Bar Basic

San Francisco, United States

4

Open now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 415-227-0449
Website:
www.basicsf.com
Address:
510 Brannan St, San Francisco, CA, 94107
b/t 4th St & 5th St
SoMa
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
750 ftSan Francisco Megabus
760 ft4th St & Townsend St
970 ftTownsend St & 5th St
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Average
Music
DJ
Good For Dancing
No
Alcohol
Full Bar
Happy Hour
Yes
Best Nights
Thu, Fri, Sat
Coat Check
No
Smoking
No
Outdoor Seating
No
Has TV
Yes
Has Pool Table
Yes

Today

Today 4:00 pm – 12:00 am
Open now
Local time (San Francisco) 21:10 Thursday, 22 May 2025

Business hours

Monday 4:00 pm – 12:00 am
Tuesday 4:00 pm – 12:00 am
Wednesday 4:00 pm – 12:00 am
Thursday 4:00 pm – 12:00 am
Friday 4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Saturday 6:00 pm – 2:00 am
Sunday 6:00 pm – 12:00 am

Description

Specialties

Bar Basic is your neighborhood bar. We invite you to come and relax, listen to great music on our interactive jukebox, play a few rounds of Mario Kart on our SNES and enjoy a couple of drinks with your friends.

Enjoy our large and always expanding whiskey selection and classic cocktails! Happy Hour is Monday-​Friday from 4pm to 9pm, Saturdays are 20% off all whiskeys, Tuesday Trivia Nights start at 8 with free food and prizes.

**UPDATE** Starting January 2016, Bar Basic will be open 7 days a week. We will open at 6pm on Sundays.

History

Established in 2010.

Bar Basic has been serving San Francisco since 2010. Our mission is to provide a place to relax with friends in a casual, fun environment. With over five years of success, we look forward to adding you to our long history of happy customers.

Meet the Business Owner

Mike L.

Business Owner

After years in the real estate business, Mike needed a change. He decided to make his dream of opening a bar a reality. He found the perfect location and made his move, opening Bar Basic. Mike enjoys being able to serve the public at Bar Basic, where we strive to fulfill all of your needs and make you and your friends feel as comfortable as possible. Mike hopes to provide you such a positive experience you’ll remember to return to Bar Basic when you’re in need of a fun night out with friends.

