stylish bar/lounge

[thecreepingkid]

A friend is coming to visit from LA next weekend. She lives in Hollywood and gets plenty of time in the trendy clubs there, so doesn't need to replicate that experience here. I'd like to take her to a nice bar or lounge in San Francisco, preferably downtown or the Mission. Ideally this would be a place with some style but not super-trendy with VIP bottle service or any of that kind of "ultra" scene. I tend more towards ordinary bars so I'm not sure what the "nice" places are. Maybe one of the speakeasy-style places? I don't know.

This will be on a Saturday night and we'd be more into hanging out with a cocktail rather than dancing.

Any ideas?

[johnq]

Bix is indeed an excellent choice, but the bar may be crowded unless it's fairly early or fairly late. Another excellent choice is the 5th Floor bar. Never crowded, at least in my experience. And there's a new bar manager who's creating custom cocktails based on whatever fresh market ingredients strike her fancy. She's tattooed, too, so you can't get much hipper than that. And the place is quite classy.

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Bix
56 Gold St., San Francisco, CA 94133

[wolfe]

Bix at least I thought it was a stylish bar a while ago. Has it changed?

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Bix
56 Gold St., San Francisco, CA 94133

[steve h.]

no. it's timeless.

[tvham]

15 Romolo
Rickhouse
Burrit Room
Comstock Saloon

All will be busy later on Sat night but would be great for a well made cocktail early on in the evening.

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15 Romolo
15 Romolo Pl, San Francisco, CA 94133

Rickhouse Bar
246 Kearny St, San Francisco, CA

Comstock Saloon
155 Columbus Ave, San Francisco, CA 94133

[chuckl]

SF is not quite as poserish as Hollywood, but I'd suggest Bourbon and Branch. Very speakeasyish

[SteveG]

Gitane. Really nice cocktails & unusual wines, gorgeously designed space, but not a scene. Belden lane is fun to show to out of towners too.

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Gitane Restaurant & Bar
6 Claude Lane, San Francisco, CA 94108

[Shane Greenwood]

The bar at Le Colonial is good. It's near Union Square, not far from downtown.

[Robert Lauriston]

Otis Lounge on Maiden Lane. Fifth Floor. Orson. Pied Piper at the Palace Hotel.

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Fifth Floor Restaurant
12 Fourth St., San Francisco, CA 94103

Pied Piper Bar
Market New Montgomery, San Francisco, CA 94102

Palace Hotel
2 New Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA

Otis Lounge
25 Maiden Lane, San Francisco, CA

[pauliface]

I love Nihon Whiskey Lounge.