Wednesday marked the anniversary of the big day that women won the right to work as bartenders in the state of California in 1971, and in celebration, the city has provided a list of over 50 women-owned bars to support — every day of the week.

Wednesday’s event, dubbed “The Equal Pour,” recognized the 1971 California Supreme Court decision that struck down the state’s ban on women bartenders, as KPIX reports.

Over 50 San Francisco women-owned bars reportedly participated in the citywide celebration led by the Horseshoe Tavern. Brooke Janser, who co-owns the Horseshoe with two other women, said the celebration was also meant to highlight the role women continue to play throughout the city’s bar industry.

“This is personal to me because I've been bartending in this city and state for 23 years and I co-own [the bar] with two other women,” Janser said, speaking to Broke-Ass Stuart. “I think it's important to see how many women-owned / female-forward bars and restaurants exist, as they constitute a huge part of our industry and night life.”

Mayor Daniel Lurie stopped by the tavern Wednesday night to recognize the anniversary, while guest women bartenders took shifts behind the bar, per KPIX.

According to Broke-Ass Stuart, women entered the bartending industry in large numbers during World War II as they took on jobs traditionally held by men, earning the nickname “Bessie the Bartender.” But after the war, several states moved to ban women from tending bar, including California, which kept its restriction in place until 1971.

The California Supreme Court ultimately struck down the ban after a legal fight — reportedly involving a topless San Francisco bar and the state’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.

Women were broadly banned from tending bar across the country in the post-Prohibition era. New York State also had a ban on female bartenders that was similarly struck down in 1971.

Top image via the Brooklyn Public Library

Concluding a year in which the beloved beer destination Toronado was purportedly being sold to a crypto bro who was talking about installing a roof deck, and then that sale fell through, we now have word that the bar is going into good hands.

Longtime owner and the founder of Toronado, Dave Keene, announced this week that he has sold the bar to Bill Lewis, who's described as "a San Francisco resident of three decades and a regular of the beloved Haight Street bar." Lewis has partnered with his brother-in-law, Wall Pringle, to purchase the bar.

SFGate was first to the news, which comes a little over a year after a sale was announced to crypto enthusiast Orion Parrott, who spoke of wanting to turn Toronado into a "global brand" with its own crypto coin, the Xitter account for which is still live under @ToronadoCash.

SFist reported in January that that deal was officially dead, about seven months after Keene had suggested he was trying to back out of the deal, and after longtime customers of the cash-only establishment balked at the possibility of losing the bar to the tech-brosphere.

"The history, the atmosphere, and the community have to remain intact,” Keene said in a statement about the latest sale. "I want to properly pass the torch."

The release further said the the priority remained "Preserving everything that makes Toronado the Toronado,” and no changes were planned to the staff or general direction of the bar.

New owner Lewis said in a statement, "It is an honor to become the new owner of Toronado, and I look forward to sustaining it for the next 40 years."

Keene opened Toronado in 1987, and quickly turned it into a mecca for craft beer lovers that was well ahead of the curve in terms of Northern California's craft beer boom. Defined by signature annual events like its Barleywine Festival, which celebrates the less common, high-alcohol end of the craft brewing spectrum, Toronado has remained a landmark bar in the Lower Haight and a notable must-stop for beer tourists from around the world when they visit San Francisco.

The past two years, Toronado has hosted its own Beer Week that runs on a different schedule from San Francisco Beer Week.

After 38 years running the bar, Keene put it up for sale in January 2025 along with the whole building, which includes the small storefront next door that had for years been home to a sausage shop — first Rosamunde, and later Berliner Berliner.

Previously: Beer Mecca Toronado, Which Did Not Sell to Any New Owner, Hosts Its Own Beer Week Once Again

When a Fox News host bizarrely mentioned historic East Bay bar the Hotsy Totsy Club on air, calling it a "strip joint," the bar penned a satirical all-caps tirade setting the record straight — and while the host got El Cerrito’s zip code right, the bar is located in Albany.          

As SFGate reports, Jessica Maria, who owns the 87-year-old Hotsy Totsy Club in Albany, was taken aback when a customer sent her a clip of Fox News host Emily Compagno, who grew up in El Cerrito, dragging the establishment “through the mud” during a segment on the conservative talk show “The Five” Wednesday. In a tongue-in-cheek, all-caps clapback, Maria addressed Compagno’s “MAGA LIES” about the bar on social media.

“FOX NEWS DRAGS HOTSY TOTSY CLUB THROUGH THE MUD WITH MAGA LIES!” reads the bar’s caption.

In the segment, Compagno and the other hosts are in the middle of discussing President Donald Trump’s visit to a pharmaceutical company in Ohio when Compagno suddenly changes course, asking host Jesse Watters if he’d prefer to discuss the Hotsy Totsy Club, per SFGate.

