Gay bars, pot spots
San Francisco’s gay bar scene remains a vibrant part of LGBTQ life in the city: Each June these watering holes from the Castro to the Tenderloin are flooded with visitors looking to wet their whistles and celebrate S.F. Pride. Some bars are historic sites (Harvey’s) where pioneers like Harvey Milk planted the seeds that blossomed into the LGBTQ rights revolution. Other spots have great shows (Aunt Charlie’s Lounge, Oasis), fierce dancing (Badlands, the Cafe, El Rio) and killer cocktails and decor (Blackbird). This year, our bar guide expands to include the cannabis lounges of San Francisco for Pride-goers with medical cannabis patient cards looking for a safe space to vape or smoke. Whether drinking or toking, enjoy San Francisco Pride safely and responsibly.
CASTRO Last Call 3988 18th St. Crowd: Relaxed, anti-scene, neighborhood crew where bartenders greet people by name. Hot time: Afternoons and happy hour. Dress code: Casual, unironic flannel shirt and jeans. Don’t miss: On cold nights, the fireplace. The jukebox is also a favorite. Twin Peaks Tavern 401 Castro St.
Crowd: Veterans of Castro past, newbies looking to discover some Castro history.
Hot time: Pre- and post-showtime at the Castro Theatre, especially if there’s a good Joan Crawford versus Bette Davis revival. Dress code: “Castro clone” circa 1974, or try to out-sequin the fab veteran cocktail waitresses. Don’t miss: The view from the balcony seating. 440 Castro 440 Castro St. Crowd: It’s a regular den of bears. Grrr. Hot time: Things pick up after 9 p.m. and are always happening on Monday Underwear Night. Dress code: Chest hair. Don’t miss: Sunday, Scruffy Sunday, the last Sunday of the month. Qbar 456 Castro St. Crowd: Younger Castro-goers with a great gender mix. Hot time: Saturday beer busts. Dress code: Something to dance in that also takes great selfies. Don’t miss: Throwback Thursdays for ’80s, ’90s and ’00s dance hits. Moby Dick 4049 18th St. Crowd: The beer and pool set.
Hot time: Wednesday “Dick at Nite” drag performances. Dress code: New England whaler chic. Just kidding; jeans will do. Don’t miss: The frozen drinks and saltwater fish tank. Shiver me timbers. Pilsner Inn 225 Church St. Crowd: Neighborhoodies. Hot time: Any warm afternoon or night on the patio. Dress code: Whatever you wore to the Safeway across Market. Don’t miss: The old-school wooden phone booth, perfect for selfies. Blackbird 2124 Market St. Crowd: Younger, homo-meet-shipster professionals. Hot time: The after-work crowd is politely cruisey. Tiki Sundays are also fun days. Dress code: More trend-conscious than skin-conscious.
Don’t miss: One of the best cocktail destinations in the gay bar scene; enjoy something other than a pour-over drink in a plastic cup. Craige Walters’ interiors and the rotating art shows make for a great setting. The Mix 4086 18th St. Crowd: Like its name, a mix — twinks to college boys to bears. Also a healthy gender and age mix. Hot time: During one of the many beer busts held for charity. Dress code: A sweater for the back patio bar is never a bad idea. Don’t miss: Free pool after 7 p.m. on Mondays. Harvey’s 500 Castro St.
Crowd: Old-timers who remember the bar as the Elephant Walk in Harvey Milk’s day, newbies curious about the bar’s place in gay history.
Hot time: Dinner: It’s a great place to carbo-load before drinking and dancing. Brunch: It’s a great place to recover the next day. Dress code: Honor the bar’s namesake with a “Milk for Supervisor” T-shirt.
Bars from page R16 Don’t miss: The “Mecca” scramble. Midnight Sun 4067 18th St.
Crowd: All sorts with some great drag regulars.
Hot time: The Mister Sister Mondays “RuPaul’s Drag Race” viewing parties.
Dress code: Glitter works as well on Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence as it does on the Saturday go-go boys.
Don’t miss: Castro Karaoke Wednesdays, hosted by Bebe Sweetbriar. The Cafe 2369 Market St. Crowd: People who come to dance with a capital D. Hot time: Boogie o’clock starts after 9 p.m. Dress code: Shirts tend to come off quickly on the dance floor. Don’t miss: Latin themed “PiStreet.
cante” Thursdays. Hi Tops 2247 Market St. Crowd: Sports fans, jocks and athletic enthusiasts. Hot time: Game time. Dress code: San Francisco team colors are always encouraged; bartenders wear jocks for Thursday night Gym Class. Don’t miss: Monday night $5 chicken wing baskets. The Lookout 3600 16th St.
Crowd: Revelers looking for a little noise and maybe a slice of pizza.
