by Muey S. on Bouncers are surely mean and very rude here and for no apparent reason. Must they act like a-holes? I don't get it. Don't they know that with better customer service, they'll bring bigger crowds? (roll eyes) Yes, stuck up crowd of people here. The set up is OK if you don't care to change the type of music much by walking into different rooms. In this place, it's only ONE room so hopefully, if you end up going here, it's the type of music you like. I've only been here once and that was way more than enough. Very pricey cover for bad service. Oh yes, parking is a PITA (pain in the ...)
by Anna K. on I've had some random nights in this fair city of ours. Seen some things, been some places, met some people, done some things. I think the other night's events rank pretty high up in my book of "that happened, right?" Let me back up. A few weeks ago I came across the listing of performances for this year's SF Sketchfest. A bunch of solid stand-up acts, some comedy troupes, and... Emo! The Musical. The description promised that it was "the most crowd-pleasing event in the history of crowd-pleasing." Well, I was sold. I convinced two pals to come with, and to kick things up a notch, suggested we all try to dress emo- this required our skinniest skinny jeans, copious amounts of black, and heavy eyeliner. Just as the proverbial tiger can't really change his stripes, Marina Floozies cannot easily pull off Mission Hipsters- Liz wore an LBD, and Erin and I sort of looked like pirates. Ah well. The performance was rousing, and had us rolling in the aisles (half from laughter, half from the wine). We weren't about to call it a night, so we flounced over to Bubble Lounge for further social lubricant. Immediately we were accosted by three middle aged gentlemen, who were sure I was named Virginia, and it was my birthday. I couldn't seem to convince them otherwise, but I was successful in procuring several bellinis for myself and my companions at our new benefactors' expense. After our third round was downed, I decided I was done playing nice with our questionable company. I pointed at one of their left hands and inquired, "So what's the wife's name?" (he had clearly forgotten to remove his ring- rookie mistake). He looked somewhat taken aback, but replied, "Dawn". To which I responded, "Oh sure, she was in the Babysitter's Club, right? Well thanks for the drinks, we've got to get to bed. It is a school night, you know." And off we went. I promise most of the Bubble Lounge's patrons are classier than I.
by Anna Poleyestewa on This is a pretty congenial place, but I'm still not sure why it was awarded "Best Bar" by a couple different publications. There's a definitely after-work professional crowd, along with locals and some folks who seem to travel from other parts of the city. I love the apple-walnut salad with ORGANIC chicken, but the nicoise salad was not impressive. Grace Tavern is more of a bar with food, rather than a food place. It's dark wood-paneled, which lends a colonial feel, with a long bar as you walk in. The staff are very personable, if not always able to spend lots of time with each table. It's definitely a gauntlet, though, as one walks in, with easily 90% of the crowd young men. It gets loud, crowded, and kind of scene-y on weekend evenings. Seated at the tables in the back are couples of all ages, though, and friends out for a quick bite. Interesting beer variety, reasonably priced. I go for the convenience, if not the food, necessarily.