“That’s like the strip joint where I come from,” Compagno says, later adding — incorrectly — that it’s in El Cerrito.

When host Dana Perino asks what that has to do with big pharma, host Greg Gutfeld jabs, “A lot of girls on drugs.”

As SFGate notes, the bar has never been a strip joint. Prior to Maria and co-owner Michael Valladares taking it over in 2009, the club was a dive bar, albeit with a reputation for serving people who were underage.

On social media, Maria satirically set the record straight, adding MAGA-style text overlays to the original video clip:

Fox News Lies!
Lie #1: Not a strip joint you ass hat!
Lie #2: No drugs. Tipsy perhaps
Lie #3: It’s in Albany, 94706
Lie #3: There’s no El Camino in El Cerrito! (in response to Gutfeld proclaiming, incorrectly, “I used to drive down El Camino in El Cerrito”)
Keep our name out of your f—ing mouth

Maria told SFGate she thought it was apropos that Fox News would get the facts wrong — even about a little, old bar.

“I just found the funny in it, of how you can take an 87-year-old Albany landmark and reduce it down to a drug-infested strip joint in El Cerrito,” Maria told Fox News. “All the information is wrong.”

“It’s so on the nose that they took tons of misinformation and just created their own story that had nothing to do with what we really are,” she said.

Image: The Hotsy Totsy Club/Facebook

This week: 1960s gems at SCRAP, Muni’s holiday wrap artist, and Deck the Halls out the wazoo. Plus, queer performer and activist Tahara, astronomy talks, queer land stewardship, the wildlife of Yosemite, and the return of the salmon.

Holiday lights in the Castro

Deck the Halls has reopened for the season in a new pop-up space at 2298 Market Street, bringing its wall-to-wall holiday décor to the Castro. The bar leans into playful cocktails — cotton-candy spritzes, matcha-mezcal blends, an espresso martini riff, and a chestnut drink finished over an open flame.

Food ranges from pumpkin soup to small bites and sandwiches, with a weekend brunch buffet added for this year. It’s open daily from 4 pm to midnight, with brunch served Friday through Sunday from 11 am to 2 pm, and runs through December 28. — Secret San Francisco

Stars over the Sycamore

Astronomy on Tap is a monthly San Francisco event where local astronomers give short talks at local bars. The Sycamore in the Mission recently hosted a full house of attendees learning about planets, galaxies, and cosmic phenomena.

Presentations are casual, with time for questions and conversation, making space science accessible without a lecture hall. The next session will be held at Blackhammer Brewing later this month. — KPIX

Sparkle in the workshop

SCRAP SF is hosting its Jewelry & Joy Pop-Up from December 9–13, showcasing vintage Swarovski crystals and rhinestones from the 1960s. The pop-up highlights pieces that are no longer in production, giving collectors and jewelry lovers a chance to see and buy rare finds.

The workshop is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm, and visitors can browse the selection and shop directly on site. — SCRAP

Thread of the city

Anton Belov grew up riding Muni, always curious about who made the artwork on the buses. Now he’s that person, and in a new video he shares his perspective on designing the Patchwork of the City holiday wrap.

Belov talks about tracing landmarks, neighborhoods, and local wildlife into a single design, and how he hopes each rider catches a moment of joy, pride, or connection when they see it. You can watch him walk through the process and his inspiration in the video. — SFMTA

Angels and rebellion

Tahara, Bay Area performer and early queer activist, will share personal stories from the city’s gay liberation era in a conversation with August Bernadicou on December 14. He reflects on the ways art, costume, and fearless identity intertwined on stage and in the streets with groups like the Cockettes and Angels of Light, shaping a movement that still resonates today.

Known for his vibrant performances and dedication to queer storytelling, Tahara traces the threads of creativity and courage that carried through the 1960s and ’70s. His recollections offer a window into a moment when culture and community collided in unexpected, transformative ways. December 14, Queer Arts Featured, 575 Castro Street. — Bay Area Reporter

Tending the land

Along the Russian River, queer communities have long made their mark on the land, from redwoods to meadows. Shelterwood Collective manages 900 acres through controlled burns and restoration, creating space for both the forest and queer gatherings. Nearby, Solar Punk Farms combines small-scale farming with climate-focused events, from drag shows to natural wine tastings.

These projects continue a history of queer presence in the region while shaping practices for land stewardship and community. Weekend visits and seasonal gatherings welcome those looking for connection and time in the woods. — KQED

River runners

After years of absence, salmon are finding their way back to South Bay streams, leaping up Guadalupe River, Los Gatos Creek, and Penitencia Creek this season. The restoration work by local groups — removing barriers, cleaning creeks, and improving fish passage — seems to be paying off.

On weekend walks, you can spot the fish slipping upstream, especially after fresh rains swell the rivers. The season continues through December, offering a rare glimpse at these survivors in the Bay Area. — Weekend Wanderers Inc.

