Bar Underdog in Palo Alto opened a couple of months ago, and has remarkable Japanese-ish drink and food from Protege (1*).
Prices are pretty reasonable for the bay area.
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It’s definitely on our list to visit soon. Hopefully there will be more cocktail bars open on the peninsula - so far there are only Underdog. Amandine and Grotto Speakeasy as serious places
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Ending the weekend with a visit to Haberdasher https://haberdashersj.com in San Jose. Good as ever.
Perfect Pear - Dickel 9yr Private Barrel, St. George Spiced Pear, Vino Amaro, lemon
Van Wyck - Green River 1885 Bourbon, cherry liqueur, vermouth
Mariposa (N/A) - Seedlip Grove 42, Elderflower, house-made mint syrup, fresh lemon, pinch of salt
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Blind Pig Speakeasy Lounge https://www.blindpigspeakeasy.com has been on our must visit list for quite some time. It is a hidden bar in the Lower Nob Hill area which you can only enter when you know the “password” (which you find weekly on their instagram page). Not surprising with owner Derrick Li’s background the drinks are very creative with ingredients you don’t see in many places and tend to have a stronger Asian twist. We came with high expectations but actually were really blown away by the quality of the drinks with very balanced, creative, unusual flavor combinations. One of the best cocktail bars we have been in San Francisco - and definitely not our last visit
North - Wu Jia Pi Jiu, bulleit rye, cherry, beet, kumquat, grapefruit
The Captain - Highland Park Whiskey, bacardi 8yr, black sesame, vermouth, cynar, manzanilla, house bitters
Black Wind Demon (N/A) - Abstinence Cape Agave, blueberry, pineapple, lemon, agave nectar
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White Cap (Outer Sunset)
Many bars claim to be neighborhood bars but often feel too large or “corporate” etc. but White Cap https://whitecapsf.com in the Outer Sunset hits really this sweet spot of a neighborhood cocktail place. Small but not cramped, everybody seems to know everybody, bartenders know their customers very well and have interesting discussions beyond just drinks etc. This bar, just a block from the ocean also delivers on excellent cocktails like their signature “Surfer on Acid”.
Surfer on Acid - Uruapan Charanda rum, R. Jelinek Amaro, Lustau PX sherry, Valvet falernum, coffee, coconut, pineapple, salt
Cafecito - Cazadores, Mr. Black, Averna, Creme de Cacao, cold brew
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Since Trick Dog https://www.trickdogbar.com opened 13 years ago it has been part of many best-of list nationally and internationally since that time. It’s a surprisingly energetic and loud bar (and dark as one can see from some of the photos) (compared to some other well established places which are going more for a laid-back and quiet ambience) but really delivers on the cocktails and also on the food (excellent triple cooked fries).
Soundcheck - George Dickel rye, “butterscotch”, banana, coffee shoyu
Oaxaca Carnaval - Ilegal Joven mezcal, agricole rum, agua de janaica, rice orgeat, chamoy vinegar, lime
Chinatown Pretty (N/A) - Abstinence Cape Floral, Wilderton Lustre, dong quai, grapefruit, lemon, ginger foam
French Fries - Thrice-cooked Kennebec potatoes, ketchup, “Doggie” sauce
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Many restaurants obviously have bars as part of their dining room. Nightbird in Hayes Valley is kind of unique as their cocktail bar, Linden Room Linden Room | Nightbird Restaurant ,is more of a speakeasy bar which “hidden” entrance im a side alley. It’a very small place, more like a quite small living room (no parties with more than four people are allowed) but produces excellent, creative cocktails
Nut & Nector - rye, rum, pistachio, green cardamom, lime
Oak & Dagger - bourbon, rhubarb, black walnut, date amaro, orange
N/A mocktail - non-alcoholic agave, pineapple, blueberry, shiso, ginger, lime
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The bay area has quite a few tiki places and Forbidden Island https://www.forbiddenislandalameda.com is one of the established “oldtimers”. Also, a good name playing on the obvious tiki theme but also its location on the Alameda island. Founded 20 years ago, it was one of the drivers of the (re)emerging tiki culture far beyond just San Francisco. Known also for its huge rum collection - there is also a Kill Devil Club if you been able to try all the rums on their extensive list. Enjoyed a relaxed night with well crafted tiki cocktails
Corcovado Cooler - Brazilian cachaca barrel aged rum, apricot brandy, lemon, blend of spices
Sidewinder’s Fang - Aged rums, lime, orange, passion fruit
Virgin Mai Tai
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Martin Cate, who was the main tikiologist when Forbidden Island started, is now at Smuggler’s Cove in SF.
He actually founded Smugglers Cove’s
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Right.
After last week’s visit to Forbidden Island the mood was still for tiki cocktails but this time in San Francisco. Last Rites https://www.lastritesbar.com in the Castro fits that bill. Started about 8 years ago from people behind Horsefeather it has a little bit different vibe than other tiki bars as it is darker and the theme is more towards a plane crash in a jungle (including sound effects) and is sometimes described as a “dark tiki”. So excellent cocktails have some of the expected tiki characteristics but tend to be less sweet and a bit more complex.
