The Riptide
San Francisco, CA 94116-2025
Phone: (415) 681-8433
- Cross Street:
- 46th Avenue
- Hours:
- Daily 4pm-2am
Editorial Review for The Riptide – by Joanna Currier
In Short
A great haunt for a secret rendezvous or post-surf beer by the fire, this bar has the authentic feel of a small, rough-hewn Tahoe watering hole--though it's mere seconds from the crashing Pacific. Slow and sleepy until late, when the live music or a DJ takes over, the tavern boasts a crackling fireplace, giant stuffed moose head, redwood booths and laid-back patrons all hoping no one else discovers their hideaway.
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Insider Tips
What to DrinkTry the Riptide Red Ale, one of roughly 12 beers on tap.
Save MoneyDaily happy hour from 4pm to 7pm features $3 well drinks and drafts, and $2 PBRs.
Know Before You GoParking is free and abundant, and a wide variety of public transport runs near here. Inquire about special cab rates.
User Reviews for The Riptide
03/30/2008 Posted by Pelicano
I'm here to tell you: The Riptide doesn't disappoint. I am like as not to be disappointed when I go practically anywhere else in the city, with exception to that (surfer owned) red place in the Mission with the name that makes me forget, or Skullbunnies. Here's why: the music might be as good as anything you can pay for anywhere, (Ralf Carney drunk with his impeccable jazz drummer some Sunday nights) or as bad as (random open mic Monday could be), they play surf movies on Wednesdays and the bar tenders are happy to see me, know me by name, and sometimes even feed me greasy wings to go with my fistfull of barrels movie. Last Wednesday they had this SurfRider event. It was so crowded me and my girl couldn't get in. We ended up next door at Brother's and got a slice and a beer there, and listened to all the downtown dudes with their makeup girls whine about how crowded it was and how this was the only thing going on that night in SF. Well, there was a 10 foot Pierson Arrow being raffled off, and even thought I had the winning ticket but couldn't get in, I was cool with it. Now, where else can I go, get a locally brewed lager (Budweiser) that sometimes tastes like sweet mana, or the other day tasted like fermented Antioche water, and then win a longboard? You know, there are nights I'll walk in, Jeff will poor me a draft of Bud, the Bartendresses will flirt (and are they hot? YES), I can make friends, share rounds, get drunk and walk a block home. They've got a great jukebox, they let you eat pizza from next door at the bar or by the fire. So, if you have a bar you can walk to, then by all means. If you want to go to a bar where the surfers are real watermen, the women are the real type of beautiful, my landlord is drunk, his ex affair just smacked him over the head with a Heineken bottle, and there are a handful of Sundays with the best live music in town, take the train, and don't whine about the beer.
Pros: You might win a surfboard
Cons: Dogs got kicked out
03/25/2007 Posted by marnie77
Geez....I was just looking for some new places out in the Sunset to visit on my upcoming weekend visit. I moved back to Maui from SF several years ago, and, from the sound of these reviews, things haven't changed much. Is it the frigid, always blown-out OB surf or the months and months of foggy weather? You sound grouchy. Maybe you need a vacation. I'll definitely come out and see what the fuss is about though. P.S. Locals drink Heineken, anyway.
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