Hidden residents

Yosemite Wildlife, the new book by Beth Pratt, dives into the park’s animals, from pikas on rocky slopes to peregrine falcons soaring over Yosemite Valley. Paired with Robb Hirsch’s photos, it updates a century-old record and gives a close look at creatures often overshadowed by the scenery.

Pratt draws on decades of experience living near the park, showing how wildlife and landscape coexist. She’ll discuss the book Sunday at Corte Madera’s Book Passage. — Marin Independent Journal

Image: Angels of Light/Facebook

Previously: Field Notes: Kenny Alley, Holiday Architecture Book Fair, and Oakland’s Last Old Redwood

The owner of SF’s Temple Nightclub has bought Oakland’s long-vacant Greyhound station. Plans include pop-up events, a rooftop bar, and eventually multifamily housing, years after ravers briefly took over the crumbling Beaux Arts building.

As San Francisco Business Times reports, the historic Greyhound station at 2103 San Pablo Avenue in Oakland, shuttered since 2021, has been purchased by the Hemming Family Trust for $2.3 million. Paul Hemming, a longtime Bay Area nightlife figure and owner of San Francisco’s Temple Nightclub, is tied to the trust. According to the Alameda County Assessor’s Office and deed records, the sale was finalized in March.

The 60,000-square-foot building was originally constructed in 1926 as the Union Stage Depot. As Oaklandside reports, its Beaux Arts and Renaissance architectural details were once a point of pride in Oakland, but the property fell into disrepair in recent decades. After Greyhound closed the station, the building was briefly taken over by underground party promoters in 2022. The city eventually shut those events down over safety concerns.

As SFGate reports, Hemming confirmed the acquisition during an April 2025 appearance on the “Social AM SF” podcast. He called the building “a unique opportunity” and said he hopes to build “a whole indoor-outdoor immersive entertainment complex in downtown Oakland.”

Plans filed with Oakland’s Planning and Building Department outline a phased renovation:

• Phase 1 would address structural basics, including repairing walls, updating bathrooms, and adding a new electrical room.
• Phase 2 proposes a retractable patio trellis, an elevator, and a rooftop bar. Interior spaces would be transformed to support retail and food service, including a new kitchen and bar amenities.
• Phase 3 could eventually add multifamily housing, though the number of units has not been specified.

Axis Architecture, known for hotel and luxury residential work in the Bay Area, is listed as the design firm. Principal Cory Creath confirmed their involvement but said the project is in early stages and still undergoing “due diligence.”

Paul Hemming’s background includes running a record store and music studio in Oakland before launching Temple Nightclub in SoMa in 2007. As reported by SFist, the club closed in 2024 due to financial challenges but has since quietly reopened, according to its website.

Though no nightclub has been officially proposed for the Oakland site, Hemming’s nightlife history, including venues in Los Angeles and Denver, leaves that door open.

The Greyhound property’s location in Uptown Oakland, a neighborhood that has outpaced downtown in post-pandemic recovery, could make it a new anchor for the city’s evolving nightlife and cultural scene.

Image: Partha Chakraborty/Google Maps

Previously: Day Around the Bay: Temple SF Nightclub in SoMa Announces It’s Closing Permanently

A San Francisco man stands accused of randomly attacking a fellow bar patron last week at a Divisadero bar, and the suspect is himself a bartender who was not working as one at the time.

The attack happened last Tuesday around 1:30 am in the men's restroom at The Fishbowl Bar & Grill at Divisadero and Pine streets. As the SF Standard reports from witness statements, a bartender at The Snug on upper Fillmore, Taylor "TJ" Vindigni, was getting a drink with a friend at the Fishbowl after his shift.

Vindigni had gone to the restroom and was reportedly washing his hands when a random stranger who had been sitting at the other end of the bar from him came close, said "Why are you such a fucking problem?" and allegedly stabbed in the neck with a box-cutter, slashing his throat from ear to ear.

The attacker fled the scene with the knife, but reportedly left behind a pair of brass knuckles — apparently he may have been looking for a fight?

Police later arrested 43-year-old Patrick Hamer for the crime, locating him on Valencia Street. Hamer is apparently also a bartender, and was reportedly an employee at Clooney's Pub — though is no longer — and a LinkedIn profile for someone with that same name shows bartending stints at Town Hall, Oro, and at Oracle Park.

Friends say that Vindigni did not know his attacker in any way.

Records at the San Francisco County Jail show that Hamer is being held on suspicion of attempted murder, aggravated mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon, and assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury.

It appears he was arrested two days after the alleged attack, on Thursday, and charges have not yet been formally filed.

Fellow Snug employees posted a hospital bed photo of Vindigni, who remains hospitalized in the ICU, on a GoFundMe page. It has raised over $20,000 so far to "help cover medical expenses, time away from work, and whatever support he needs to fully recover."

