July 2, 2009

City Beer Store and Tasting Bar

City Beer Store and Tasting Bar– beer store & tasting bar. Obviously.
SOMA
1168 Folsom St @ 7th Street (Google Map)
Official Site | BeerAdvocate | Yelp
Open Tuesday-Saturday Noon – 10p, Sunday Noon – 6p
MUNI/BART: 12, 19, 27, and 47.
MUNI’s F, J, K, L, M, and T lines, as well as BART, will get you to Civic Center station, which is three of SF’s most… let’s say “urban” blocks away.

In researching for this blog- which is oh-so-strenuous- I made a stop at City Beer last night, and asked the owner Craig, shown here with his wife and co-worker Beth, how many beers he has available.  He said he was a bit low at the moment, and he was down to a paltry 375.  He peaks when the winter brews come out at around 450, but it usually holds steady around 400.

Yes, I’m sure that your buddy’s brother Gherkin knows about this place that has 5,000 beers on tap, but I’ll still put City Beer up against any bar in California in not only quantity but quality of beer selection.  And anyway, Gherkin still thinks calico cats are a sign of the devil, so you should know better than to listen to him anyway.


photo by bsii

In the store, you’ll find six refrigerators full of beer (do not be alarmed by the Red Stripe- the people who live upstairs like it), and about eight shelving units, all taller than you.  Behind the bar are six taps, rotated constantly, usually pouring various seasonals or offerings from a featured brewer/style/theme.  Everything is clearly (and fairly) priced, and mixing and matching of six-packs is encouraged by 10% off the whole thing. (Carriers are in the back, near the bathroom.)

Quite niftily, everything in the building can also be enjoyed right there on the premises, for a $1 corkage fee.  The proper glassware is of course employed, and splitting among friends is also welcome.  There’s not a huge amount of seating, but there are a few tables & chairs in addition to the modestly-sized bar.  And yes, if you select something from the shelves, you can get it chilled while you enjoy something already cold.  There’s no kitchen, but simple cheese & meat plates are offered, along with TCHO chocolates.

And if you’re not really sure what you want to try, Craig & Beth are quite personable, and always eager to help you find something new, if you can give them a starting point (and no, Coors Light is not a starting point).  Craig started this business not just to make money, but to finally bring a respectable tasting bar to San Francisco, and his passion for the product shows.

Events of many kinds are regular here.  At the time of this writing, they are expecting Stone’s 13th Anniversary Ale in soon, and will be serving it next week alongside the 9th, 11th, and 12th Anniversary Ales.  During the 2009 SF Beer Week, they hosted a Sour Beer & Chocolate night.  (Mullet night is also on the docket.)


photo by bittermelon

If City Beer could be said to have a downside, it would have to be its size.  While it makes this San Francisco native proud to see people coming out in droves to support beer, they always manage to get to the barstools before I do, and navigating the place can get a bit tricky (especially during special events).  So if you have the opportunity, come before happy hour, when you’ll be able to converse a bit with Craig & Beth, and get the most out of what is among the best beer destinations in the country.

And for you San Francisco transplants who are no doubt wondering- no, not even Craig can get you a sixer of Yuengling.

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June 12, 2009

San Francisco Brewing Co.

San Francisco Brewing Company– brewpub
CLOSED 11/2009
North Beach
155 Columbus Ave, @ Pacific & Kearny (Google Map)
Official Site | BeerAdvocate | Yelp
House microbrew: $3.50-$5.50, $1.75 for happy hour, but it’s still not worth it.
Open Sun-Thu noon-midnight, Fri-Sat noon-2am
MUNI: 1, 9X, 9AX, 9BX, 10, 12, 20, 30, 41, 45, 82, 91.

I do not mean this site to be a review service; there are plenty of other sites that can do that for you. So please, do not set foot in this dump expect me to sully this post with my lowly, ignorant opinions. (Seriously, though.)

The location of SF Brewing Co. is quite lovely, sitting in the shadow of the Transamerica Pyramid and the Coppolla Building.  The space itself is actually pretty nice too.  The nautically-themed, saloon-ish front room is all dark, well-worn wood, and pictures of the old Barbary Coast adorn the walls across from the bar.  There might be a few people sitting at the bar, but the tables tend to be empty.  In fact, it’s a lot like the bar in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (not the club where Jessica sings, the really depressing one where Roger almost gets Dipped in front of “a bunch of drunken reprobates”).  Going around the bar and past the ladies’ room (men, you go downstairs near the entrance to wee), there’s a back room that’s a bit more lively, with the chatter of some of the young, urban professionals from the nearby Financial District.  There are a smattering of tables arranged around one of the copper brewing tanks, and large windows look out over Columbus and Pacific avenues.  There is a TV present, but considering it was off during the NBA Finals, I shall assume it is broken, and has been for some time.