Hot time: Friday and Saturday nights on the town, post-brunch cocktails on Sunday.
Dress code: Something to show off those pecs and a pair of binoculars to check out your neighbor. Don’t miss: The view from the balconies of the musclemen exiting the gym on Market Badlands 4121 18th St. Crowd: Twink alert!
Hot time: Most nights attract a healthy crowd to the dance floor, where Katy, Gaga and Madonna rule the playlists.
Dress code: Your best clubgoing sneaks, and a shirt you don’t care about losing.
Don’t miss: The black-lit hall of urinals with overhanging mirrors and the roomy dance floor. Toad Hall 4146 18th St. Crowd: People looking for a change of pace from Badlands. Hot time: Weekends on the patio. Dress code: Whatever you can dance in. Don’t miss: The great sound system. Beaux 2344 Market St. Crowd: Squeaky-clean and polished, like the venue. Hot time: After work, early evening, late night. Dress code: The tighter and more skin-baring the better. Don’t miss: The Beauxtox house cocktail, Cock Shot Tuesdays and the “nearly naked gogo boys.” Flore (formerly Cafe Flore) 2298 Market St. Crowd: Casual diners and drinkers, former punks who remember the cafe’s mosh pit days. Hot time: Sunny days when the people watching is easy. Dress code: Casual bohemian duds. Don’t miss: The ambience of sipping a cocktail in the patio garden, the gay history from the early days of liberation. The Edge 4149 18th St. Crowd: Mixed ages but skews more 30-plus. Hot time: Weekends for day drinking that becomes early evening drinking. Dress code: Chest hair preferred, but not required. Don’t miss: Musical Mondays for trivia and classic clips. TENDERLOIN The Cinch 1723 Polk St. Crowd: Gay dive bar regulars. Hot time: The vibe stays pretty homey and mellow even during weekend peaks. Dress code: If this is a gay Cheers, channel your inner Carla. Don’t miss: The heavy pour of the average bartender, the “Little Shop of Horrors” man-eating plant decor. Aunt Charlie’s Lounge 133 Turk St.
Crowd: Bathhouse-disco-era queens. Hot time: Any evening performance, but Saturdays are always a fabulous show with plenty of classic older performers strutting their stuff. Reservations are available.
Dress code: Sparkle, glitter and that hint of the ’70s.
Don’t miss: Collette LeGrande, the sassy, saucy waitress and longtime performer who takes no nonsense. Divas 1081 Post St.
Crowd: Trans women, drag queens, cross-dressers and the people who admire them.
Hot time: Late nights are when the real scene begins.
Dress code: At a place called Divas, a little excess is always encouraged.
Don’t miss: The talent onstage for any of the numerous live performances. Gangway 841 Larkin St.
Crowd: Unpretentious neighborhood characters and kitsch lovers alike.
Hot time: People always say they’re just starting the night at the Gangway … then end up finishing it there hours later.
Dress code: Try a nautical yacht-rock-meets-punk-rock look. Don’t miss: The people watching and staring up at the blacktarped ceiling. MISSION DISTRICT El Rio 3158 Mission St. Crowd: A true mix of all the LGBT letters with a healthy helping of straights. Hot time: Most weekends, it’s wall-to-wall people by 11. Dress code: A mix of hipster uniforms then and now. Don’t miss: The live performances most nights of the week. SOUTH OF MARKET SF-Eagle 398 12th St.
Crowd: Leather men. Hot time: Weekends on the patio. Dress code: Your Tom of Finland favorite chaps and a motorcycle jacket. Don’t miss: The overall Kenneth Anger retro biker vibe. Powerhouse 1347 Folsom St.
Crowd: Leather, punk, jock, neighborhood guys — a real gay variety.
Hot time: When isn’t it a hot time? Most nights you’ll break a sweat (which some patrons are into).
Dress code: If you have some kind of apparel-related fetish, this is the place to bring it out of the kink closet.
Don’t miss: Tuesday night’s ink-and-metal dollar-off drinks for bar-goers with tattoos and/ or piercings. Lone Star Saloon 1354 Harrison St. Crowd: Mixed ages and sexes. Hot time: Fridays and weekends. Dress code: Go a little Western (either rugged or rhinestone variety) as a nod to the “saloon” spirit. Don’t miss: Chatting with the super-friendly bar staff. The Stud Bar 399 Ninth St.
Crowd: Studs, twinks, goths, queens, trans, lesbians, one of the best melanges in SoMa, now the first worker-owned-collective nightclub in the U.S.!
Hot time: Performance nights, of which there are many!
Dress code: A great bar to let your freak flag fly, whether your look is haute or homemade.
Don’t miss: The decor, the altmusic nights, the people-watching. Asia SF 201 Ninth St. Crowd: The performers may be trans women and drag queens, but the crowd is usually straight bachelorettes and tourists. Nearly family-friendly fun for those new to drag performances.
