The Alembic

A pioneering craft-cocktail bar reimagined under new ownership

The Alembic helped steer San Francisco’s craft-cocktail revival after it opened in 2006, as part of a new wave of bars in the city sourcing high-quality ingredients for classic cocktails. After owner Dave McClean, also the founder of Magnolia Brewing, declared bankruptcy in 2015, the fate of the bar was uncertain. But in 2018, a new team came in, and the Alembic today is better than ever. The fun nighttime energy of the original iteration is still very much alive, and these days you can get an extra dose of Haight-Ashbury street life by sitting in the outdoor parklet. (When it’s cold, they’ll give you a space heater.) If you need something warming, try the indulgent Brown Butter Old Fashioned, made with roasted sugar; if not, go for the spicy Night Market, whose cucumber-lemongrass shrub and St. George Botanivore Gin gets a pungent kick from the addition of Thai chile.