The Snug also now has a cocktail on the menu, The Big G, with all proceeds going to Vidnigni.

Assemblymember Matt Haney has taken up the cause of the extension of last call at California bars to 4 am, structuring some new legislation around so-called "Hospitality Zones."

It has been a long, long road for San Francisco legislators who have tried to get others around the state to allow for the possibility of a later last call than 2 am, even if this was just in a few cities that want it, and not a blanket rule statewide. State Senator Mark Leno first proposed some legislation on extending last call to 4 am back in 2013, and after that attempt failed, he tried again, ultimately left the Senate, Senator Scott Wiener took up the cause, and after multiple tries, we still don't have 4 am last call.

Wiener's last failed attempt, with a bill co-authored by Matt Haney, came in 2022, and that bill, SB 930, actually passed the state Senate but was shot down in the Assembly. It would have allowed an opt-in later last call for just seven cities: San Francisco, Oakland, West Hollywood, Fresno, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, and Coachella.

Interestingly, just a few months after that bill died, Governor Gavin Newsom signed off on a small, very specific pilot program aimed at the Intuit Dome/Clippers Arena in Inglewood. Newsom signed off on allowing 4 am last call just for the 100-person VIP club at the arena, sunsetting in January 2030 — so there is one spot in the state where it is legal to serve drinks after 2 am.

But now we have a new, broader proposal that's framed as a way to help downtown areas recover in the wake of the pandemic, as many bars have seen their happy-hour revenue decline due to more people working from home.

This morning, as ABC 7 reports, Haney gave a press conference in downtown LA to announce AB 342. The legislation allows California cities to create Hospitality Zones, if they choose. Businesses in those zones could then, if they choose, extend last call to 4 am just on weekends and holidays.

AB 342 also allows for the creation of Special Events Hospitality Zones, which could exist for just one-month spans — and this seems aimed at upcoming major events like the World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

"We need people in our downtowns," Haney said at the press conference. "We need people to come here not just during the day, but at night."

Haney's full statement on the bill says, "Downtowns in California are still struggling to return to pre-pandemic levels almost half a decade later. As Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Downtown Recovery, I've heard from cities all over the state that are begging for the flexibility to attract people during evening, night and weekend hours.

He added, "Tourists, downtown residents and convention planners are all looking for cities with both vibrant daytime and nighttime economies. Unfortunately many California downtowns become ghost towns after 5 pm."

Haney notes that over a dozen other states, including those that compete for tourists with California like Florida, New York, and Illinois, already allow their cities to set their own last-call hours.

"A thriving nightlife has extensive positive effects on many other sectors, including retail, the arts, restaurants, housing, and large conventions, and will bring more people into downtowns that desperately need them during both the day and night," Haney says. "The one-size-fits-all, top-down 'last call' law in California has limited the ability of cities to attract visitors and tourists and hamstrung businesses who rely on limited nighttime hours to survive."

What has happened in the past with these bills is that powerful lobbying groups, including police unions and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), come out to quash their support. And legislators who come from areas without public transportation or plentiful Ubers, where extending drinking hours makes less sense, tend to gang up on the legislators from the cities that want later last-call hours.

We'll see how this goes!

Previously: Newsom Signs Off on Bill Allowing One Tiny, Rich-Person Club to Serve Booze Until 4AM

Photo: Luna Scott

One week ahead of the big All Star Game, the massive new sports bar Splash at Thrive City has opened, with 30,000 square feet of space for eating, drinking, game watching, and game playing.

It makes sense that the owners of Splash, the new enormous sports bar at the Chase Center-adjacent Thrive City complex, would make it open in time for Super Bowl weekend and the All Star Game next weekend. We first heard about the project in October, at which point it was already clearly well along.

The bar-restaurant has a big first-floor bar area that is ringed by a digital ticker that will be showing sports scores and news, as well as a curved, 840-square-foot LED wall and 75 televisions throughout the space to show games. Additionally, there are some chiller spaces on a second level upstairs with couches and lounge areas, as well as multiple bar games, including golf swing suites, pop-a-shot basketball, and foosball.

When the weather turns nicer than it is currently, patrons should welcome the 10,000 square feet of patio space, upstairs and down, with picnic tables and more.

The cocktail program at Splash was designed by bar star Kevin Diedrich, and the food and beverages overall were overseen by Diedrich's partners at Sidecar Hospitality, who also operate Schroeder's and Press Club downtown. The food menu is anchored by bar-food staples including smash burgers, wings, woodfired pizza, and tacos.

Splash opens Friday, February 7, from 11 am to 11 pm, and will be open those hours Saturday as well. On Super Bowl Sunday, it will operate in more limited hours with table reservations encouraged.

