Gator Beverage Inc

The place doesn’t look like much at first glance, but it packs a top notch supply of craft beer that are reasonably priced. In particular I like that they always have cool bombers of Cigar City and Funky Buddha, two of of my favorite breweries. Any place that carries FB Last Snow in Gainesville has my approval.

Love this place, best craft beer selection in town! Staff is extremely knowledgable and very friendly.

They sell expired beer here, and they laugh about it when you bring it up to them.
Last Friday my wife and I visited GatorBev, which I used to think of as a good spot for a quick beer run. We had been a week or so before and she bought a pack of Unibroue Ephemere, but at home she said it tasted bad and the bottles were dusty. Sure enough, on our most recent trip I went in with her and the beers were several months beyond their expiration date. This is September 2015, and the beers were Best By June 2015!
We asked at the counter and they laughed. «Show us what’s expired» they said, and when she did, they offered her a five percent discount, adding «You know, Best Buy dates are just an American convention. The beer is actually better now.» Bull — Unibroue’s website says Ephemere is «Better as young as possible.» Regarding BB dates as just an ‘American Convention,’ here’s what top brewers have to say (TL;DR: it isn’t):
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Anyway, she can taste the difference immediately, so we passed. But not before I looked over the rest of their bottles, several of which were dusty and past expiration. I said, «Hey, this Left Hand Great Juju is expired, too!»
They responded with another laugh, «Yeah, that Juju is definitely past.»
If you need a quick cold case of Miller, GatorBev is fine. But this place does not live up to its reputation for having quality beer. I won’t be back.

GatorBev looks like a dumpy convenience store in Gainesville’s «downtown.“However, they stock an inordinate amount of craft beer– it is probably 90% of the store. About 25% of that is refrigerated six packs and cases while you can peruse aisles of special large format bottles. Lots of great finds here over the years. Markup is minimal. Location unbeatable.

Awesome place. Great beer selection comparable to or better than places in my hometown (DC). Staff I dealt with was way beer knowledgable. Craft beer variety is top notch.

Anyone who has been in Gator Beverage (affectionately, Gator Bev) can attest: theses guys have the best selection of retail bottles for purchase at any given time, for a better price than any place in town (speaking, of course, about craft beer). Embracing what I will call the «most divey alcohol store ever» as endearing, prepare to get overwhelmed with so many choices that you forget people uninterested in craft beverages, but who are pretty fond of frequent imbibing, also stop in a bit.
The Space
Right off of University Ave and a stone’s throw from campus, Gator Bev has a quaint parking lot that typically has a space you can squeeze into if you come by car. You will spot it fairly easily by the gigantic gator and mushroom mural it sits next to (pretty hard to miss).
They make do with the room they have, and actually manage to keep a lock on the organization of most offerings they have. Each aisle has labels to indicate the styles you can find, and the end-​caps are usually newer beers of those styles. The shelf you will see right when walking in, on your left, houses the new, harder-​to-​find options that they rotate in/​out on the regular.
The Service
With one or two exceptions, I always find helpful, friendly people here to ask general questions. Sometimes the really fast-​moving beers will get kept behind the counter for «single bottle only» sales (think Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout) and you might have to ask about these, so it only makes sense that they are friendly when confirming they have the hot-​ticket items. They have been a little irked before, but this tends to be when a high volume of disruptive imbibers stops in for their «Party Fuel».
The Suds
They are not boasting to say it is the «largest beer selection in Gainesville»: it is hard to put a number on but they have great stock of new, rare, and local beers to meet any beer enthusiast’s needs. When I come in I can be expected to spend no less than 10 minutes walking though the aisles trying to make up my mind. If I am in a hurry I default to finding a pre-​chilled option, and the rows of coolers in the back (one dedicated to single bottles for mix-​and-​match purchases) still make this hard for indecisive people like yours truly.
PRO TIP: They do sell kegs of beer beyond the typical macro-​brewery options. Get a pony of Swamp Head and show your friends you really care.
Final Thoughts
I have grown accustomed to the sketch factor some patrons lend to Gator Bev, and will never hesitate to stop in when I am looking for a new release that is hard to find or just when I want a cold 6’er to bring to a friend’s place. The proximity to campus and offering of liquors/​kegs will always have this place less-​than-​highbrow, but do not let something silly like that stop you from getting your money’s worth for best brews.