Service is adequate, if a bit on the slow side, and the food is adequate, if a bit on the pricey side.  Beers, according to the menu, are $5.50 a pint, but $1.75 at happy hour.  I paid $3.50 for mine. (Don’t ask me, I only write the blog.)  Food is very standard American fare- burger, chicken sandwich, fried calamari.

The beer is mostly named for ghosts of San Francisco past, such as the Barbary Coast and the infamous Emperor Norton.  They usually have a half-dozen beers on tap, with no guest brews.  They also offer a scant selection of standard liquors.  One thing they do have up on most other places is a variety of options for beer-to-go.  They offer growlers, cubes, and kegs. And for a mere $1250, they’ll custom brew a tank (10 kegs) for you. Though why you’d ever want to…

While you’re in the neighborhood…
La Trappe, 800 Greenwich @ Columbus & Mason
Church Key, 1402 Grant @ Green
Rogue (GGBB review), 673 Union Street between Powell & Columbus
Seriously, go to any of these three. They’re all better. Even if they’re closed.

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June 8, 2009

Elizabeth Street Brewery

Elizabeth Street Brewery – brewery
Noe Valley
Official Site | Twitter
House microbrew: free!
Open on the occasional Saturday afternoon
MUNI: 24, 35, 48.

So Elizabeth Street Brewery isn’t what one would normally expect of a brewpub or a bar.  It’s also not what you’d expect of a random basement in residential Noe Valley, which ESB also is.  You see, Richard and Allie Brewer-Hay (I know, right?) like beer.  So they decided to start making their own.  A few years and an episode of While You Were Out later, they’ve developed a regular brewing schedule and attracted a small but loyal following.  Eventually, Richard plans to open a brewpub on Noe Valley’s main drag, 24th Street.  But in the meantime, Elizabeth Street Brewery operates at their home, and every so often the doors are opened for tasting.

It’s a bit hidden away, in a very nondescript house on the corner.  This is by design, as they not only live there with their two kids, but they also received a bit of a talking to, though eventually a blessing, from the SFPD, likely spurred by some annoying yuppie neighbor (which are not unheard of in Noe Valley).  It is for this reason I’ve left ESB’s address off of this post- it’s essentially a speakeasy for the time being.  You can check in on their website or follow their Twitter feed to see when they’re opening up- generally Saturday afternoons from about noon to 3pm, especially in July and August.

Once you do find it, you’ll find a very friendly group of beer drinkers enjoying sunshine in the backyard, or a custom-made bar room in the basement, courtesy While You Were Out.  Upon entering the side door, Richard greeted us with a hearty handshake and a taster glass of his Daddy’s Chocolate Milk, and we sat down in the backyard with about a dozen other beer enthusiasts.  If you’ve been to a neighbor’s picnic, then you have a pretty good idea of what Elizabeth Street Brewery is like (the fun neighbors who brew their own beer and give it to you for free, not the ones who complain every time you play Rock Band).  There is a cozy barroom downstairs, which I got to poke my head into (this is also where the tip jar is).  You can take a look at it on their Flickr photostream.  Richard is generally milling about, refilling glasses (quite efficiently, I must add) and talking beer with fellow connoisseurs and colleagues.  Unsurprisingly, he’s also a member of several beer clubs, and he’ll pour some of their offerings for you, as well.  Did I mention there was a tip jar on the bar downstairs?

That’s about all there is to say.  It’s certainly a different bar/brewpub experience than most, but it’s a lot of fun.  Oh, and I guarantee that if you get the chance to visit, you’ll have the opportunity to use what is without a doubt the nicest, cleanest bar bathroom in San Francisco.

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June 3, 2009

Lucky 13

Lucky 13 – beer bar / dive bar
2140 Market @ Church (Google Map)
Official Site | BeerAdvocate | Yelp
Local microbrew: $4.00 (Happy Hour: $1 off all beer until 8pm)
Open Mon-Wed 4pm-2am, Thu-Sun 11am-2am
MUNI: F, K, L, M, J, N, 22, and 37. 6, 7, 24, 33, and 71 will get you in the neighborhood, too.
Part of the Haight Beer Crawl

(Note- This entry is for the San Francisco location.)

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If the man above scares you, perhaps Lucky 13 is not for you.

Lucky 13 is what San Franciscans think of as a dive bar.  Granted the term is used for many different types of places, depending where you are, but the San Francisco dive is generally in or around the Mission District, is loud, slightly funny-smelling, employed with well-tattooed friendly people serving unfriendly tattooed people.  The San Francisco dive is not a place in which you will get stabbed or hit with a pool cue, and there will be no drug deals going on in the parking lot (unless you mean weed, but that like, totally doesn’t count).

