Russian River Area
Santa Rosa's justly famous brewery crafts a wildly popular double IPA called Pliny the Elder, plus top-grade sour beer aged in wine barrels. Good pizza…
Must-see nightlife in Northern California
West of I-5
Try one of the standard brews like the complex and malty Mossback APA (its most popular) or go lighter with the yummy wheat and fruit Blackberry Blond…
Sacramento
Bustling with activity, this brewpub has 22 rotating taps of excellent draft beer. Playful variations of hoppy IPAs are the specialty, but it does lighter…
Yosemite & the Sierra Nevada
Claiming to be the oldest bar in the state (established in 1852 when it served liquor to thirsty miners), the Iron Door is a dusty, atmospheric place,…
Yosemite & the Sierra Nevada
Small batch, Californian boutique wines and 16 craft beers are served in a sophisticated, contemporary space. But it's the lovely backyard beer garden…
Mono Lake Region
A top regional draw, June Lake Brewing's open tasting room serves around 10 drafts, including Deer Beer Brown Ale and some awesome IPAs. Brewers swear the…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Find your California mellow at this neighborhood wine lounge in an 1885 Victorian building. After decades as Force of Habit punk-record shop – note the…
San Francisco
Come as you are – pinstripes or leather, gay, straight or whatever – to toast freedom with sublime bubbly after GLBT History Museum visits, or find liquid…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Do the planet a favor and have another drink at SF's first certified green bar, in an actual 1858 Wild West saloon. Elixir blends farm-fresh seasonal…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The murder of crows painted on the ceiling is an omen: nights at Bloodhound often assume mythic proportions. Vikings would feel at home amid these antler…
Oakland
Java gourmands queue at Blue Bottle's original warehouse location for single-origin espressos and what some consider the Bay Area's best coffee. Single…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Volcanoes erupt inside Pagan Idol every half hour. Order your island cocktail and brace for impact – these tiki drinks are no joke. Flirt with disaster…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
This is no tiki bar. The setting is austere and designed to keep patrons focused on the origin and quality of the small-batch rums that the owner…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
The Victorian tin ceilings are hammered, and you could be too unless you sip these potent concoctions slowly – all expertly crafted from 250 specialty…
San Francisco
For a night of exoticism, gluttony, intoxication and utter abandon, look no further than Grand Hot Pot Lounge, the Inner Richmond's gift to spicy-food…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
As kindred spirits will deduce from the name (the abbreviation for 'percent alcohol by volume'), this bar is backed by cocktail crafters who know their…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Finally, someplace where introverts and extroverts can drink, flirt shyly over shuffleboard and fight off nefarious ninjas together. Pinball wizards…
The Marina, Fisherman’s Wharf & the Piers
There aren't many places around Fisherman's Wharf that can be described 'elegant.' Okay so there's only one...and it's this new wine bar. There's a lovely…
The Marina, Fisherman’s Wharf & the Piers
The Gold Dust is so beloved by San Franciscans that when it lost its lease on the Union Sq building it had occupied since the 1930s, then reopened in 2013…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Drink your way to a history degree with well-researched cocktails: Whiz Bang with house bitters, whiskey, vermouth and absinthe scores high, but El…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Forget Golden Gate Bridge – once you EndUp watching the sunrise over the 101 freeway ramp from this rollicking dance club's backyard oasis (complete with…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Follow cult coffee aromas into this sunny SoMa warehouse, where family-grown, high-end coffee is roasted daily. Aficionados sip signature Owl's Howl…
San Francisco
After zipping around Golden Gate Park and touring a museum or two, relaxing with traditional English afternoon tea ($29 per person) is just the thing…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
SF's best bars are distinguished not just by their drinks but by the conversations they inspire – by both measures Dalva is top-shelf. Over ice-cold mugs…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
You never really know your friends till you've seen them belt out A-ha's 'Take on Me' at Class of '84, Cat Club's Thursday-night retro dance party, where…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Don't mock SF's coffee geekery until you've tried the elixir emerging from this back-alley garage-door kiosk. The Bay Area's Blue Bottle built its…
San Francisco
The candy store of Castro clubs, Beaux serves every gay flavor. Highlights include Club Papi Wednesdays, '90s–'00s Throwback Thursdays, go-go Manimal…
North Beach & Chinatown
Strap on your spurs: it's gonna be a wild Western night at this back-alley Basque saloon squeezed between burlesque joints. The strong slay the…
Japantown, Fillmore & Pacific Heights
Wine, music and conversation blend brunch into happy hour at Scopo Divino. The wine selection does Sonoma proud with old-vine zins and fog-kissed whites…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Cults wish they inspired the same devotion as Ritual, where regulars solemnly queue for house-roasted cappuccino with ferns drawn in foam and specialty…
North Beach & Chinatown
If this sunny flat-iron storefront doesn't lighten your mood, cappuccino with a foam-art heart will. Réveille's coffee is like San Francisco on a good day…
San Francisco
Coconuts are unlikely near blustery Ocean Beach, but here comes Trouble with the 'Build Your Own Damn House' breakfast special: coffee, thick-cut cinnamon…
San Francisco
Cults wish they had the devoted following of this Santa Cruz roaster, justifiably worshipped for small-batch, single-origin roasts prepared with pride…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
West Coast coffeehouse culture is staging a comeback at this membership-supported neighborhood cafe, complete with creaky wooden floors and top-notch hot…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Enter through the traditional moon gate, wander beneath the Chinese lanterns and have a seat at one of the rosewood tables, where you can choose from more…
San Francisco
Trashy meets fancy at Hi-Lo, where discerning barflies sip clever cocktails from vintage glassware. This joint resembles a candlelit squat – tarnished-tin…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Riddle me this: how can you ever thank the women in your life? As the Riddler's all-women sommelier-chef-investor team points out, champagne makes a fine…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Slip behind the velvet curtains into the city's top piano bar, where the rainbow spectrum of regulars seems to have memorized the words to every show tune…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Welcome to the high-school prom you always wanted: indie bands, DIY decor, glitter drag and '90s getups in a former TV studio. Regular events include…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Rocking the gay scene since 1966, the Stud makes history nightly as America's first worker-owned co-op club. Theme nights run amok, with free karaoke…