From February 12 through All Star Game weekend, the bar will be hosting private events, and it will resume normal business hours on Tuesday, February 18.

Check out the full website here.

Splash at Thrive City - 191 Warriors Way, Ste 102 - Open typically 11 am to 11 pm, but check website for upcoming hours

After 38 years of slinging "extreme" beers for a crowd of beer geeks and average beer lovers alike, the Lower Haight's Toronado is facing the end of an era and an uncertain future.

The bar posted on Instagram over the weekend saying that owner and founder Dave Keene is retiring and selling the business. "This marks the end of an era for the generations of beer drinkers that have shared lives with us," the staff writes.

Keene founded Toronado in 1987 and built it into a haven for beer afficionados — particularly for those who love the funkiest, oddest, highest alcohol, and most "extreme" end of the beer spectrum. As the era of the IPA took hold over two decades ago, Toronado was already ahead of the game with many of the style's cult favorites in heavy rotation.

And it only took a few years for Toronado to gain an outsized reputation in the craft beer world, which by the early 1990s was still in its infancy.

As Keene recalled to SFGate in 2018, "A brewer that I'd met came in [in 1993] and was taking pictures, and I go, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'I've dreamed of having my beer on Toronado's board. And now I have.' He was so proud of it. That was the first time, five years in, seeing a brewer totally humbled to have a beer on the board."

In those early years, Keene also started what has become an annual pilgrimage for beer drinkers of certain tastes, the Barleywine Festival. At one point it was lined up with SF Beer Week, but now it happens on its own every November, with the bar turning many of its taps over to dozens of high-alcohol, high malt barleywines — a style that remains at the outer outskirts of beer-making world, but which Keene himself always loved.

From 2014 to 2020, there was also a second Toronado location up in Seattle, but that closed when the pandemic hit.

Now, for this special year marking Keene's sendoff, Toronado is hosting their own Toronado Beer Week, which for the first time will not coincide with the Bay Area-wide Beer Week, which starts February 21.

Toronado Beer Week will run February 7 to February 16, and at the opening "gala" on the 7th, as well as on Saturday the 8th, the bar will be tapping the latest release of Pliny the Younger — two weeks ahead of when the regular Beer Week crowd will be tasting it. The opening events will also feature new beers from Cellarmaker, McIlhenny, Monkish, and more.

Fans of Toronado are naturally anxious about the bar being up for sale, and the Instagram announcement came with plenty of comments to the effect of "please sell to a fan of the bar."

As Eater reports, the business is on the market for $1.75 million, and the listing can be found here.

The sale price includes the two-unit, single-story commercial building (543-547 Haight Street), and the bar's Type 42 liquor license. This includes the kitchen and storefront of the sausage shop Berliner Berliner next door. The impending sale of the building likely contributed to the decision by Berliner Berliner owner Christine Blunck to close up shop last month.

San Francisco always has been a drinking town, and 2024 brought a collection of cool new watering holes in which to wet one's whistle — and one where you can also get your dance on.

While some folks may be trying out healthier lifestyles or opting for lower-ABV imbibing these days, neighborhood bars are and always will be essential "third spaces" for gathering and unwinding. And around the city we saw some great new spots debut in 2024, five of them with food that's as good as the drinks. Check out our top picks of the year below.

Bar 49
Taking over a corner spot in the Castro that has been long cursed with high turnover, Hi Tops alum Colm O'Brien appears to have staying power with Bar 49. The bar-with-food debuted this summer as a wine and beer bar, but it will shortly become a full cocktail bar, with a liquor license that is days or weeks from coming through. The beer and wine selection is thoughtful and on-trend, and the food — especially the beer-battered fried fish, either in slider form or as fish and chips — is solid. This flatiron-shaped space at Market and 16th, once the longtime home of Bagdad Cafe and it's been a dozen things since, has begged for something like this to come along for years, giving the neighborhood another watering hole but with a mature adult vibe.
2295 Market Street

The Bar at Prelude
Tucked in to the gorgeously designed space at Prelude, in the renovated hotel The Jay next to Embarcadero Center, is an equally well designed and cozy cocktail spot that is destined to become a downtown oasis. Bar Director Franco Bilbaeno, who was previously part of the opening team at Angler, has created a cool list of house cocktails that places a selection of zero-proof drinks front and center (don't miss the  Sugar Cane, which is a decent approximation of agricole rhum). In a nod to the restaurant's Southern bent, Bilbaeno has featured a Sazerac and a Vieux Carre, and under the House Imagination section, he's got some whimsical creations, like the Shortstack (pancake-washed Old Forester Rye, Park VSOP, pecan, maple, and absinthe), and the Ramos gin fizz-inspired Magnolia Fizz, with gin, roasted banana, citrus, dairy, egg white, and soda.
333 Battery Street