Thankfully, the clientele of the especially large-for-San-Francisco Lucky 13 is a bit friendlier than many of its close relatives in the Mission District.  Upon entry, there is a long bar along the right, behind which you will find, at the time of this writing, 26 taps, 26 bottles, and a full bar (though they’re planning to bring the beer total up to a nice round 60, with the addition of a new bank of refrigerators behind the bar).  There’s free popcorn at the far end of the bar, as well as Goldfish and Milk-Bones behind the bar.  There’s no kitchen, but there’s tons of portable food available in the neighborhood, which you’re welcome to bring in (they do a mean barbecue on Saturdays, though).  There’s also a pool table at the back, which will set you back a buck a game (free on Sundays, but Tuesday is league night).  Opposite the bar, there are a line of tables, interrupted by what is considered one of the best punk jukeboxes in San Francisco.

There are two upstairs areas. One stairway, in the back, leads up to the ATM and a handful of pinball and other arcade games, and allows a good bird’s-eye view of the bar (below), for those who enjoy people-watching.  The other stairway is closer to the front, on the left, and will bring you up to more seating (and a Ms. Pacman, if you’re so inclined).  The restrooms are at the front of the bar, on either side of the photobooth.

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At the far back right corner, there’s a door out to the patio.  It’s not huge, and it’s in the middle of a residential block, so there’s no confusing it for a proper German biergarten, but you can smoke and get a breath of fresh air at one of the four tables, or the semi-hidden corner spot behind a couple of small trees.  Out here, as well as inside, keep an eye out for dogs, as there are often a handful (if not a dozen) on the premises at any given time.

Lucky 13, being such a big and centrally-located bar, can be quite crowded Fridays and Saturdays, though if you’re paying attention you can usually find a seat or two within a few minutes.  Service is generally quick, and there’s usually enough people working to handle any crowd that fits in the building.  During the week, it tends to collect a lively variety of folks from the surrounding Mission, Haight, and Castro neighborhoods, and is considerably calmer than the weekends, though it’s rarely what you would call “dead” after about 4pm. (Yes, it is in that Castro, but it is not a gay bar. Though I would suggest that if such a thing would be a problem, you’re visiting the wrong town.)

It offers a much better beer variety than you’d expect from a slummy dive bar.  They concentrate on west coast microbrews, with a handful of Belgians.  In fact, if you look above the beer list (in the middle of the bar, by the taps) you’ll see a few signs that say “Bud” and “Coors” (despite that, local hipsters can still find PBR and Corona here).  It’s happy hour every day from opening to 8pm, when you can find most of the microbrews for a paltry three bucks, but even at full price, nothing is what you’d call expensive.

And finally, if you see me, which you probably will if you’re at Lucky 13, for god’s sake come say hi, I’ll buy ya a beer.

While you’re in the neighborhood…
Toronado, 547 Haight @ Fillmore
Healthy Spirits (beer store), 2299 15th St @ Castro

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June 1, 2009

Rogue Ales Public House

Rogue Ales Public House – brewpub
673 Union Street between Powell & Columbus (Google Map)
Official site (Twitter) | BeerAdvocate | Yelp
House microbrew: $5.50
Open Sun-Thu noon-midnight, noon – 2am, Fri & Sat
MUNI: 12, 20, 30, 39, 41, 45, Powell-Mason Cable Car

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OK, it’s not technically a brewpub, as Rogue beers are brewed in Oregon. But you’ll find a generous amount of their beers on tap in their San Francisco pub, as well as a bunch of their allied brewers, and a good roster of other, mostly west coast craft brews. So, in short, there’s a good 40 mostly-PNW taps on hand, so whatever your tastes, you’re likely to find something you like. So much so that it probably won’t matter that the only booze they have besides beer are their house spirits and a few bottles of wine. I must warn, though, that the house brews do tip the scales a bit at $5.50 (yes, New Yorkers and LAliens, that is what counts as expensive here; neener neener).

There’s a long bar along the right wall as you enter, with a few booths opposite (there are a couple of TVs above the bar, usually turned to the Giants game or SportsCenter). A small wall separates the bar area from a larger dining room to the left, and through the back of that, you can step outside to a reasonably large beer garden, which has been known to house a few doggies from time to time.

They offer a full food menu (a PDF of which is available here) which is a step above your typical pub fare, but without the air of- shall I say, trying-too-hard that some brewpubs have succumbed to. And before you leave, be sure to poke your head into the fridge by the door, which will be filled with tasty beer and house cheeses that, for a fee, you can remove and go consume elsewhere.

