San Francisco Watering Holes
Living in Seattle means that I’m less than 2 hours away from beautiful San Francisco, and I try to make it there twice a year. For those of you who are making the trip for the first time, I’ve decided to offer up a map of some of my favorite watering holes.
Feel free to move around, zoom in and even click on the bar’s websites to find out more info.
As I’m sure that I’ve neglected more than one bar from the list, please note my omissions in the Comments.
Happy drinking!
~ by Jamie Boudreau on September 27, 2009.
Posted in Drinking Maps
Tags: bars, lounges, San Francisco, travel, where to drink
SpiritsAndCocktails.com 
Presidio Social Club. Tim Stookey is an amazing bartender and you’ll find lots of pre-prohibition cocktails on the list. Or just ask Tim to mix something up for you. Food ain’t bad here either.
Three more you missed:
Rye – near B&B but more down to earth. Marco Diosysos can now be found there a couple of times a week.
Gitane – a stones throw from bustling Rickhouse but way more refined and quiet. Dominic Venegas setup the bar program here.
Flora – OK, in Oakland, not SF but worth the trip over the bridge. Erik Adkins and Thad Vogler both had a hand in setting up the bar. Runs on it’s own momentum now. Excellent cocktail menu.
Mr. Manhattan:
I’ll have to try Gitane when I’m down there next month. Flora, unfortunately, is in a different city so I’m leaving it out (it would also make the map too big). As for Rye, I’ll have to give it a fourth try, but quite honestly some of the worse drinks I’ve ever received in SF (or any other city for that matter) were served at Rye. It is very rare that I am unable to at least throw back a drink to finish it up, and that has happened twice at Rye. To top it off, the service was inexcusable. I’ll have to give it a try when Marco isn’t there, because I already know that he can balance a drink.
Sorry to hear about your bad experiences at Rye. I haven’t been there is a while and so perhaps no one is left to uphold standards (other than Marco). And even if you don’t put Flora on the map I encourage you to make the trip and check it out for yourself. Oh, and there’s also Camino to visit too. 😉
Michael
Jaime the drinks at The Slanted Door bar in the Ferry Plaza are awesome and the bar is quite nice. Plus you can have a good nosh with your drink and a pretty view of the bay. 🙂
I, too, was a bartender in Seattle and just moved to San Francisco a few months ago to join the masses in the software world. One of my favorite bartenders works at a place called Orbit Room, a tiny, unassuming bar located on Market between Hayes Valley and the Castro. The drinks are artfully crafted, and it was here that I was introduced to the fantastic Corpse Reviver No. 2. I love it. Also a great place to get a solid Negroni. Cash only, like so many SF places. Crazy town, I love it!
How about these:
– 15 Romolo
– Jardiniere
– Berretta
– Bourbon & Branch
– Absinthe
I loved the Precidio!