Saison Cellar & Wine Bar
Sommelier Mark Bright's beautiful, Burgundy-inspired wine bar offshoot of his restaurant Saison, down the street on Townsend, is both a great date spot and has become a clubhouse of sorts for wine lovers in the neighborhood (an actual membership "cellar" is also a couple doors down). The glass and bottle lists run the gamut from very affordable Alsatian whites to baller flights of big-name Bordeaux grand crus and Burgundies. "Affordable luxury" is the aim here, and the food menu even includes an ode to Michael Mina with his signature caviar "parfait."
234 Townsend Street

The Halfway Club
Early this year, industry veterans Ethan Terry and Greg Quinn (Annabelle’s Bar and Bistro, The Alembic) debuted The Halfway Club at the egde of Crocker-Amazon, in the former Broken Record space on Geneva Avenue. It's now the coolest of neighborhood haunts, with some 70s-inspired decor and craveable bar snacks (mmm, toasted ravioli and Cincinatti chili fries), with a name that harkens back to the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge, when construction workers who fell from the bridge but were saved by safety nets became part of an informal group called the Half Way to Hell Club. Also transcending its dive appeal: some very good drinks, including, for the winter months, mulled sangria.
1166 Geneva Avenue

Lilah
Low-ABV and no-ABV cocktails are having a moment, and Lilah — the new offshoot of Causwells in the adjacent space in the Presidio movie theater on Chestnut Street — is meeting that moment with style. Bar manager Elmer Mejicanos has crafted a menu that's both inventive and cheeky, utilizing the latest in low-ABV spirits and quality ingredients to craft cocktails that would fit in on any regular-ABV menu. And for anyone who loves a slushy or shaved ice dessert, there's a whole section of the menu devoted to kakagori drinks — basically shaved ice with booze on top, but these are well balanced and unique, and never sickly sweet. There's also a great menu of Asian-inspired snacks from Causwells chef Adam Rosenblum, including some yummy spiced lime-leaf peanuts and a traditional pork and pate banh mi.
2336 Chestnut Street

Zhuzh
It feels like forever since a new dance bar opened in San Francisco, and Zhuzh scratches that itch in a part of town that could use a break from bro-tastic watering holes. Zhuzh debuted earlier this year off of Polk Street on California, and it's quickly become a go-to spot for those nights when you don't want a quiet cocktail but you don't want to be in a big club either. A selection of tap cocktails make for quick pours when the bar's packed, and inspired by little neighborhood spots in Europe, there will often be a DJ spinning in back, whether it's a Thursday night or a Sunday afternoon. Add to all that it's a laid back, mixed crowd where straights and queers party together (Sundays feature a drag party called Too Gay to Function), and that's as it should be in modern SF.
1548 California Street

Related: The 10 Best New Restaurants In San Francisco of 2024

The recent tick-up of more alcohol-permitted “entertainment zone” parties may turn into a flood of more such parties, as the SF supervisors just approved legislation to create a whole lot more of these parties downtown, and in SoMa and Union Square.  

Downtown San Francisco foot traffic remains relatively moribund compared to pre-pandemic levels, prompting Mayor Breed and SF City Hall to tinker with revitilization strategies like the Vacant to Vibrant pop-ups, night markets, and downtown “entertainment zones” where restaurants and bars can sell to-go alcohol to the revelers in the street where these events are happening. The first of those “entertainment zone” parties was last Friday’s Oktoberfest party on Front Street in front of Schroeder’s, Harrington’s Bar & Grill, and the Royal Exchange.

In late July, Supervisor Aaron Peskin proposed a streamlined process to create a whole lot more “entertainment zones” downtown, which just happens to be largely his district. Under Peskin’s proposal, neighborhoods’ community benefits districts (CBDs) would be able to get large-scale permits that they could use over and over, rather than getting individual permits for each event.

And on Tuesday, the SF Board of Supervisors unanimously approved Peskin’s expanded entertainment zone legislation.

Consider that the Downtown First Thursdays parties now happen once a month, or 12 times a year. Under Peskin’s just-passed legislation, CBDs would throw no fewer than 20 parties a year, and could even throw 100 or more of them.  

“Each CBD must commit to holding a minimum of twenty events annually at one or more specified locations within their CBD boundaries,” the legislation says. “The ordinance designates each Activation Location as an ‘Entertainment Zone,’ thus allowing brick-and-mortar bars and restaurants within the Entertainment Zone to sell alcohol for patrons to consume outdoors at the Downtown Activation event.”

Above we see the very complicated process for throwing one of these outdoor alcohol events as it exists now. Under this new legislation, the CBD would get a reusable permit that alcohol-serving businesses could just activate over and over.