North Beach can be a pretty rowdy neighborhood most weekends, what with all the strip clubs whipping up the testosterone, but Rogue is usually an oasis from big, loud crowds, and tends to offer a pretty pleasant experience any time of the week. Hell, it can be damn near dead during off-hours, but it’s generally full enough to be fun, but empty enough to be comfortable.  However- watch out for that Thursday night trivia tournament, lest you end up alone in the backyard wondering where your server is.  I should also warn you that while North Beach is one of the few areas of San Francisco served well by cabs, it makes for a very annoying endeavor to try to catch one at 2am when the streets flood with (other) drunks, so if you’re cabbing it, you might want to settle up around 1:30 and beat the crowd.

Experiences with the staff have been hit-or-miss… some are excited to help you find something new, while some don’t seem to care if they get a tip (though you should anyway). But even when the staff leaves something to be desired, it’s a good pub to spend and afternoon or evening at. The people are generally friendly, and it hosts a good mix of amiable local and visiting beer geeks who are looking to drink and share some good beer. I myself have brought out-of-towners here and ended up trading & comparing beer itineraries with other tourists.

Rogue also hosts events fairly often, showcasing both their own work and that of other local breweries- I recommend their Twitter to keep up with those, as they don’t put much effort into marketing.

While you’re in the neighborhood…
La Trappe, 800 Greenwich @ Columbus & Mason
Church Key, 1402 Grant @ Green
San Francisco Brewing Co (GGBB review), 155 Columbus @ Pacific & Kearny

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May 16, 2009

A few ideas…

A few notes…

Yes, that’s a bar napkin.

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May 15, 2009

Speakeasy Ales & Lagers

Speakeasy Ales & Lagers – brewery
1195 Evans St @ Keith (Google Map)
Official site | BeerAdvocate | Yelp
House microbrew: $3.50ish
Open Fridays 4-9pm and occasionally for special events on Saturdays
MUNI: T, 19, 44, 54 (23 and 24 will get you there, too, with a bit of a walk)

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Speakeasy is not a place you go for ambiance. See all that outdoor seating above? They only pull that out on their random Saturday events. The weekly Friday happy hour is mostly indoors, though there is an area next to the building where you can smoke. Other than than, you’re drinking in a warehouse that makes beer. It might not sound too appealing, but it’s actually a lot of fun. For starters, there is no douchey after-work crowd, because a) it’s too far from downtown, and 2) it’s on the edge of one of SF’s roughest neighborhoods, Hunter’s Point. So you won’t pick up any chicks, nor will you interface with anyone’s synergy.

What you will be doing is drinking some fucking beer. They check your ID at the door, and you can walk in and buy tokens. (I recommend three tokens plus a shirt for $20.) Squeeze by the massive wall of beer to the bar, where a friendly Speakeasy employee (probably the last one hired) will happily pour you a plastic cup of his employer’s latest offerings. Prohibition, Big Daddy IPA, and Untouchable Pale Ale are their standards, but there’ll be at least two more available there for you to try.

There are a few chairs strewn about, but you may a well just go sit on that 60 pound sack of hops, or on the pallet of Big Daddy IPA ready to get shipped out. If it helps, you can think of it as a party in your friend’s garage, but if your friend has a distribution contract in the PNW. (If you’ve been to Brooklyn Brewery’s Friday/Saturday events, this is similar, but with way fewer obnoxious frat boys.) There’s usually a game or two of washers being played, and the occasional dog (or child) running around. There is a popcorn machine, and if they bothered to call, there might be someone offering burgers or tamales from a booth, but don’t count on it. I’d recommend getting food before you make your way out to Speakeasy, as there is virtually nothing else for blocks around. You can get a pizza delivered, though.

If you’re lucky, they may be having a big Saturday bash. It’s much the same as the Friday happy hours, but with (many many) more people and (much much) more sun. They’re fairly sporadic, though they do have an anniversary party every August. Their mailing list is probably the best place to keep track of the Saturday parties (don’t worry, they’ll email you once a month, at most).

I’m not sure if they still do this, but I often would buy a case/keg from them directly, though last time I emailed them about a keg, they said they didn’t sell to the public. It’s worth a try though (which I will do as soon as I get a chance). But if they don’t, you’ll have no trouble finding their beer in stores or bars around SF.

As mentioned, there is essentially no commerce of any kind in the surrounding neighborhood, and it can be a bit, ah… shooty, though the nighttime walk on Evans back to the T-Third Muni line should be plenty safe. They’ll also be happy to call you a cab.

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