Some of the most frequently asked questions I get in my Instagram inbox are about family friendly recommendations when you vacation to Southwest Florida! So I thought I’d start a series called “Family Friendly Recs” where I’ll share posts about places our family visits around here (and other places we travel to)!
We live in Naples, and the other night we were trying to think of a casual way to spend a little time on a Friday evening. We only had three out of our four kids because Case was at a friend’s house, and we decided to try somewhere new. We were so pleasantly surprised that I thought I’d kick off the series sharing about this fun brewery!
Riptide Brewing Company has two locations. One in Naples and one in Bonita Springs! Bonita Springs is only 10 or 15 minutes north of Naples and we were on the north side of town, so we opted for the Bonita location!
After we parked we saw a food truck set up in the parking lot. I always like when breweries have a food option if they don’t serve food inside. Especially with kids, this is always appreciated!
Upon entering, we saw a big line of pinball machines (apparently they have a pinball league!) and a bunch of other arcade games. This was all our kids needed to be on board with their parents bringing them to a brewery. We got some quarters from the machine and they were set while we went to order our drinks.
I saw a couple other families with kids too. Is it just me or when you bring kids to a brewery and see other families there too that you kind of breathe a sigh of relief?! It’s kind of like “okay you’re my kind of people” lol.
I’m not a beer drinker (I might have a sip of Jake’s but can’t finish one on my own) so before we go to any brewery I always need to make sure there’s cider or seltzer on the menu. This place had both! I went the cider route this time and it was so good! Not too sweet! Jake, on the other hand, likes most everything beer wise, as long as its craft. He had the East Coast and West Coast IPA’s and said they were really good!
The whole space inside the brewery had a fun vibe, with lights strung and very spacious too. It was a very casual atmosphere – some people brought games to play, others were just chatting, some having a birthday party, etc. It would be an easy place to bring a big group too. A perfect place to “drop in” without planning ahead.
They also had an outdoor area with bags and more seating! We hung out there for a while. Our boys tend to bring a football with them wherever they go in hopes that there’s room to play catch, and this place had plenty of it outside in the back.
For us, this was a perfect spot to visit for an hour before dinner. If you’re looking for a family friendly brewery while you’re in town, I love stuff like this because it gets us out of the house, off of devices, and we always have great quality conversations. Next time we’ll have to check out the Naples location!
xo,
Amber
P.S. I share more family life on Instagram (@ambermariekuiper) and Facebook (Mom’s Me Time)! Would love for you to follow along!
