Neighborhood bars and clubs around San Francisco

San Francisco’s party scene tends to be by neighborhood, rather than sticking to a couple popular clubs (though those can be found as well). The best way to guarantee a fun night out is to pick a neighborhood, and just hit a few of the bars and clubs in the area.

Broadway and Columbus: Right in the heart of North Beach lie some of San Francisco’s trendiest night clubs. From Hip Hop to Eighties and from Sake to Mojitos, you can pretty much expect to be out dancing all night. There are even a few jazz bars thrown into the mix. One thing to keep in mind, this neighborhood is also where you’ll find all the strip clubs, so be sure you know what you’re walking into before you go through the door! The popular bars include:

Dolce
440 Broadway St
San Francisco, CA

Dragon Bar
473 Broadway St
San Francisco, CA

Fillmore and Greenwich: Located near the Marina district, the bars along Fillmore Street are the place to see and be seen, especially among San Francisco’s up and coming 20- and 30-somethings. This is also where you’ll find The Matrix, which was once owned by Mayor Gavin Newsom, and is still one of SF’s most popular and sophisticated bars. But any of the bars in the two block radius are sure to please, sure to be crowded and sure to be fun.

The Matrix Fillmore
3138 Fillmore St
San Francisco, CA

East Side West
3154 Fillmore St.
San Francisco, CA 94123

11th and Folsom: This is where to go for a little bit of an edge to your evening. Dance to the thumping sounds of house music, or whatever else the DJs feel like spinning, while mixing it up with a range of people from Goth to yuppie. Drink the creative concoctions at Butter, dance to the crazy tunes at Holy Cow and lounge at the swanky Wish. And don’t forget to hit up all the other bars and clubs on that block as well, if you’re up to it.

Butter
354 11th St,
San Francisco, 94103

Wish
1539 Folsom St,
San Francisco, 94103

Holy Cow
1535 Folsom St
San Francisco, CA 94103

OReilly’s (622 Green St, San Francisco, 94133): Okay, this isn’t actually a neighborhood, but it’s my favorite bar in the city so it has to be mentioned. This also is not exactly the trendiest bar in the city, but it is the most classic Irish Pub. Therefore, hotels recommend it to all their out-of-country patrons. And it’s perfect for a week night drink. Become immersed in Irish culture, as you’re surrounded on all sides by everything Irish, from pictures to posters to books to authors. Yep, that’s right, authors. Along the far wall, Ireland’s most famous authors have been painted on as though they’re enjoying a drink with you. Everything there is authentic – they’ve even perfected pouring their Guinness – and you can pretty much guarantee at least a couple of the patrons will be Irish too!