This legislation does not apply to the entire city. Front Street has already been authorized, as we saw at the Oktoberfest party. But new micro-areas new approved as new entertainment zones include parts downtown (Balance Street at Gold Street, and the Landing at Leidesdorff), Yerba Buena (Annie Plaza, Jessie Street, and Minna Street), Union Square (Claude Lane, Maiden Lane, Harlan Place), and the East Cut (Natoma Street and Second Street).

Related: Yet More Outdoor Downtown ‘Entertainment Zone’ Parties Could Be Coming Under New Legislation From Aaron Peskin [SFist]

Image: @mcampbellSD via Twitter

The Mission District bar Mother, in the former home of Esta Noche, has put itself on the map by making Bon Appetit’s “11 Best New Bars in the US” roundup.

There's a big reason to celebrate the start of Pride Weekend for the lesbian-centric queer bar Mother. The bar opened in February 2023 at 16th and Valencia streets, the former home of Esta Noche (though it had more recently been Bond Bar), under the ownership of Thee Parkside owner Malia Spanyol. It is not to be confused with Mothership in the former Virgil’s Sea Room space, or Mother, the longtime drag show from the late Heklina that replaced Trannyshack, which ended its SF run in 2019 when Heklina moved out of town.

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But Mother’s all-Pride Weekend “No Covers” parties will take on an even bigger significance. As SFGate reports, Mother was named to Bon Appetit’s 11 Best New Bars in the US list that was just released Friday.

“In the middle of San Francisco’s Mission District, the bar is relatively bare,” writes Bon Appetit’s Elazar Sontag. “With its worn wood floors, tasty but unfancy $13 cocktails, and a custom-built photo booth, the bar isn’t concerned with reimagining the old-school queer dive as a stuffy cocktail lounge or trying to update the concept for a new generation. Mother does something even more exciting: revive a precious piece of community that came too close to being snuffed out.”

“There are fewer than 50 lesbian bars left across the US,” the publication adds. “And though this one welcomes queer people and their friends of all stripes, it is a space for women and femmes. That’s a distinction worth protecting.”

Spanyol told SFGate, “What a way to kick off Pride Week!” and added, “We feel incredibly honored, as a Mission District queer bar, to be on Bon Appetit's list.”

Related: Mission District’s Bond Bar (the Former Esta Noche) May Become New Lesbian-Centric Queer Bar [SFist]

Image: Andre C. via Yelp

The happy hour live shows at The Page will continue, as the SF Entertainment Commission granted the bar a Limited Live Performance permit on Tuesday — though a few neighbors showed up to complain that the music is too damned loud.  

Of the many mitigation measures that bars and restaurants had to make during COVID-19, the most charming and clever of these in San Francisco may have been the parklet at Lower Haight bar The Page, which rather hilariously recreated the bar’s home-y interior in an outdoor setting. The Page also got themselves a Just Add Music (JAM) permit, which allowed for live performances, but that JAM permit legislation expired earlier this year.

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So like many bars, if The Page wanted to keep hosting live music, they had to go before the SF Entertainment Commission to get a regular live-music permit, as SFGate reported last month. And The Page applied for just a Limited Live Performance permit, asking merely for a couple hours of live music during happy hour that would not run late into the evening.

On Tuesday, the Entertainment Commission unanimously granted that live-music permit in a 4-0 vote, despite about a half-dozen neighbors showing up to complain that The Page’s music was too loud. The Page’s new permit can apply indoors, or to outdoor shows in their parklet.

Commissioner Maria Davis explained her vote in favor of the permit, saying, “They haven’t been able to have musicians inside. Granting this permit might bring more musicians inside, and I feel like that’s a win for everybody.”

But commissioner Cyn Wang had some tough questions for The Page, citing the “sheer number of complaints we have received related to sound there.”

The Page owner Bob Wait said he’d taken many sound mitigation measures. “In response to some of the complaints, we removed our outdoor speakers,” he told the commission. “We limited the performance from 5 to 7 [pm], on weekends we moved it from 3 to 5 [pm]”

Wait added that they’d also limited vocals, eliminated the use of brass instruments, and no longer allow percussionists to use sticks. “We have a guy who plays with brushes rather than sticks,” Wait said.

But before the vote, several neighbors detailed their complaints about the live shows.

“I’ve complained from Day One,” resident Albert Sammons, Jr. told the commission. “You will probably give him that permit. But I live in that neighborhood. Most of the people who are supporting it don’t live on my block.”

“It’s just been so loud,” added neighbor Tony Calaveras. “If the permit goes out, this new permit, I don’t believe anything I hear as far as ‘Oh, we're going to do this or we’re going to do that.’ Because they haven’t respected us at all.”

Musician Tom Drohan, who plays at The Page weekly with his band Skillet Licorice, insisted the music is generally not amplified. “When you’re hearing an acoustic bass, an acoustic guitar, a fiddle, and a mandolin, I just don’t think that’s intrusive,” he said Tuesday.

