The Arizona Craft Beer Fest Moved to Downtown Mesa for Halloween. The Taprooms Down the Street Were There First.

On Saturday, the gates open at 26 N. Macdonald, a mid-1930s post office in downtown Mesa. Six historic neon signs hang over the yard next to it, and the 18 Arizona breweries listed so far will be pouring 5-ounce samples. The 5th annual Arizona Craft Beer Fest runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 31, 2026. It's presented by PHOENIX magazine in partnership with the Arizona Craft Brewers Guild, and it celebrates the year's AZ Craft Beer Awards.

The festival closes at 4 p.m. Within a few blocks of The Post are taprooms, a cidery, a new dinner-and-show venue, and three restaurants that took years to open. For anyone who lives in the East Valley, the festival's new address matters most because of what's open around it once the last sample ticket is gone.

A Festival on Its Third Address in Three Editions

This festival hasn't stayed put. In 2023 it was at Heritage at Sportsman's Park in Glendale, on October 21. In 2024 it moved to Centerpoint Plaza in Tempe, on October 19. This year's event page puts it in capital letters: "WE'VE MOVED!!" It also says organizers are excited to bring the festival "to Downtown Mesa on Halloween."

The venue is The Post, and it has its own history. The City of Mesa's history page says the building went up in 1936, was expanded in 1960, and served as Mesa's central post office until around 1980. A voter-approved 2018 bond paid to convert it into a community event space. Visit Mesa gives 1937 as the year it was finished. The city lists the building at 5,750 square feet and runs it through Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities. Most of the year it hosts receptions, banquets, quinceañeras and concerts.

The outdoor space is the Neon Garden, with six neon signs. According to Phoenix New Times, five are restored vintage signs and the sixth is a replica of the Diving Lady, and the signs were saved through a preservation effort by the City and the Mesa Preservation Foundation. The festival calls its footprint "The Post & Macdonald Plaza," so expect the pour lines to spill out of the building and into the open air.

The Ticket Tiers Pour at the Same Pace

All three ticket tiers come with a commemorative sample glass, and every drink ticket is worth 5 ounces. What changes is when you get in.

Divide it out and every tier works out to five tickets an hour. A VIP ticket buys a longer afternoon at the same pace, plus can koozies and stickers while they last. Tickets run $20.22 to $68.38 including fees, and the page says ticket details can change.

That math changes how the day lays out. If you have a late-admission ticket, you have the late morning free and a 1 p.m. entry a few blocks from Main Street. Whatever you pick, everyone walks out at 4 p.m. onto streets where other places are still pouring.

House rules from the event page:

• Ages 21 and over only, and everyone's ID gets checked at the door.
• Halloween costumes and pretzel necklaces are allowed. No other outside food.
• No pets, no weapons, no one under 21.
• Water bottles are allowed if they're empty or factory-sealed.

The Roster Includes a Brewery That Left Main Street This Summer

The page lists 18 breweries so far and says more are coming: Phantom Fox Beer Company, Catalyst Crafted Ales, Rickety Cricket Brewing, 12 West Brewing, Hundred Mile Brewing, Sana Sana Cerveceria, O.H.S.O. Brewery + Distillery, The Brewery at Tirrito Farm, Desert Monks Brewing, Barrio Brewing Co., Lumberyard Brewing Company, High Tanks Brewing Company, AZ LOC Ale Beer Co., SanTan Brewing + Distilling, Pinnacle Brewing Company, Vulture Peak Brewing Company, Saddle Mountain Brewing Co. and Greenwood Brewing. Food comes from Eighty Twenty Burgers, Viva Pizza, Pelon's Food Truck, The Dog Father Gourmet and California Tacos.

One name on that list had a downtown Mesa address until recently. Phoenix New Times reported in June that 12 West Brewing had closed its downtown Mesa location for the summer while a new concept took over the space. Its Gilbert Barnone location and production facility stayed open. According to the brewery's site, the Gilbert taproom is at 3000 E. Ray Road, Barnone Building 6, Suite 110. On Saturday, 12 West pours in downtown Mesa again, this time from a festival booth.

The new concept is open now. KTAR reported that Stage 12 West, a restaurant that doubles as a live entertainment venue, opened on October 2 in the former 12 West space near Country Club Drive and Main Street. The menu runs from loaded nachos and a bruschetta trio to grilled salmon and pasta primavera, with chocolate lava cake to finish. The venue also promises high-quality sound and laser displays. The Mesa Independent reported that Jolie's Secret Speakeasy was set to open inside on October 9. Stage 12 West's site now lists it on Friday and Saturday nights from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. On Halloween, a Saturday, that speakeasy opens one hour after the festival gates close.

Phantom Fox has its own downtown address, too. The Downtown Mesa directory lists Phantom Fox Beer Co. at 150 W. Main St. and describes it as "now open." Check hours before you plan around it.

The Main Street Taprooms Open on Either Side of the Gates

Downtown Mesa had its own beer scene well before the festival announced the move. These are within walking distance of Macdonald and Main:

1. Oro Brewing Company, 210 W. Main St. The Downtown Mesa directory lists weekly hours and a trivia night on Thursday, October 29, the day this post publishes.
2. Pedal Haus Brewery, 201 W. Main St., across the street. Its own site calls it a local independent microbrewery and lists Mesa hours.
3. Chupacabra Taproom, 14 N. Robson St. Its online beer list was updated as recently as October 21.
4. Cider Corps, 31 S. Robson St., a craft cidery and taproom, for anyone who wants a break from beer by the end of the afternoon.
5. The Sacred Pint, 214 W. Main St., which the directory lists with 24 rotating taps. B.R.I. Taproom & Arcade is listed next door at 213 W. Main St.

Taken together, the festival is a five-hour sample of breweries from across the state, held on a street where several of the taps are local. If you want to start before your entry time or keep going after 4 p.m., you're only walking a few blocks.

Dinner After the Festival, and a Game at City Hall

The festival's food trucks will cover lunch. Dinner is a bigger question on Halloween night, and The Grid adds an option downtown didn't have last fall. ABC15, reporting from the Phoenix Business Journal, said in August that Crust Concepts had opened three restaurants on the ground floor of The Grid, at 233 E. Main St. The project had been in the works since before 2020, then stalled when the developer filed for Chapter 11 in 2024, and work restarted after Soltrust took over. Crust Concepts' own plans for the space included a Crust restaurant, the Nightingale speakeasy, and an Italian doughnut-and-gelato counter.

On the same Saturday, the City of Mesa lists Gameday at the MIX at The Plaza at Mesa City Center, 56 E. Main St.

For getting there, the Center St./Main St. stop is the closest Valley Metro Rail station to The Post by address. Riding the train means no parking hunt.

The Post's Next Two Dates

After this weekend, The Post and the blocks around it go straight into the holiday calendar. Merry Main Street's kickoff and tree lighting is set for Friday, November 27, from 5 to 10 p.m. Live music is planned that night at the Mesa Christmas Tree. On December 5, The Post hosts Sensory Santa from 8 a.m. to noon. It's free, but you need to register ahead. Gameday at the MIX keeps running on November 7, 14, 21 and 28 and December 4. For more of what's changing across the East Valley, see our Southeast Valley neighborhood guide or our look at how the region's fall traditions changed shape this year.

If a Saturday on Main Street has you thinking about living within walking distance of a taproom and a train stop, Apex Residential can talk you through which East Valley streets offer it.