Hot time: Saturdays during the run-up to wedding season.
Dress code: Given the excess of bachelorettes, a white veil and tiara. Don’t miss: The new season of the Asia SF set reality show “Transcendent” on Fuse. Hole in the Wall Saloon 1369 Folsom St. Crowd: For gay bikers by gay bikers. Hot time: Weekends. Dress code: Your best greasemonkey onesie. Don’t miss: The totally selfieworthy mechanics decor. Oasis 298 11th St.
Crowd: Drag and cabaret fans and alt-indie types tired of the squeaky-pop Castro.
Hot time: Showtime! Oasis is home to many regular performance events hosted by and starring co-owners D’Arcy Drollinger and Heklina.
Dress code: Dress as your favorite “Golden Girls” or “Sex and the City” star, depending on which sitcom is getting the drag treatment that night.
Don’t miss: The decor in the exotic fez room, the roof deck. OMG 43 Sixth St. Crowd: As the name implies, mostly Millennial and younger. Hot time: Friday and Saturday nights. Dress code: Something you don’t mind breaking a dancerelated sweat in. Don’t miss: The light show. The EndUp 401 Harrison St. Crowd: Techno fans and insomniacs who are looking for afterhours fun (the EndUp is open until 4 a.m. most days). Hot time: After other bars have closed at 2 a.m. Dress code: At that hour, who cares? Don’t miss: A chance to recreate the infamous “tighty whities” scene from the gay classic “Tales of the City,” which was set in the bar. OTHER BARS Trax (Haight) 1437 Haight St.
Crowd: Dive regulars and college kids from not-too-far USF.
Hot time: Weeknights attract as good a crowd as weekends.
Dress code: When on Haight Street, what the hippies do. Just kidding; jeans and a hoodie are fine. Don’t miss: Their highly recommended Bloody Marys. The Wild Side West (Bernal Hill) 424 Cortland Ave.
Crowd: Neighborhood locals
and people from out of the area cool enough to know about this hidden gem.
Hot time: Sunset, for the views from the garden.
Dress code: Neighborhood casual or neighborhood fabulous, a mix.
Don’t miss: The whimsical garden with views and sculpture around every corner. CANNABIS LOUNGES Access to these spaces is currently only open to medical cannabis patients with valid ID. Lounge 8 Four 7 847 Howard St.
Crowd: Sports fans (there’s usually a game, any game, blasting on the TV) and SoMa locals after work. Mix of ages, game time can reportedly get very bro-y. Fee/Membership: Membership required. Don’t miss: Ask about the “private reserve” cannabis. Hours: 11 a.m.-8 p.m. MondaySaturday. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday www.greendoorsf.com Barbary Coast 952 Mission St.
Crowd: General Manager Nate Haas says of clients, “You get the counterculture of the ’60s meeting the hipster culture of today.”
Fee/Membership: No fee or membership required if you purchase $40 worth of product.
Don’t miss: The fabulous decor, inspired by great San Francisco institutions past, meets 420 tech with the first-ever full quartz dab bar in San Francisco.
Pride: Drag queens and snakehandling belly dancers are the featured entertainment at the party Friday night with flower specials all weekend: A quarter ounce for $35.
Hours: 8 a.m.-9:45 p.m. www.barbarycoastsf.org Harvest on Geary 4811 Geary Blvd. Crowd: A mix, but mostly laidback professionals.
Fee/Membership: Membership and application process required. Don’t miss: The social-club-like atmosphere, complete with rent-your-own cannabis locker storage.
Hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. www.harvestshop.com Sparc 473 Haight St. and 1256 Mission St. Crowd: A mix of ages in both locations. The ultramodern decor is interior-design-awardwinning.
Fee/Membership: Check contact information on website.
Don’t miss: The monthly events like DJ and jazz nights. Hours: 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Mission, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Haight www.sparcsf.org Urban Pharm 22 10th St.
Crowd: Bros, bro-ettes and burners alike in this steampunkdecorated lounge. Fee/Membership: No fee or membership required. Don’t miss: The metalwork in the bar, Wednesday karaoke nights. Hours: 8 a.m.-10 p.m. www.urbanpharmsf.com The Bloom Room 71 Jesse St. Crowd: Intimate. Fee/Membership: No fee or membership required. Don’t miss: The lab-tested potency listings on products. Pride: During Pride weekend, for every purchase of any purple label eighth, Bloom Room will donate $5 to the San Francisco LGBT Center and will also give a free dab for each donation. There’s also 20 percent off all concentrates as well as selected eighths on special for $25.
Hours: 11 a.m.-8:45 p.m.; Sundays 11 a.m.-6:45 p.m. www.bloomroomsf.com