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20 reviews of Bar Basic

No registration required
Place rating: 2
San Francisco, CA
There’s a $ 10 minimum on credit card tabs, which makes it a little too pricey for someone who wants to drink in moderation in their neighborhood bar.
Place rating: 3
Hayward, CA
Just came here to grab a beer with a friend to catch up. Did not know it was trivia night on Tuesdays here. Kind of wish they had a space for those to sit that didn’t play trivia because it got kind of loud when they played music trivia. Service is decent here. They do have cocktails, but I just stuck to the beers and got a kolsch. Also, I guess they allow dogs in here because there were a few dogs looking kind of sad and bored during trivia night.
Place rating: 3
San Francisco, CA
It’s a bar. It’s basic. Happy hour wine is passable. Bartender is on her phone any time she’s not serving. That sums it up.
Place rating: 5
Santa Rosa, CA
Chill place in the neighborhood for a drink!
Place rating: 4
Los Angeles, CA
A good spot that I guess is only «basic» in terms of hipster craft beer bars. Nice staff, nice space, not too crowded for a weekend night. I came here after the Billy Joel show at nearby AT&T Park let out. The neighborhood is still pretty sparse at night when there aren’t concerts or Giants games at the park, but places like this are helping it grow.
I didn’t see the SNES at the bar. If only I’d known.
Place rating: 5
Berkeley, CA
This place is the perfect balance of chill and turn up. The turn up is on your own accord as you can download Rockbot and control the music that is played. Make sure you get your friends to download the app as well because priority goes to the song with the most up-​votes.
There’s also a «box of shots» that offers $ 3 shots for a mystery shot. You just have to choose a number between 1 – 12, and the pairings switch every hour so it keeps it fun.
It’s a small spot and not too crowded, hence the chill. The turn up is up to you, so bring the party.
Place rating: 5
Des Moines, IA
Bar basic w the Bae before a Giants game was super chill. The seats are super comfy and this place is just… basic. It’s clean and they serve all sorts of drinks. Even flavored martinis!
The bartender was chill. I thought she was writing poetry in her little notebook which is super coool.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
This place is great! Free Trivia and food every Tuesday! Great bartenders and great owners. Very close to Caltrain and the Ballpark. They have a back patio that you can use to have a quick escape of the bar gets crowded. They have nice seating and tables.
PET FRIENDLY! Bring your dog!
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
This spot is an ideal place to call in on the way home from work. Two blocks from 4th and King CalTrain station and a happy hour that runs until 9 make this place really appealing. I have seen it super busy and also completely empty around these times, which I have noticed depends on local sporting events. The only thing this place is missing is some kind of bar snacky type food, it’d round off the experince.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
When Unilocalers described Bar Basic as a dive bar, I was expecting it to look the part. I was pretty surprised it didn’t! The bar is spacious long-​wise (and the bathroom is in the back). There’s a long sofa along the left side with small tables. Since the sofa is connected, you might have to make friends with your neighbors! (That’s never a bad thing, right?)
Their happy hour deal is $ 1 off draft beers. But go for the $ 3 box shots! Pick a number between 1 – 12 and drink up!
3 beers and 4 shots later, the bill came out to be $ 30 with tip. Not too shabby, especially for San Francisco! Cheers!
Place rating: 4
San Jose, CA
DOGGIE NIGHTS ON TUESDAY NIGHTS! YES!!!
this is a cool place that I’ve walked by on plenty of drunken nights a couple years ago when the Grand was the place to go.
However, my coworker brought me here on a Tuesday after a work event and it was so fun! The doggies were adorable and you play bingo or something? Unfortunately I got there after all the games, but if you love a chill night hanging with friends and doggies, this is the place to go.
When I move to SF, I’ll def bring my pup here.
Place rating: 4
San Mateo, CA
I am a really big fan of anything close to Caltrain. Bar Basic doesn’t disappoint. It has a happy hour from 4−9pm. That is amazing! I got the peach martini for $ 5, steal! Besides having a happy hour the best things about this bar are how clean it is and the selection. In the age of dive bars, I love to find a bar where I’m not afraid to sit down! Regarding the selection, as I was enjoying my happy hour drink u noticed a surprise on their wall of booze. They had Chairman’s Reserve! It is a rum from St. Lucia! St. Lucia typically only ships to the UK so it is really hard to find it in the US… when I say hard, I mean that this is the first bar in a year that I’ve found to have it. So excited!
Place rating: 3
San Francisco, CA
Bar Basic is a little divey, a little hip, and can get pretty crowded. This bar is definitely a go-​to for those that work in the area, and want to blow off some steam. The drinks aren’t strong enough (I asked them to add more alcohol) and the bartenders were warm, but not as friendly as at other bars. I would go back again, but if the drinks were as light as this time, I wouldn’t stay.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
I pass this place everyday when I head back home to the southbay via caltrain.
