St. Elmo Brewing Company
Patty Palace runs the kitchen inside the taproom, and Carl, the house kolsch, is the clean crisp thing to drink with the smashburger.
Why go
The beer range moves, and Nicolai McCrary names kolsch, IPAs and kettle sours as the styles worth ordering here on any given day.1 The patio is large, shaded with picnic tables, dog-friendly, and runs live music.1 The taproom sits at 440 E Saint Elmo Road in the warehouse district, in a complex that also holds Still Austin Distillery, Texas Sake Company and The Austin Winery, each inspected as its own business.2
Order this / avoid
- Order: the Carl Kolsch. McCrary calls it clean and crisp, and it is the beer the review sends a first-timer to.1
- And: a smashburger from Patty Palace, the counter operating inside the taproom.1
- Avoid: treating the Springdale taproom as the same room. It is a separate address with its own kitchen arrangement and its own inspection record.2
What locals & experts say
- Nicolai McCrary, The Infatuation Austin:
St. Elmo Brewing is home to our favorite smashburger in Austin at Patty Palace, and that alone should be enough reason to head to this South Austin brewery
.1 - Why there is no score: the Infatuation rates only places where you can eat a full meal, so there is a byline here and no number. The blank is a scope rule and not a low verdict.1
Good to know
- Hygiene: Austin Public Health scored the kitchen 86 on 26 June 2025, 92 on 12 July 2024 and 94 on 22 June 2023, on a scale where 70 is the failing line. The city files the business as
St. Elmo Brewing Co.
2 - Two taprooms, two records. The Springdale Road taproom is inspected on its own permit, and nothing here describes it.2
Verdict
could-visit — This South Austin production brewery runs a burger counter in its taproom, and Nicolai McCrary calls it The Infatuation's favorite smashburger in the city. The house kolsch is the pour he points at, with IPAs and kettle sours alongside. The patio is large, shaded, dog-friendly and runs live music, so it works for a group that has not agreed on anything. It sits in a complex with a distillery, a sake maker and a winery, which is the real argument for the trip: one parking spot, four drinks programs. The city has scored the premises 94, 92 and 86 over three years.