Grifter’s Game - American rye, scotch whisky, coconut, pandan, passionfruit, scotch mist
Permanent Midnight - Jamaican and salvadorian rums, red banana, coconut, pandan, coffee
Mocking Bird (N/A) - pathfinder and n/a cask spirit, salted molasses, lime, pineapple, cane syrup, last rites salt
Interior
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Miniboss https://www.sjminiboss.com in San Jose is an interesting cocktail bar as it is also an arcade place with many old time arcade plays, pinball machines etc. It has also a very different ambience than you would normally expect from a cocktail place - much more energetic, louder, playful. As the owners are also involved in other bars in San Jose like Paper Plane the cocktails aren’t just an afterthought but still an integral part of the bar. Fun place with a different vibe (and all games free on Thursday - don’t know when I played PacMan the last time)
Moonlit Altar - Ukrainian brandy, fig, thyme, clove, cinnamon, pomegranate, lemon, trinity bitters
Tears of Alucard - Rye, amaro blend, fortified wine, grapefruit, cherry bark vanilla bitters
Mystic Fruit (N/A) - NA Apple vodka, peach, guava, lemon, ginger ale
Inside
Outside
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San Jose is the third biggest city in California but it often feels like a much smaller, quieter city. Nightlife is quite localized on several blocks around San Pedro Square but has a surprising number of cocktail bars. One of them is Five Points https://www.fivepointssj.com which plays a bit in a speak easy ambience and was very quiet at the beginning of the night but got quite crowded later on (including a DJ). Cocktails were well prepared but tended to be a bit on a sweeter side even for those that should have been more spirit-forward
Verdant Hex - Proper 12 irish apple whiskey, amaro, vanilla, sour apple elixir
Bowery Boy - Tequila reposado, mezcal, orgeat, lime, cinnamon, angostura bitters
N/A Cocktail
Inside
Outside
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Some cocktail bars are delivering great cocktail and ambience but seem to fly a bit under the radar - Third Rail https://www.thirdrailbarsf.com in Dogpatch is one of them. Very good, well balanced cocktails, dark, relaxed ambiance and just a great neighborhood cocktail bar. Still remember a special of a passionfruit negroni which was one of the best rendition of a negroni - not sweet but perfectly balancing the passionfruit flavors with the complexity of the negroni. They also have a large selection of house-made jerkies as bar food.
Smokeshow - rum, pear liqueur, falernum, lemon, cardamom, star anise, cinnamon
El Dorado - mezcal, tequila, amaro, dry sherry, allspice, chocolate bitters
Penicillin (N/A) - N/A whiskey, ginger, honey, lemon, smoke
Inside
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Parts of Polk Street in the Lower Nob Hill area has over time become a key area for bar nightlife in San Francisco with many different bar and restaurant concepts. One of the cocktail bars which was part of the early development of this area is Hi-Lo Club https://www.hilosf.com
As the name indicates it has an interesting mix of quality drinks in an laidback, even a bit rough around the edges, environment. It’s not only focusing on cocktails but also has a pretty good selection of beers on tap. Not surprisingly, the cocktails are very well made but are more straightforward than some of the more “high-end” bars and deliver more bolder flavors.
The Scarlet Dalia - Tequila, grapefruit, lemon, pomegranate-honey syrup
Cocktail of the Week - bourbon, triple sec, absinthe (rinse), angostura bitters, peychaud’s bitters
The Bird of Paradise (N/A) - Ritual tequila, lime, sugar, ritual aperitif
Inside
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One of our current favorite cocktail bars in San Francisco is the Blind Pig Speakeasy Lounge https://www.blindpigspeakeasy.com on Polk. Wonderful complex, yet delicious cocktails with often a strong asian twist. Also, loved their “roll-the-dice” cocktail “game” where you get a different cocktail (but you don’t know the overall selection) depending on the number you get with the dice. This time it was a fernet branca based one which was herbaceous, citrusy with hints of sweetness.
Roll the Dice Cocktail - Fernet branca, grapefruit, oleo, whipped dole cream
White Dragon Horse - Angel’s envy bourbon, vanilla black tea, pamplemousse, house bitters, smoke
Black Wind Dragon (N/A) - Abstinence cape agave, blueberry, pineapple, lemon, agave nectar
Outside
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Polk Street has had a lively bar scene dating back to the 70s if not before.
The Alembic https://alembicsf.com ,now open for 20 years, is one of the foundational cocktail bars in SF with its, at that time, strong focus on cocktails but also the food. Excellent cocktails - really liked the one with Fernet which is often difficult to proper integrate into cocktails, good food and laid back, dark ambience.
Walk on the Wild Side - American single malt, tart cherry, pecan, lemon/lime, fernet, spearmint
House Fries - hand cut kennebecs, porcini seasoning, parsley, garlic aioli, ketchup
Our Bully - Spirit works “alembic select” rye, italian bitters, vermouth rojo
Salted Caramel Bread Pudding - vanilla gelato
Straw Ginger Fizz (N/A) - strawberry shrub, lemon/lime, ginger beer
Bar seating
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think it was either Alembic or ABV but i used to get the Hanky Panky, never disappoints
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