly, we were outside and our waitress just up and disappeared. After 25 minutes of waiting for her to come to our table, I finally found someone else to bring us our check. Besides the service kerfuffle, this place is recommended and breath of fresh air for this area.

This place is awesome!!! After reading all the enticing reviews of this place, I was so happy to finally have a random weekday off and come check this place out! Great beer selection on tap, tons of outdoor seating with hammocks and picnic style tables that are great for groups, fun old school board games, and best of all… it’s dog friendly! The service is attentive– the bartender noticed I brought my dogs along with me and brought them out a dog bowl of water and some dog treats– SO thoughtful!
This is definitely a great, chill place to check out when the weather is nice and you wanna hang out with a group of friends. And if you don’t like beer, don’t worry… they also have a wine list here :)

31 beers on tap? Check. Games? Check. Food? Check. Hammocks? Check. Plenty of seating? Check. View of downtown? Check. Dog friendly? Check. Twinkly lights? Check. Outdoor and indoor and patio seating? Check. I LOVE YOU, AXELRAD.
Pros:
1. Beers. 31 beers on tap. They also have bottled and canned beers and wine.
2. THEY HAVE GAMES! So many games!
3. Food. They share the outdoor area with Luigi’s Pizzeria — you can go into Luigi’s, order pizza, and they’ll deliver it to your table at Axelrad! On Sunday when we were there, they also had a someone selling crawfish and a food truck selling tacos! Options!
4. TONS of seating! Outdoor picnic tables, indoor seating, seating on the second floor patio!
5. HAMMOCKS. So I didn’t actually lay in one on Sunday, but there were two available while we were there. On my next visit, I want to lay in one and read my book and drink beer and have the perfect day.
6. View of downtown. GORGEOUS view of downtown. Make sure you check it out from the second floor balcony patio! Twinkly lights. Tree with lights! Too cool.
7. Dog friendly. I made a friend named Duke — a pitbull puppy that was WAY too cute.
8. They played videos on the white wall of Luigi’s Pizzeria, and they were playing a silent movie on some screens inside the bar.
9. Big parking lot behind. There’s also nearby street parking.
10. EVERYTHING ELSE.
Cons? NONE. New favorite bar. Lower Midtown/​Museum District needed a bar like Axelrad!!! Can’t wait to go back!

This beer garden is definitely the IT spot place to be in 2016. It’s only been soft opening for a few weeks and the establishment keeps getting better and better. Let’s be real here, one of the biggest draw right now is the fact the iconic New Orleans trumpeter Kermit Ruffins plays here almost every Wednesday since the soft opening. I mean, everything else about this beer garden are wonderful as well such as great selection of draught, bottle, and decent wine list, spacious, well lit patio with good amount of seatings, a rustic upstairs deck that faces towards downtown Houston skyline, a giant projector that have unlimited potential of showings on the wall of next door building, and of course the hammocks. Yes, hammocks may be a giant liability but it is a great idea for a beer garden to have.
There are still a lot of room in the back patio where they can expand upon. I know they have a food truck every now and then as Axelrad are very open on people bringing food from other places to eat at their place. Particularly as most patrons would be buying pizzas from their neighbor Luigi’s and at the same time, you are welcome to bring the beer you bought at Axelrad to Luigi’s. Given the cold winter right now here in Houston, Axelrad have a good amount of outdoor heat lamps to place near all the seatings. Everyone I have met there are friendly as you can ask and sit with people you may not know at any possible open seating at the picnic tables.
As I mentioned earlier about the biggest draw, if you never seen or hear Kermit Ruffins playing it live, you better clear out your Wednesday schedule and make this place your top priority as it will just get more crowded and rowdier as people catches on about this. The price for their beer is great (mostly $ 5 a pour) along with their awesome custom beer taps and well drawn chalkboard menu. The staff and the owners are friendly and very attentive on making sure everyone is good and dandy. Parking can be a little bit tricky as there’s not much street parking around that block but they do have an unpaved lot where majority of people are parking at right now. Axelrad also have a good amount of board games for people to use and now a self serve water station to quench your thirst.
I certainly don’t want this place to be super crowded but at the same time, I am letting everyone know about this new gem in the city of Houston!