Brass Tacks

Written By Gideon Rosenthal

Hayes Valley has plenty of places to grab a drink.

This is where I end up.

Brass Tacks changes their cocktail menu all the time because the bartenders get bored. I respect that. One week you’ll find your new favorite drink. The next week it’ll be gone forever.

Bring back the Heat Seeker.

Please?

This is an easy recommendation because it works for just about everything. First date. Happy hour. Meeting friends before dinner. Meeting those same friends after dinner because nobody wanted to go home yet.

Every once in a while a DJ shows up and people start dancing. I have only seen that happen once, so either it’s rare or I dreamed the whole thing.

There’s a little patio out front that catches the afternoon sun. Grab a drink, watch Hayes Valley walk by, and let someone else figure out where dinner is.

Certified Good Bar.

THE VIBE

Neighborhood

  • Hayes Valley

Occasion

  • Happy hour, dates, groups, before dinner, after dinner

Energy

  • Lively without making you yell.

Food

  • No food

TV Situation

  • 2 TVs behind the bar

Best Drink

  • Fist of the White Lotus & whatever seasonal cocktails they have at the moment

GOOD BARS PRO TIP

All tabs give 20% gratuity, you can tell in how attentive the bartenders are. Ask them for recs.

Gideon Rosenthal
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