Before voting to grant the permit, the commission’s president Ben Bleiman assured the neighbors that like any permit holder, The Page is subject to notices of violation and citations if the bar does not comply with sound measures spelled out in the permit’s Good Neighbor Policy.

“The neighbors have a place to reach out to that actually is super responsive and has a job to do to respond to the complaint,” Bleiman insisted. “We do have a track record of supporting neighbors and venues in finding ways of working together, compromising, and finding solutions.”

Related: Mission District Bar Casements Wins Right to Extend Their Back Patio Hours Later Into the Evening [SFist]

Image: Mijin Y. via Yelp

A SoMa sports bar is planning a Super Bowl party that won't be like any other in town, at least any other occurring in a public place or sports bar. The entire event, the owners say, is "reserved exclusively for Chiefs fans only."

While there might be a few Kansas City expats donning Chiefs gear scattered among sports-bar crowds around the city a week from Sunday, most will likely retreat to private spaces to express their fandom, lest things get ugly.

But one SoMa bar, Buzzworks (365 11th Street), which has counted itself as the city's only dedicated bar for Kansas City Chiefs fans since it opened in 2016, will be a haven for the Chiefs' Kingdom all day on February 11.

They'll be open for brunch starting at 11 a.m., and seats will be first-come-first-served.

"Oddly enough, and despite all the Chiefs' success, no other bar in the region has made a serious effort to be more supportive of the Chiefs, despite the team's continual dominance over the past 8 seasons," the bar's owners say in a release. "And it’s not like there are any Niners bars in KC either, yet every bar in the area is fundamentally and predominantly a Niners Bar already."

"That’s why for this Superbowl, Buzzworks is going to be open exclusively for the Brave Kingdom fans of the KC Chiefs ONLY! And there is absolutely no other bar in the bay area that will do such a thing… making Buzzworks the one and only place for the true KC fans to enjoy the day!"

Buzzworks set aside a full keg of Anchor Steam Beer for this occasion, which will be tapped on Super Bowl Sunday. And they've got two kegs of Anchor West Coast IPA to tap as well. (Anchor Brewing, as you surely know, went under last year and brewed their last batches in July.)

For those friend groups who may be split between Niners and Chiefs fans, Buzzworks also wants everyone to know that Niners fans will be welcome across the street at Butter — which shares an owner with Buzzworks, Vlad Cood.

For an idea of what things will look like if the Chiefs win, see the video below of fans celebrating at Buzzworks after they beat the 49ers in the Super Bowl in 2020. And yes, that is them doing the problematic "tomahawk chop" to celebrate.

Starting July 1, California drinking establishments will be required to stock testing kits that tell you if your drink has been spiked with common date rape drugs like ketamine or GHB, though bars won’t have to provide the testing strips for free.

There are already many Bay Area bars and nightclubs that hand out fentanyl testing strips so you can check and see if your party drugs are laced with deadly fentanyl. But come July 1, thanks to a new California law, the state’s bars and nightclubs will be required to provide testing strips of a different nature. KGO reports that the new law requires bars to carry strips to test if your drink has been spiked with date rape drugs like GHB or ketamine, in response to an increasing scourge of people getting unwittingly drugged at drinking establishments, which is often followed by a sexual assault.

The bill is called AB-1013, and Governor Newsom signed it in October. It takes effect July 1. The law will only apply to establishments with Type 48 licenses, that is, those that only serve drinks and not food. Bars will be required to stock the testing strips, though they will not be required to provide them for free. And per the wording of the law, bars will also be required to post a sign saying, “Don’t get roofied! Drink spiking drug test kits available here. Ask a staff member for details.”

The bill was introduced by Long Beach Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal, himself a bar and restaurant proprietor. “Due to the challenges of addressing and prosecuting this crime after it has taken place, preventative measures are a commonsense way to try to curb the instances of drugging that are taking place in Type 48 establishments,” Lowenthal said in a statement while the bill made its way through the legislature.

These drink testing strips are often available online at about a dollar for one strip, or as little as 10 or 20 cents if you buy them in bulk. And again, bars won’t be required to hand them out for free, so there is no automatic financial burden on the establishment.

“There’s no taste. There’s no scent. There is no color to them. They’re really tough to detect, but very fortunately, they’re easy to test,” Lowenthal told KCRA. “Just one drop of your drink onto a test coaster, and you know immediately if your drink has been spiked.”

Some California communities have tried to address this locally. L.A.’s KCBS reported that the City of West Hollywood started providing bars with the strips for free in August of 2022, and KGTV adds that Long Beach provides them for free to bars in that SoCal city.

Related: SF Game Developers Conference Rollicked By Multiple Allegations of Drink Spiking, Sexual Harassment [SFist]

Image: glasses alcohol cocktail set and beer on a waiter tray in bar (Getty Images)