What to order at The Library

Signature drink
Cheap doubles
Editor tip
It only opens Thursday to Saturday; arrive before 22:00 to skip the queue.
CuisineCocktail bar
TypeBar
Price$
NeighborhoodDowntown
HoursThu-Sat 20:00-02:00; Sun-Wed closed
Signature drinkCheap doubles
Last verified

Food program: None

Tip: It only opens Thursday to Saturday; arrive before 22:00 to skip the queue.

Location

Address: 723 Higuera Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401

Also in Downtown

Nightcap ★ 4.2

Cocktail barCocktail lounge$$$DowntownSun-Thu 18:00-22:00; Fri-Sat 18:00-23:00

Nightcap hides behind the Granada Hotel on Morro Street, a dim speakeasy-styled lounge stirring the most precise late drinks in San Luis Obispo.

Signature drink: Spirit-forward classics

Food: Bites from the Granada Bistro kitchen

Tip: Bistro bites carry over from the hotel kitchen; it seats few, so go early or very late.

Sidecar Cocktail Co. ★ 4.4

Cocktail barCocktail bar$$$DowntownWed-Thu 16:00-22:00; Fri-Sat 16:00-01:00; Sun-Tue closed

Sidecar Cocktail Co. shakes San Luis Obispo's most serious cocktails on Broad Street, backing the list with a comfort-food kitchen four nights a week.

Signature drink: Seasonal craft cocktails

Food: Comfort-food kitchen

Tip: The comfort-food kitchen runs Wednesday to Saturday; ask the bartenders what is in barrel this month.

McCarthy's Irish Pub ★ 4.1

Cocktail barPub$DowntownDaily 10:00-02:00

McCarthy's Irish Pub has poured in San Luis Obispo since 1952, opening at 10:00 daily with Guinness, whiskey and zero pretension on Marsh Street.

Signature drink: Guinness and a whiskey back

Food: None; bring your own snacks

Tip: Happy hour takes a dollar off drinks 17:00-19:00 daily; the room packs shoulder to shoulder on weekend nights.

Frog & Peach Pub ★ 3.9

Cocktail barPub$DowntownDaily 15:00-02:00

Frog & Peach Pub has run live music seven nights a week since 1994 on Higuera Street, the reliable free stage of San Luis Obispo's bar crawl.

Signature drink: Rotating craft taps

Food: None; live music nightly

Tip: Most nights there is no cover; the craft tap list outclasses the divey room around it.

Bull's Tavern ★ 3.8

Cocktail barDive bar$DowntownMon 14:00-01:00; Tue-Fri 14:00-02:00; Sat-Sun 12:00-02:00

Bull's Tavern is San Luis Obispo's historic dive, a long wooden bar on Chorro Street that has outlasted every polished cocktail newcomer around it.

Signature drink: Well drinks and draught beer

Food: None

Tip: Cash keeps the line moving on weekend nights; the jukebox is half the point.

Full Downtown food guide →

More bars in San Luis Obispo

Nightcap ★ 4.2

Cocktail barCocktail lounge$$$DowntownSun-Thu 18:00-22:00; Fri-Sat 18:00-23:00

Nightcap hides behind the Granada Hotel on Morro Street, a dim speakeasy-styled lounge stirring the most precise late drinks in San Luis Obispo.

Signature drink: Spirit-forward classics

Food: Bites from the Granada Bistro kitchen

Tip: Bistro bites carry over from the hotel kitchen; it seats few, so go early or very late.

Sidecar Cocktail Co. ★ 4.4

Cocktail barCocktail bar$$$DowntownWed-Thu 16:00-22:00; Fri-Sat 16:00-01:00; Sun-Tue closed

Sidecar Cocktail Co. shakes San Luis Obispo's most serious cocktails on Broad Street, backing the list with a comfort-food kitchen four nights a week.

Signature drink: Seasonal craft cocktails

Food: Comfort-food kitchen

Tip: The comfort-food kitchen runs Wednesday to Saturday; ask the bartenders what is in barrel this month.

McCarthy's Irish Pub ★ 4.1

Cocktail barPub$DowntownDaily 10:00-02:00

McCarthy's Irish Pub has poured in San Luis Obispo since 1952, opening at 10:00 daily with Guinness, whiskey and zero pretension on Marsh Street.

Signature drink: Guinness and a whiskey back

Food: None; bring your own snacks

Tip: Happy hour takes a dollar off drinks 17:00-19:00 daily; the room packs shoulder to shoulder on weekend nights.

Frog & Peach Pub ★ 3.9

Cocktail barPub$DowntownDaily 15:00-02:00

Frog & Peach Pub has run live music seven nights a week since 1994 on Higuera Street, the reliable free stage of San Luis Obispo's bar crawl.

Signature drink: Rotating craft taps

Food: None; live music nightly

Tip: Most nights there is no cover; the craft tap list outclasses the divey room around it.

Bull's Tavern ★ 3.8

Cocktail barDive bar$DowntownMon 14:00-01:00; Tue-Fri 14:00-02:00; Sat-Sun 12:00-02:00

Bull's Tavern is San Luis Obispo's historic dive, a long wooden bar on Chorro Street that has outlasted every polished cocktail newcomer around it.

Signature drink: Well drinks and draught beer

Food: None

Tip: Cash keeps the line moving on weekend nights; the jukebox is half the point.

See every bars pick in San Luis Obispo →

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