Public Works

The is not a review of the club (which was clean and had very nice staff they get 5 stars). This is a review of a specific event that is held there every so often.
I don’ know if this is a tech bro woo girl thing, a swingers thing or what but I went to That Big 80s party because I LOVE me some 80s and I am trying to change up my venues to meet new people, especially a because to quote the Eurythmics, «I Need A Man». But when did it get trendy to remix 80s dance songs with a hip-​hop beat, like why? Can’t people dance without a forced beat telling them to? Also it’s OK or kind even cool to have a skip or two in you are spinning an actual record NOT if you are clicking an MP3… *eye roll*
But for 10 $ I was determined to make the most of it I met some great women who like me grew up on this music and we made the best of it… I did my «Like a Virgin» strip tease which, by the looks on their faces the young crowd seemed kind astounded that there were people like me at such vanilla dance clubs (painted nails, lipstick ect…) and they live in SF. *eye roll* And I out-​danced every young person there at my age I feel bad if you a twenty something and lose steam 3 hours in… More on the crowd later but first… the DJ blew chunks!
Who the fuck plays Bruce Springsteen’s «Glory Days» with a hip-​hop beat behind it. The same for Fleetwood Mac’s «Little Lies». WTELF? And it was very perplexing because at the start of the evening he played some left field cuts, The Nail «88 Lines About 44 Women» for example. So you got the feeling he was the real deal. But he also played some hip-​hopped version of «Close To Me» at the start. And on the event page I had just complained about another 80s event where they did these remixes and the response was they don’t do that at this event. And then they did! And mega-​mixes with half bits of songs. Look, just play the hits, dude. Don’t get cute. «Wild Boys» doesn’t need help from techno.
Then he had to interact with audience like it was a seminar on how to party, «Are you having a good time?», «I know you know the words!» LOL! If you as a DJ can look out at the crowd and tell they are having a good time or that they are singing along then and still feel compelled to parent the audience, then, «Houston we have a problem.» He was like every DJ I ever endured at my HS dances. Stopping the music to let us sing the lyrics as if we weren’t already singing them… No. Bad DJ.
Then he comments about a request for Marilyn Manson by saying it is not 80s and proceeds to play «Bohemian Rhapsody», which is NOT 80s and even if you played it because of the Wayne’s World rejuvenation it got would still NOT BE 80s it would be 90s. And the amount of early 90s hip-​hop was staggering. I don’t usually nit-​pick theme nights like this because if you are a good DJ (like those at CC) you can bend the rules… but when you suck to begin with and then break the rules… just stop.
Now onto the immature and awful crowd. I think the only reason there was any crowd at all was because it was the awful drunk, immature, obnoxious Mission tech-​bro crowd adults who haven’t stopped being teenagers yet. The kind of people that are removing any of the «hip» culture of the area they moved in there for in the first place. I got to watch them dancing ironically to music they had no connection to through the whole evening as they spilled drinks like professionals or maybe amateurs (because professional drinkers can dance and not spill drinks). I saw one girl spill her drink on top of somebody’s head! It looked kind of like one of those hedonistic scenes from, «The Wolf Of Wall Street». The vibe was and energy just felt very weird as if most of the crowd was just entitled «white» people living it up to music they have no connection to while outside the Mission district gets destroyed. I providing my service as cock-​blocker a lot that night for complete strangers. Probably the only crowd I’ve been around that was worse was at Ruby Skye. And maybe it was me, maybe it was Memphis, maybe it was… never mind I got lost in a Pam Tillis moment… ANYWAY Maybe it was me but I am dancing machine and if I leave a dancing event especially an 80s night not feeling elated and high but sad… something went wrong.
So if you want to dance to 80’s fuck this half-​ass sacrilegious frat party shit. And go to CC on a Thursday for 1984 or NWC on the weekends and Gossip. They may be divey and the space may be lived in but it at least has authenticity and the crowd spirit and DJs have a genuine love for the music they play, dance, and sing along to. I will never support somebody who willingly plays remixes of «The Boss» as if…

Overall I find this place pretty good, relative to the other venues (i.e. Propaganda).
*Music is a hit/​miss unless you plan ahead but usually good
*Not as crowded as other venues
*It’s not hot & humid! Upstairs is pretty cool, if you need a break

the best place in the city for electronic music. many times that I go there I find that super talent play there. it’s really amazing place most of the time it’s huge and full capacity like 2000 people fun place and really once a week it’s a must for me.

