Kin Khao in San Francisco is Pim Techamuanvivit's Michelin-starred Thai room near Union Square, with regional cooking far from the safe pad thai script.
Signature: Rabbit green curry, Pretty hot wings, Khao soi
Order: The rabbit green curry over jasmine rice; the dish that won the Michelin star.
Tip: The bar pours a sharp Riesling list; ask for the off-menu cold larb when it is available.
Marlowe in San Francisco is the Anna Weinberg and Jennifer Puccio bistro south of Market, with one of the city's most reliable burgers and a Brussels sprout.
Signature: Burger, Brussels sprout chips, Roast chicken
Order: The Marlowe burger, on a Pretzel bun with Cabot cheddar.
Tip: Sit at the bar and ask for the burger plus the kale Caesar; that is the full Marlowe order.
Californios in San Francisco is Val Cantu's two-Michelin-star modern Mexican tasting room, 16 seats, the most cerebral table in the city right now.
Signature: Tasting menu, Tamal, Aguachile
Order: Whatever the corn course is on the night; the kitchen sources nixtamal heirloom corns directly.
Tip: There is only one seating a night; book six weeks out for any Friday or Saturday.
Yank Sing in San Francisco is the Chan family's Cantonese dim sum institution since 1958, with a SoMa flagship and weekend lines that run to 90 minutes.
Signature: Shanghai dumplings, Peking duck buns, Har gow
Order: Shanghai dumplings: the kitchen's most-ordered cart item for decades.
Tip: The Stevenson Street original is smaller and quieter; book the Spear Street flagship only if you want carts.
1015 Folsom in San Francisco runs five rooms over three floors with a refreshed sound system and headline EDM, house and techno bookings on Friday.
Tip: Buy tickets online before 22:00 to avoid the queue around the corner on Folsom. Rooms upstairs draw smaller crowds than the main floor late.
Audio SF on 11th Street is SoMa's dedicated house and techno room, booking international DJs onto a single dance floor under a Funktion-One rig in San.
Tip: Doors at 22:00; the line moves faster after midnight. Resident Advisor tickets are cheaper than door for headline bookings.
DNA Lounge in SoMa is the late-night, all-ages SF club running seven bars, two stages and four dance floors across goth, industrial and drag programming.
Tip: Monday's Death Guild is the longest-running goth-industrial night in the country. Saturday's Bootie SF mash-up party runs until 04:00.
The EndUp at SF's 6th and Harrison has run since 1973 as the after-hours house club, with a back patio and the Sunday daytime party that gives the venue.
Tip: Saturday night runs straight into Sunday morning then resumes Sunday afternoon. The back patio is the smart move when the dancefloor heats up.
The Stud reopened on Folsom Street in April 2024 as the city's oldest queer bar, founded in 1966 and now collectively owned with drag, dance and cabaret.
Tip: Theme nights drive the cover and the crowd. Sunday drag brunches and Tuesday Drag Alive shows are the soft entry points before the weekend.
Charmaine's tops the Proper Hotel on Market Street with a wraparound terrace, fireplaces and Civic Center views, with SF cocktails above the Tenderloin.
Tip: Entrance is on McAllister Street, not Market. Reservations open at noon for evening tables; walk-ins fill the bar after 22:00.
Top of the Mark crowns the InterContinental Mark Hopkins on Nob Hill in San Francisco with a 19th-floor sky lounge and a 100-martini list it has poured.
Tip: Friday and Saturday evenings carry a music charge after 20:00. The northwest window seats hold the Golden Gate sightline at sunset.
The View Lounge sits on the 39th floor of the Marriott Marquis with floor-to-ceiling windows that frame the SoMa skyline and the bay. Walk-in seating.
Tip: The northwest windows look out over Yerba Buena and the Bay Bridge at twilight. Cocktail menu is conservative; pay for the room, not the recipe.
Kaiyo Rooftop sits on the 12th floor of the Hyatt Place in SF's SoMa, pairing Nikkei small plates with pisco cocktails and a deck looking over Oracle Park.
Tip: Ballpark nights book up fast; reserve the deck side rather than the indoor lounge. The Nikkei menu pairs better with cocktails than wine.
Cavana crowns the LUMA Hotel on the 17th floor of Mission Bay with bay views, agave-led cocktails and Latin American small plates from a deck above the Chase.
Tip: Sunset tables along the east edge catch the bay light. Warriors game nights run a different cocktail menu and shorten the kitchen.
Bourbon and Branch in the Tenderloin holds court behind an unmarked door on Jones Street, the speakeasy that restarted San Francisco's craft cocktail era.
Tip: Main room needs a reservation and a daily password; the Library room takes walk-ins from 18:00. Phone policy is strict.
Wilson and Wilson is the SF speakeasy-within-a-speakeasy behind a bookshelf inside Bourbon and Branch, themed as a 1920s detective agency with set cocktail.
Tip: Reserve a week ahead; the three-cocktail prix fixe is the only way to order. Entry is through the Bourbon and Branch door, then the back room.
Local Edition runs out of the SF Hearst Building basement on Market Street, fitted with vintage printing presses, low light and a long cocktail list.
Tip: Walk down the staircase off Market; the entrance is unmarked. Weeknight live music after 21:00 packs the back bar fast.
Pacific Cocktail Haven on Sutter Street in SF is Kevin Diedrich's craft cocktail room, ranked 16 on North America's 50 Best Bars 2025 with a Pacific Rim.
Tip: Walk-in seating fills by 20:00 on weekends. The bar prefers the high-top counter for solo drinkers; reservations only fit groups of three or more.
Powerhouse on Folsom Street is San Francisco's leather and kink bar, programming DJ nights, beer busts and back-patio events through the SoMa Leather.
Tip: Sunday beer bust on the back patio is the social anchor. Theme nights enforce dress code at the door, especially on Friday and Saturday.
The Cinch Saloon on Polk Street is a Western-themed bar that has held a place in Polk Gulch since 1975, with a back patio, pool tables and bingo nights.
Tip: Sunday afternoon bingo is a city tradition with cash prizes. The back patio is the smoker's destination; front bar is for pool and pinball.
Aunt Charlie's Lounge in the SF Tenderloin is a dive drag bar that has run the Hot Boxxx Girls revue on Friday and Saturday nights since 1996.
Tip: Hot Boxxx Girls show on Friday and Saturday has a small cover. Tipping the queens is the social currency; bring small bills.
Harlan Records sits in an SF downtown alley off Bush Street, a vintage cocktail bar built around a Thorens turntable, McIntosh amps and JBL speakers on vinyl.
Tip: Stay seated when a side flips; quiet listening is the house rule. The cocktail program rotates with the record selections each week.
Kissakeko is a 400-square-foot vinyl-only jazz kissa on Nob Hill, pouring artisanal sake into six to eight seats with no streaming and a selected record.
Tip: Open Monday and Thursday through Saturday; one seating per session. Quiet listening is the unwritten rule; no phones at the bar.
Tunnel Top sits over the Stockton Street tunnel in San Francisco's FiDi, a two-level corner bar with built-in cushion seating upstairs and a divey downstairs.
Tip: Upstairs lounge has bar-rail views over the tunnel mouth. Ten beers on draft and a short cocktail list; cash bar moves faster on busy nights.