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Mrs. Pinot Noir, New York/Napa Valley Age and Occupation: 24, Health Educator Fiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Market Researcher Engagement Date: November 10, 2007 Wedding Date: October, 2008 Blogging Since: June 25, 2008 Venue: Auberge du Soleil About Me: I am a Minnesota raised, NYC transplant planning a destination wedding in Napa. I'm balancing my love for the environment and my hubby-to-be's love for tradition to create our "green wedding in disguise." Our wedding will include local food and wine, antique touches and lots of love and laughter. When wedding planning isn't taking up my free time (and money) I love to read, cook, workout, watch baseball and travel! Follow along in my adventure as I attempt to plan an eco-friendly and socially responsible wedding (with eco-oblivious Mr. Pinot Noir).
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Searching for the Perfect Bar

August 27th, 2008 @ 6:09 pm by Mrs. Pinot Noir

Searching for the Perfect Bar :  wedding napa valley San Fra{source}

Mr. PN and I are in search of the perfect bar in San Francisco for our after party. All of our guests are staying in San Francisco and busing out to Napa for the wedding, and we will all be returning to San Francisco for the evening. Mr. PN and I plan to steal a little time after the wedding for fun photos and then we will meet up with our family and friends on Saturday night at a local bar. This will be a very unofficial meet up as a way for us to spend some extra time with our family and friends that will be traveling so far to be with us on our wedding day.

Since Mr. PN and I live about 3,000 miles from San Francisco, we could really use the hive’s help in choosing a bar for our after party.

Here is our wish list:
- It’s relatively close to our hotel in the Nob Hill / Russian Hill neighborhood
- It serves food for late night snacking (a limited bar is okay)
- It’s relatively inexpensive
- It is big enough for larger groups (we are thinking that there will be about 25 people total)
- There will be entertainment (like a pool table, juke box, darts, etc.)
- It’s classy enough that we won’t be afraid to use the bathrooms, but not too pretentious

This is our ultimate wish list but we are willing to compromise given the right location.

So current and former Bay Area brides, where do you recommend?

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26 Responses to “Searching for the Perfect Bar”

1 2 

1.
mrstye
Member
mrstye (message)  78 posts, Worker bee

You may also want to make sure you don’t have any under-21s in the crowd, or that the bar you choose allows such.

 
2.
KateMW
Hostess
KateMW (message)  2,704 posts, Sugar bee

I could help except the inexpensive part…every place we went in SF was crazy expensive for drinks. Try chowhound.com SF board. They’ll have ideas.

 
3.
Guest Icon
Guest
Holly

Amelie
Neighborhood: Nob Hill
1754 Polk St
(between Clay St & Washington St)
San Francisco, CA 94109

 
4.
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Member
KSW (message)  74 posts, Worker bee

I second Amelie- great wine and food, typical SF prices. Or I have been to a couple birthday parties at Solstice- with a bar/food minimum they will reserve the small room for you. And their small plates are just great! I have a few others that I might recommend- but on a Sat night the crowd may not be what you are going for.

 
5.
Sparkles
Member
Sparkles (message)  706 posts, Busy bee

What do you consider inexpensive?
I haven’t been to these two places but I have been meaning to go to try them… I am sure you have heard of them and they are probably on the higher end….Top of the Mark (gratuity is steep for parties of 6 or more from what some have told me)? Or the Carnelian Room? -If it isn’t what you had in mind- sorry! But if anyone has, what did you think?

 
6.
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Member
MissyJenn (message)  99 posts, Worker bee

Ohhhh how about the Bubble Lounge? I can’t remember the address. I want to say North Beach but I can’t remember…

 
7.
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Guest
Nicole

If you want sophistication, do the Red Room at the Clift Hotel. (NOTE: You may need to reserve a few tables in advance.)
Another recommendation, The St. Regis Hotel Bar. Very modern and sophisticated. I can’t see it getting too crowded, either.

 
8.
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Guest
Lychee

I would not recommend Bubble lounge for this type of event because, on a weekend, it will be super super super crowded inside, almost elbow to elbow. The dance floor is like underground, so it gets super stuffy with no air circulation because there are no doors to crack open or any air conditioning going on, and again, its the weekend it will be super crowded on the dance floor. The dance floor is not very big or wide, its just long stretched.

the plus side to Bubble Lounge i guess is no entry charge, variety music on the dance floor, there are sofa seating available, and a serving bar on the dance floor area.

 
9.
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Guest
Nicole

Scratch my comment on Red Room Bar at Clift Hotel - it does not have a pool table or is a bar-like scene. Plus, it’s pricey

 
10.
KateMW
Hostess
KateMW (message)  2,704 posts, Sugar bee

The Red Room (For some reason I thought it was Redwood Room) is super expensive. It’s crazy expensive for the quality as well. Very “cool” though.

 
11.
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Member
Breakingupwithbread (message)  1 posts, Wannabee

So many options!

The Tonga room at the Fairmont hotel (Nob Hill)Fancy and fun-barlike and perfect for a celebration!

Cigar Bar (North Beach/Nob Hill)-very open place, cool interior, good prices on drinks. Outdoor terrace.