It’s craft beer heaven in the guise of a 7-​Eleven. For the location, you won’t find a better beer selection in town (though I prefer Tipples, they’re out of the way for most folks). Not to mention, they tend to have random specials that just make this beer geek squeal like a little girl on Christmas ($ 5 for a four-​pack of Torpedo IPA tall-​boys?!). Yeah, they have gas station-​quality service, but that doesn’t bother me. It’s an in-​and-​out-​type place with some of the best product quality you’ll find for your buck.
Never been here for anything but beer, but it seems their selection of other goodies is lacking a bit. Not like they have room for anything else, with all the beer they have lying around. It can get kind of cluttered and tough to find what you’re looking for sometimes, even though it’s all technically organized by culture, but who cares? Gator Bev is awesome, and if you like beer, you’re likely to feel the same way.

Terribly rude and unfriendly service. Didn’t even give me a bag for the liquor that I bought, I had to ask. Since when do you walk out of a store with just the bottle and no bag?

It’s Craft Beer Heaven. The first time I was in there, I had to pick my jaw up off the ground, what a selection.

Awesome beer selection. Shitty selection for everything else. Decent prices. Unfriendly service.
Never my first option.

Great selection of craft and imported beer at fair price. Cheaper than Publix, and probably ABC, in general.

Best beer selection in town. They don’t have everything, but they come pretty dang close. The environment is kinda sketchy (hence te 4 rating). Wife never wants to go here, because she doesn’t feel safe. Its worth the the «danger» though. The selection is unbelievable!!!

Gator Bev has an awesome beer selection for being so small. The staff is okay – with the exception of Jeff, who I thought was pretty cool. Whenever my boyfriend and I would come in he would always recommend something new (and good) to try. There were a few times where we had some bottles of Rocheforts reserved for a couple hours. I really liked the variety of Belgian beers as well as their stouts.
The prices are decent and once in a while they sell sets of beer with glasses. I got my St. Bernardus. Chimay, and La Trappe glasses here.
Now that I’ve moved away I really miss this place. Five stars all the way!

Extensive beer selection, close to campus. Went in looking for liquor but it was past 11pm and we couldn’t buy due to county law. We ended up with beer and wine. Great prices.

I went into GB seeking a beer that is apparently only available in kegs as of now. Unfortunately, I couldn’t bring a keg with me on a plane back to Chicago, sigh. The guy working offered to help me find something similar, something else «Florida» to bring back to my husband who couldn’t make the trip home with me. The employee suggested a brewery out of Tampa, Cigar City Brewing. He showed me all their beers, talked to me about them and then made recommendations based on what we liked to drink. A very pleasant experience with a very knowledgeable worker. Not what I expected from a booze shop near campus. I’m happy to see Gainesville is embracing the craft beer revolution.
btw, the beer he suggested was awesome and easily one of our favorites. Too bad it’s not available this far north yet.

Gator Beverage is Gainesville’s quintessential liquor store. They’ve got a diverse beer selection — I’m constantly finding new beers to try. Their prices are really good as well. I’ve also found that the employees are really helpful when it comes to picking something out.

The beloved Gator Beverage, how I miss this place. Back in the day, when I lived off 6^th Ave. Gator Beverage was the go to spot for liquor, kegs, six packs or Belgians. And it was comforting to see it still there, as a beacon of boozy light (on an avenue that is totally not known for beacons of boozy light…)
The selection is pretty good for a convenience store sized bev store, not necessarily the best in the town, but without a car, at this time of the evening, it fit my bill.
Also, it is far superior to the ABC Liquor store (3^rd and 13^th I think) that was considerably closer to my house when I lived here. And I think the prices are great, considering what Philly offers me, now.
Oh, but there’s one thing you should know… They don’t carry Gordon’s Gin. A total affront for that old man in front of me tonight. Keep on reaching for those stars, old man. You will get to the promised land.

Best place to pickup beer in Gainesville, especially craft and imports. You can also buy almost anything in singles, which is very handy if you’re too afraid to get a six pack.
They also have a fine selection of smut magazines, but remember kiddies there’s a «Five Minute Browsing Limit».
Go ahead, see for yourself.
(If, for some reason, you can’t find a beer here, try Ward’s)

Best beer selection in Gainesville all right! They had tons of great finds, including many things we can’t get up here in New England. There were three aisles filled with good beer, and the prices were reasonable.

Didn’t Less than Jake make a song about this place?
They have a lot of alcohol, and the dudes behind the counter look exactly how you’d expect.