I regularly attend events in the SoCal area and was looking forward to experiencing my first NorCal event and boy was I disappointed. First off, CASH ONLY?! I have never attended an establishment, that wasn’t an underground, that was cash only. That was my first surprise. Second, the guys checking IDs were extremely rude because of the fact that I did not know it was cash only and I had to use the ATM to retrieve money. The third strike came when I went to retrieve my coat but realized I had lost the coat check ticket at some point from having reached into my pockets to get money to purchase drinks etc. I explained to the staff that I could give them they style of coat, size (not just S, M, L), color, brand, etc. But they refused to assist me. I can understand that they wouldn’t want to give someone a coat without having their ticket to prevent someone from steeling but I would have provided very detailed information. They got an extra strike because for lost and found you have to email them. Which I did and a week later I have yet to receive a response. Definitely put a dent in my trip to SF.
Pros: Good music
Cons: Cash only, rude staff, if you loose your coat ticket forget about ever getting it back.
UPDATE: Been a month and have yet to receive a response. I guess they like keeping people’s stuff because their lost and found is a joke!!!

Fun late night music venue. Saw Bedoin perform here and they were dope. Good sound system (not deaf the morning after) and awesome lights. Cool diverse crowd. Overall a winner.

Public Works brings in the BEST music talent– rare and amazing deep house DJs that you can’t see anywhere else. However, it attracts the WORST Mission/​Marina (yes, now practically synonymous) Woo-​Girls and drunk Bros ever. Spilling their drinks on everyone and falling over each other while they take selfies and check their phones every five seconds.
The crowd gets substantially better after the bar stops serving booze at 2.

It’s been quite some time since I was up in the club. But if I’m going to venture out, it better be worth my while and this chic venue was impressive. Beautiful hardwood floors, clean bathrooms, and an awesome sound system was a great place to catch my bestie DJ Ruben Mancias (he’s one of the best DJs EVER) and his equally talented homie, the amazing David Harness for a night of soulful house music. Shame on those kidlets taking selfies on the benches in the corner. My samba sisters and I came to dance and we stomped it out on that lovely floor. Some of us turn into pumpkins at midnight so we walked the quick two blocks to 16^th and Mission Bart. Street parking is at a premium in this area so plan ahead.

Good sound and atmosphere.
Maybe I’m a little spoiled. but I think it’s a little silly to advertise an event as going until 4am (a Halloween party, no less) and stop serving alcohol at about 12:30.
All the bartenders stayed in their positions but with their arms folded and only offering cups of water, instead of their tiny plastic cups of weak drinks. If they’re going to be there all night, why not keep serving?
Kind of new here. Maybe this is a San Francisco thing?
Also encountered a couple of hyper aggressive bouncers just itching for a chance to take out their anger on some pretty mild patrons. Nothing new, but in this environment, there’s no need for that.

Been here a few times. Cash-​only is a solid excuse to evade taxes. The bartenders aren’t bartenders. Beer is twice as expensive as any other bar. The bouncers are high school dropouts with a power trip; my legal California drivers license was turned down because my hair was different. Wouldn’t come back here if it was free.

$ 30 after-​hours cover. This ain’t Vegas, assholes.

They still don’t accept cards at the bar. Pretty ridiculous. Slows the entire process down and creates long bar queues.

Lol so I went here a few nights ago to see TEED (totally enormous extinct dinosaurs) but I made a series of mistakes in the process.
Mistake 1:
When I bought the ticket I didn’t realize it was his DJ Set, not him actually performing. I was super excited to hear some funky tunes but was sorely disappointed.
Mistake 2:
I didn’t realize, as many other people who came to see TEED and Justin Jay also didn’t realize, is there are 2 DIFFERENT STAGES playing at once. You have one up the stairs as soon as you enter the club and one around the right of the stairs when you enter. Any «headliner» or guest DJ will probably be on the bigger one at the bottom. There weren’t many people upstairs, you have a clear view of the bottom from up there and there’s AC. Downstairs is so hot, it’s basically a shitfest if your came late or are short.
— This place SOUNDS great which is why I give 4 stars
— DRINKS are strong CASH ONLY
— BATHROOMS are okay, seems the guys have a line when the girls don’t
— STREET PARKING is fairly easy after 6
Now this part is dedicated to the PEOPLE: I usually go to shows where a majority of the people attending are there to see an opener and headliner. A large amount of people at PW are there because it’s a club. Expect to be hit on, expect for there to be a lot of drunk people and people f*cked up on pills and so many assholes in general. I was traumatized when I was here because there was a group of deaf 20-something’s next to me and my friend in the front of TEED’s set. They were so f*cked up on pills or something because I noticed one girl looking like she was about to vomit and standing like a zombie in a crowd full of dancing people and she was just swaying looking like she was going to pass out any moment. I put my arm on her back and tried to ask if she was okay and she kept nodding her head and my friend gave her water which she drank up. I told the girl in front of me to be careful cause this chick might vomit and her and my friend kept telling the messed up girls friend to take her out. I even asked if she wanted to go to the bathroom to chill out. Finally her friend took her out and she started crying, it was surreal.
*I only guessed they were deaf because the entire time they were either not saying words to each other or when they did it wasn’t even words, more like noises. One of them kept freaking out and putting his fingers in his ears and they were pretty oblivious to whomever they bumped into while in the crowd but so was half the crowd.
My friend and I left a little after all this crazy sh*t happened, it was a beautiful warm night in SF so we were lucky for that and also the car was parked close by. Don’t know if I would come back here, I’m not a club person but if you are then COOL. The people here SUCK, staff is okay and not friendly but why would you be with a crowd like this?