Tosca (North Beach)-this one has a very old school vibe-red leather couches and all of the bartenders wear white tuxedos

Rogue Brewery (North Beach)- very low key, outdoor patio, indoor bar, lots of room.

North Beach is chock full of bars and it’s just down the hill from the nob. Makes sense, in case the one you select is too packed! Good luck and enjoy SF!

 
12.
Guest Icon
Guest
washK

I know the perfect place. Go to Le Colonial in Nob Hill they serve California/Vietnamese food and its close to Union Square. It’s a 3-4 star restaurant but they have an awesome bar upstairs after dinner. It’s big enough to have a dancefloor, dj, tables and food service but it wont be too busy that you’ll need to scream to talk to someone.

For those who want to party more, walk down the street and visit a couple of hipster places, Bourban & Branch, RYE, SWIG, Red Room at the Clift etc…

 
13.
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Guest
katie

Amelie is very cool, but is a wine bar and doesn’t have entertainment (besides the wine).

Yelp might be a good place to look:
http://www.yelp.com/search?find_loc=Nob+Hill%2C+San+Francisco%2C+CA&cflt=nightlife

 
14.
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Member
bugaboo (message)  122 posts, Blushing bee

I agree with washK, RYE and SWIG, are both great. Bourban a& Branch is a speakeasy and you need reservations. It is also expensive. You might want to try the Sugar Cafe ( also in Nob Hill/Union Square area) which serves food, but I am not sure how late. They have a great back room that is a lounge and can accommodate large groups. Someone else mentioned the Cigar Bar. This place is perfect for large groups. They will let you bring in food, but they don’t serve any.
I don’t think Le Colonial serves food as late as you would need them to, and it is quite crowded on weekends. More of a club scene late night. I like Amelie, but it might be too small. One place I haven’t heard mentioned yet is in North Beach off Broadway called Rosewood that has a back room/patio perfect for private parties. I am sure they would let you bring in snacks if you wanted.

Hope this helps!

 
15.
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Guest
leahsteph

I second the Tonga room at the Fairmont Hotel. They have live bands that play fairly popular songs, plenty of tables AND very festive cocktail drinks!

 
16.
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Guest
Jessica

Boy do I have a lot of ideas for you! I lived in SF for 8.5 years and have been to almost every bar. I now live just over the bridge, but I still work in the city. Anyway- Try the Tonga Room in the Fairmont Hotel. Very fun, awesome food, can accommodate your group. etc. etc. Next I like Vertigo or Lush Lounge on Polk st. Bit more of a seedy neighborhood, but really fun bar and amazing cocktails. Also check out the big foot lounge or the buccaneer on polk street. Lots of good eats on Polk and less touristy. E-mail me for more if you want!

 
17.
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Guest
katie

I’ll second Jessica’s Vertigo, Lush, and Big Foot. All are fun and Vertigo has dancing and stuff too.

 
18.
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Guest
Lisa

bubble lounge is really loud on weekend nights - it sounds like a college bar but it’s filled with twentysomething working people. it’s a decent place to hang out, but

le colonial has fun music to dance to (pretty much anything that’s popular will be played), but it can be VERY crowded, VERY loud, and hot (but fun, very fun!). it’s not intimate at all when there’s that many people there, but the bathrooms are kept clean and the drinks are decently strong and not any more expensive than other upscale places in san francisco.

i’m not sure how much time you’ve spent in san francisco, but le colonial (and depending on where you are in nob hill) is very close to the tenderloin and there can be shady characters roaming around at night (actually, even in the daytime). just be mindful of your surroundings when venturing south of geary and south of market street when west of union square, and you’ll have a good time. :D

 
19.
Guest Icon
Guest
mlmck

Which hotel are you staying at? If you are thinking Nob Hill or Russian Hill, I second (or third?) the suggestions of bars on Polk Street. Vertigo, R Bar, Bigfoot, Bucaneer, etc. Tonic might be good too, and Cafe Rex is across the street and has a full bar and serves food until late. I just went to Amelie the other night, and it gets really crowded on Friday and Saturday nights now, so it might be tricky depending on how large your group is. It’s a pretty tiny place.
I live just up the street from most of these bars. If you need more suggestions feel free to email me!

 
20.
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Guest
mamamiya

SF and inexpensive in Nob Hill are kind of hard to find. There’s a kewl bar called Bourbon and Branches, you need a password to get in. The drinks are expensive though. Have you tried searching on Yelp! You should be able to find what you’re looking for. Hope the search goes well!

 
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Mrs. Pinot Noir
Mrs. Pinot Noir

Mrs. Pinot Noir, New York/Napa Valley Age and Occupation: 24, Health Educator Fiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Market Researcher Engagement Date: November 10, 2007 Wedding Date: October, 2008 Blogging Since: June 25, 2008 Venue: Auberge du Soleil About Me: I am a Minnesota raised, NYC transplant planning a destination wedding in Napa. I'm balancing my love for the environment and my hubby-to-be's love for tradition to create our "green wedding in disguise." Our wedding will include local food and wine, antique touches and lots of love and laughter. When wedding planning isn't taking up my free time (and money) I love to read, cook, workout, watch baseball and travel! Follow along in my adventure as I attempt to plan an eco-friendly and socially responsible wedding (with eco-oblivious Mr. Pinot Noir).

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