Top 10 New Bars of 2008
Updated: December 02, 2008
Unless you count the cheesy "ultra-lounges" we left off this list, 2008 didn't see a lot of splashy openings. This was the year of the re-do, with old classics getting tasteful upgrades, and also the year of the restaurant-bar, where some of the city's best cocktails can now be found. Without further ado and in no particular order, here are our picks for the 10 best new bars and clubs to open this year.
The Top 10
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Pisco Latin Lounge
Read Reviews1817 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94103 (map)
This stretch of Market desperately needed some more options, and Pisco stepped in to provide a little punch--literally, it's their signature cocktail--and a classy mid-city spot for after-work boozing, grazing, and flirting.
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McTeague's Saloon
Read Reviews1237 Polk St, San Francisco, CA 94109 (map)
San Francisco may not have known that it wanted a Western-themed, country music saloo--least of all on Polk Street--but from the crowds swarming this cavernous beaut it's clear we need to get in touch with our inner rednecks.
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Beretta
Read Reviews1199 Valencia St, San Francisco, CA 94110 (map)
The pizzette and antipasti at this dark and stylish new Valencia favorite were enough to make it one of our Best New Restaurants of '08, and the award-winning cocktails and vibrant scene qualify it as one of the ten best new bars, too.
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Mini Bar Sf
Read Reviews837 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA 94117 (map)
This new, matchbox-sized spot brings a full bar, gallery-grade art and a smart design to Divisadero (okay, fine, "NoPa"), and by providing one more good option makes the whole street more appealing.
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Owl Tree
Read Reviews601 Post St, San Francisco, CA 94109 (map)
Formerly a dive/shrine to owls, The Owl Tree's reopened as a swanky after-work bar, but, respecting the previous owner's dying wish--that the bar remain "owl-themed--a giant mosaic of an owl was put outside, and there are a couple of gorgeous hooters behind the bar, too (engraved in the mirror).
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Gitane Restaurant & Bar
Read Reviews6 Claude Ln, San Francisco, CA 94108 (map)
Tucked away on an alley near Union Square, this bar/restaurant's got Bourbon and Branch-grade cocktails (try the Gypsy), and a plush, sexy, surreal interior, plus bacon bon-bons; we dare you not to like it.
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800 Larkin
Read Reviews800 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA 94109 (map)
30 ft black on black gator-skin and mahogany bar, grey felt pool table, gold disco ball, fat-cat club chairs, and frequent references to "Dom"...in the Tenderloin? 800 Larkin's like a dive bar that won the lottery, and we dig it.
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La Trappe
Write a review800 Greenwich St, San Francisco, CA 94133 (map)
The Belgian beer tavern may have opened in the last year, but the building it's in dates back to the 1890's and is filled with old church pews, plus it stocks over 120 kinds of beer, many of them Belgian monk-ales that've been brewed for centuries.
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330 Ritch
Read Reviews330 Ritch St, San Francisco, CA 94107 (map)
Under new ownership by a crew of super-connected SF natives, 330 now books world famous DJs (DJ AM, Steve Aoki) and MCs (Mos Def, Cool Kids) as well as upcoming indie bands, and is also rocking a new look, and--most importantly--a new crowd.
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Taverna Aventine
Write a review582 Washington St, San Francisco, CA 94111 (map)
Lunch spot by day, this new FiDi bar/social club from the Vintage 415 team serves Cal-Italian small plates, but the real draw will be the downstairs parlor, where members can store hooch and other goodies in private "liquor lockers."
