Happy hour is a great excuse to get out of the house and try a new restaurant, or to make a trip out to your favorite neighborhood haunt. Lucky for us, San Francisco happy hours are abundant, and many come with beautiful settings to boot. Whether you’re looking for a deal on margaritas or an affordable after-work destination, these must-try happy hours in SF should be at the top of your list.
1. Waterbar
This stylish restaurant has delicious fresh seafood on a spacious patio next to the Bay Bridge. Enjoy panoramic views of the bay and browse a sustainable seafood menu. They also put on Oysterfest events that have raised over $120,000 in the last 11 years.
🕜 When: 2:30pm-5pm daily
🍸 What: $1.55 oysters, $5 beer, $8 wine, $10 cocktails
📍 Where: Financial District • 399 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
2. El Techo
This breezy rooftop restaurant in the Mission has incredible views, plus a wide variety of Latin American street food. In addition to their fabulous margaritas, consider trying other mouthwatering cocktails including pisco punch, sangria, and more.
🕜 When: 4pm-6pm Monday-Friday
🍸 What: $5 beer, $7 margarita, $18 sangria pitcher, $7 guacamole, $7 empanadas, and more.
📍 Where: Mission District • 2516 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110
3. Bar Crudo
Since 2005, Bar Crudo has served sustainable raw seafood including oysters and shellfish from Prince Edward Island, Washington, and Mexico. Their happy hour specials include a variety of inventive seafood including oysters, chowder, and chile toreados.
🕜 When: 5-6:30pm Monday-Saturday
🍸 What: $5 beer, $9 wine, $2 oysters, $2 mussels, $12 seafood chowder
📍 Where: NoPa/Alamo Square • 655 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA 94117
4. PABU
Chef Ken Tominaga and Chef Michael Mina helm this exciting Japanese izakaya restaurant, featuring select seafood from the famous Toyosu Market in Japan. Enjoy delicious cocktails and hand-rolled sushi on their enormous heated patio.
🕜 When: 4-5:30pm Monday-Saturday
🍸 What: $10.88 highball, $13.88 shot + beer, $9.88 wine/draft sake, $6.88 Pabu fries, $7.88 panko-fried shrimp, $6.88 hand rolls, and more.
📍 Where: Embarcadero • 101 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111
5. La Mar
This upscale Peruvian restaurant has a beautiful patio right on the waterfront where you can enjoy fresh ceviche, grilled skewers, and incredible empanadas. Signature cocktails include a prickly pear margarita and the classic pisco sour.
🕜 When: 3pm-5pm Monday-Friday
🍸 What: $6 beer, $8 wine, $10 cocktails, $5 empanadas, and more
📍 Where: Embarcadero • Pier 1 1/2 The Embarcadero N, San Francisco, CA 94111
6. Palm House
Palm House boasts a “staycation destination” with tropical decor and a lively atmosphere. It’s situated in the original 1854 dairy farmhouse that inspired the name for Cow Hollow, and brings spectacular Caribbean flavors with a Californian twist.
🕜 When: 4-6pm Monday-Friday
🍸 What: $8-10 appetizers, $7 margaritas and wine, $4 beers, $5 off beer pitchers
📍 Where: Cow Hollow • 2032 Union St, San Francisco, CA 94123
7. Delarosa
This dog-friendly, Roman-style pizzeria is an unpretentious hangout for all-day pizza, craft beer, great wines, and specialty cocktails. Their spritz romana cocktail is fantastic, as is the burrata bruschetta.
🕜 When: 2-6pm daily (Downtown) and 2-6pm weekdays (Marina)
🍸 What: $8-9 wine and cocktails, $6 beer, $10 pizzas and appetizers
📍 Where:
- Downtown • 37 Yerba Buena Ln, San Francisco, CA 94103
- Marina • 37 Yerba Buena Ln, San Francisco, CA 94103
8. One Market Restaurant
This farm-to-table NY-style deli doesn’t skimp on Happy Hour, which you can enjoy in the bar, lounge, or patio areas. Wine, beer, and spirits all get a markdown; and cheap bites include chickpea fries, deviled eggs, and loaded latkes.
🕜 When: 11:30am-8pm Monday-Friday
🍸 What: $7 beer, $8 wines, $9 spirits and cocktails, $9-11 appetizers
📍 Where: Embarcadero • 1 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94105
9. Tataki
This epic sushi and sake hotspot has an unbeatable happy hour menu where everything is just $5-6, from the drinks to the food. As the first sustainable sushi bar in the United States, it’s a must for healthy food with a low impact on the environment.
🕜 When: 4:30-6:30pm daily
🍸 What: $5 cocktails, beer, sake, and wine; $6 hand rolls and nigiri
📍 Where: Lower Pac Heights • 2827 California St, San Francisco, CA 94115
10. The Snug
The Snug is a chic Californian restaurant with delicious upscale bar food and a fantastic drinks selection. As one of the best cocktail bars in San Francisco, they offer a generous markdown on the prickly pear, tanghulu, and nitro margarita during happy hour.
🕜 When: 4-5pm Monday-Friday
🍸 What: $9 cocktails, $8 wine, $5 beer
📍 Where: Lower Pac Heights • 2301 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115
11. Wilder
Wilder offers a frankly impressive happy hour that’s tough to summarize here, with different specials offered almost daily. Bring your dog on weekends to take advantage of “Yappy Hour,” which brings you elegant drink towers, oyster shooters, and free puppuccinos. Other specials include $1.50 oysters on Mondays and Fridays, a cheeseboard and bottle of wine for $49 on Wednesdays, and $9 martinis on Thursdays.
🕜 When: Until 6:30pm on weekdays, 3-6pm on weekends
🍸 What: $9-12 appetizers on weekdays, oysters/wine/martini specials on weekdays, half-off wine bottles on weekends, $45 drink towers on weekends, and more!
📍 Where: Cow Hollow • 3154 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94123
12. Last Rites
If you love craft cocktails and a little bit of kitsch, you’ll find that this out-of-the-box tiki bar offers a spectacular happy hour in San Francisco. The interior design follows the story of a plane that crash-landed in a jungle, with impressive touches including a real airplane fuselage and two nine-foot-tall fire-breathing skull idols.
🕜 When: 5-7pm Monday-Wednesday
🍸 What: $10 cocktails
📍 Where: Duboce Triangle • 718 14th St, San Francisco, CA 94114
13. Little Shucker
Little Shucker is an oyster and wine bar from the team behind The Snug, and their fresh selection of local seafood makes for a perfect weekday pick-me-up in the afternoon. Take a seat in the beautiful ocean-inspired bar area, elevated with soft ambient lighting, natural wood tones, and serene light blue tiles.
🕜 When: 3-5pm Monday-Thursday
🍸 What: $2 oysters
📍 Where: Japantown • 2016 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115