I’ve only been twice, but both times have been good to me.
I have never made it to happy hour so I can’t comment on it, but here’s what I’ve tried:
— Moscow Mule — $ 7 — It’s decent. It comes in a copper cup. Solid drink.
— Box of Shots — $ 3 — I like this box. I’ve been fairly luck with this. The first time I picked #7 and I got a peach whiskey. The second time I went, I picked #2 and got Apple Pie Liqueur. Both shots were tasty.
It’s never been packed, but there’s always people there.
There are 3 TVs over the bar, and some tables for groups.
Overall, a solid dive bar.
Recommended and I’ll be back.
Hopefully one day I’ll get off work early enough to try their happy hour!
Place rating: 4
San Jose, CA
I stopped by in here after missing my train. The drinks here are super cheap although they do have a minimum on credit card tabs. My beer was only $ 4 when I got here and from what a fellow bar patron told me, they have crazy specials here all the time. During the baseball season during Giants games, they have cheap Jameson whiskey shots which can cause quite a frenzy.
I didn’t get a chance to see the Nintendo in the back or maybe it was put away when I was there. Otherwise, it’s a nice comfortable place to wait for my train home. Unlike Victory Hall, Bar Basic has couch seating so definitely a plus for me.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
This is a really nice bar with great happy hour prices…
It’s good to know this place exists. My workplace is just down the street so that rare time my husband and I can get out without the baby it’s great to know this bar is an option.
We stumbled upon this place on Unilocal,of course. And all I know is for $ 16 we got two beers and two shots. I think that is a great price! They do this fun thing where you pick a random number from 1 – 10 and they give you a shot of whatever alcohol correspondes to the number.
They also have plenty of televisions that play sports, however this is a really loud bar for being such a small place, so keep that in mind.
The only reason this place is getting minus one star is the bartender’s «bitchy resting face». She just didn’t seem to want to be there which I can understand but she just had this look on her face the whole time that started to make me believe she had something stinky on her upper lip.
Place rating: 4
Menlo Park, CA
We were a little early for our reservation next door at Marlowe, so we decided we’d grab a drink here while waiting.
Also figuring the drinks would be cheaper than Marlowe.
The drinks were DEFINITELY cheaper! There was a % off all whiskeys. bourbons, etc. Straight up or in a cocktail.
Yes please, those are my favorite kinds of booze
I had a Manhattan and Monte Carlo. Both were very well made.
I wasn’t a fan of my hubby’s old fashioned. I think their version has soda in it, which I don’t like, (but I am aware some versions of the drink call for it.)
The bartender was pleasant, and the bar was IMMACULATE.
I didn’t visit the bathroom, so no clue if the cleanliness carried over.
It was mellow, and totally chill, (which I’m guessing is not the case during the week.)
Not a destination bar, but a good choice of you’re nearby.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
We love Bar Basic. We love DJ Tommy and him allowing us to choose some songs, we love the random taco events where you get free tacos for buying a drink, and we love the prices.
Most importantly, the venue does not ever get too packed. It’s a super chill spot where you have space to breathe, talk to your friends, and order very value-​priced drinks. Each drink is only like $ 4 – 7, and it’s made well.
DJ Tommy (b/​c of Beatport) makes some pretty good old fashioneds. If you get bored, you can also play on the SNES. Convenient location, really well priced drinks, and overall 1 of my the top spots for me in SF.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Bar basic is pretty much our favorite bar to go to for a number of reasons and we make our way here at least once a week if not more.
1) The location is great.
2) It’s dog friendly.
3) It manages to walk the line between a dive and a classy bar. This part is hard to describe, but the furnishings are nice, the lighting is well done and overall it feels like a well put together interior. All this while still feeling divey enough to feel at home.
4) Trivia night! Every tuesday there is a fun trivia night with free food, fun times and prizes to be won. (Guess who won this week? That’s right, we did.)
5) Whiskey saturdays. Discounted whiskey all saturday, every saturday. Can’t go wrong with that.
6) Best of all… BOX SHOTS! This fantastic option is what got us hooked and keeps us coming back. They have a box of 12 mystery bottles and everyone chooses a number and then you get $ 3 shots of whatever you chose. It’s fun, it’s interactive and it adds a great element of surprise.
Overall, Bar Basic is a great bar that I can’t recommend enough.
Place rating: 3
San Francisco, CA
Chill bar one block away from the Caltrain SF station, good spot to kill some time while waiting for a train. Happy hour deals last till 9pm weekdays which is unheard of. On a Friday after work, the bar never got too busy or loud.
Not sure what to make of the ambiance, the seats were modern, whereas the bar had a lot of busy signage along with a tacky curtain. Almost gave off a dive bar appearance but I’d say the place was a former dive turned around.
The drink menu has a focus on cocktails but I just enjoyed the tap beer selection. New Belgium’s Ranger IPA for $ 4 during HH!