Nestled just ten minutes north of Fort Lauderdale, Tripping Animals has become the latest brewery heavy hitter to open up shop within the City on the Move. Its new taproom is located at 3555 Dixie Hwy., a stone's throw from Oakland Park's main drag.
"We've been looking for a while for a place farther north to open up another location, and we see Oakland Park as a very up-and-coming area," Daniel Chocron, cofounder of Tripping Animals Brewing, tells New Times. "There's a huge potential there for a brewery hop and bar crawl all right there with like 15 different places. There is a huge craft beer clientele there, and since we've opened, we've heard nothing but an incredible response from people not having to drive to Doral to visit us."
Lager Rooted in Friendship from Doral to Oakland Park
Tripping Animals' roots stem back to 2011 in Caracas, Venezuela, when four friends, Chocron, Iker Elorriaga, Ignacio Montenegro, and Juan-Manuel Torres, began experimenting with beer concoctions in a garage. Following travels and learning about the craft, they made an incredible gamble and moved to Miami to open a brewery in Doral.That leap of faith paid off, as Tripping Animals has become a community haven for Doral locals, with weekly nights for creatives, vinyl vendors, and comedy. Oh, yeah, and people love the beer. In 2024, New Times even named Tripping Animals a Top 100 Bar, and it was honored with a Best of Miami award for best beer selection. In 2022, it was voted New Times' best brewery.
The key to the new Oakland Park spot will be building a similar sense of community. Chocron says, "This space has a big beer garden area, and we're pet-friendly. So, we'll have a lot of activities, many of which will be family-friendly. Right now, we're seeing a lot of daytime consumers enjoying our new location, so it's not just a night type of place."
Sometime in January, Chocron says the Oakland Park location will host a welcome beer festival with fellow local breweries, including 3 Sons Brewing out of Dania Beach, Fort Lauderdale's Tarpon River Brewing, and more.
Expect Regular Events and Fun Collaborations With Local Breweries
The spot is also expanding its regular event schedule, starting with a beer-meets-yoga event on the last Thursday of every month. Additionally, the Oakland Park location plans to tap into Tripping Animals' most popular annual event, the Irie Jungle experience, which is slated for the week of April 20, 2025, in a TBD fashion.On a given day, the Oakland Park location will have ten or so beers on draft and upwards of a dozen cans available. Crowd favorites include the "No Mames" lager, as well as its IPAs, including the hoppy "Ever Haze." There's food, too, with a menu by Chef Estefania Andrade with Latin-inspired favorites like tequeños and a potato-stick-topped hot dog, sandwiches, and a killer sea salt-dashed double chunk chocolate cookie.
Within blocks of Tripping Animals, Funky Buddha Brewery and New Times' 2024 Best Dive Bar winner Big Dog Station anchor Oakland Park's quaint main drag. Black Flamingo Brewery, Rebel Wine Bar, Satellite Pinball Lounge (from the creators of Glitch Bar), and ChainBridge Distillery are all within a five-minute stroll, too, with Pennsylvania-bred Voodoo Brewing Company currently under construction.
Tripping Animals Taproom Oakland Park. 3555 Dixie Hwy., Oakland Park; trippinganimals.com.