The music here is amaze-​balls. Public works is one of my go to places for house music. I come to PW multiple times a month because I love the music so much. I’m writing this review because the only thing frustrating about this place is the obnoxious groups of drunk and drugged up people/​tourists allowed in. And last night, a fight broke out, that being enough motivation to finally write a review about this place.
Pros– amazing sound system. Light show is often spectacular. Lots of amazing dj’s come (Blond:ish, Guy Gerber, Maceo Plex, A Tale of Us, Pete Tong, MayaJane Coles, Rob Garza, etc etc)
Cons– stupid drunk and often drugged groups of people. Cash bar
I’ve been going here for a couple years now, and the place has really declined to the point that it’s now hard to spend a night here without getting harassed by drunk men.
Now, I’m the kind of lover of house music that can close my eyes and feel like I’m alone in a club and just dance to, feel, and enjoy the music, no matter how crowded the place. But when hordes of drunk guys descend on the place, and feel the need to gyrate on, feel up, and harass women who are not actively claimed by dancing with a guy, it gets REALLY difficult to enjoy your night. Last night, while at the Claptone show, a drunk guy kept gyrating on me, despite a clear emphatic ‘NO’ right away. I had to actually push him away and scream at him to stop, prompting nearby dancers to back me up. Minutes later, same guy was pushing another guy, and they actually started fighting, a mini brawl ensued right next to me. I and the other innocents nearby had to shield. Although, an actual fight is rare, getting molested and harassed by drunk guys happens to me and my friends multiple times a night when I’m here. It’s usually groups of male tourists (often european) and there have been nights that multiple guys within the same group will hit on me and repeatedly try to dance and gyrate on me. There are also, the lone wolves, without a group, who also prey on women. There are often a couple of those a night that I have to fend off as well. Now, I’m not the type of music lover who wears enticing clothes, or dances like a stripper, or encourages attention in any way. No, I try to blend in bc I do not want any attention whatsoever. It’s the fact that I’m female, and there are often more males here than females, 2 – 3:1.
So management, please encourage your bouncers to actually bounce, and not allow groups of men, and also lone single men, to come in and prey on women!

This is an interesting industrial event space. Last night, I checked out «The Moth» storytelling event and the topic was BACKFIRED. It was a large crowd of about 100 people, some of the storytellers were fun and others were a bit off topic but the crowd seemed to enjoy it.
The food wasn’t much to shout about, it looked like mush that you get in Summer Camp. The drinks were served in small plastic cups with fancy prices. Expect to pay around $ 10 per cocktail, kinda steep for a divey place.
Overall, I had a good time. It attracted an under 40 crowd and everyone had a good sense of humor. I would definitely go again to see an event but it would not be a normal hang for me.

I went here for the ‘Delusions of Grandeur’ event which was magical and Public Works had a lot to do with that. The staff and security were friendly and helpful-​very mellow down-​to-​earth old SF vibe. As others have said, the sound system is wonderful-​it appears that they have EQ’d it for the room so it is never overly loud and sounds really clean.
I really liked the design of the bar. It was really easy to walk up and get water. The bar staff was awesome all night. I’ve worked bar; it is NOT easy!
Tip: Coat check is great and very reasonable-​use it!
It’s also really easy to get a Lyft, Über, Cab just down the street.
I like that Public Works is a multi-​use venue. It is a real asset to nightlife in SF.

I’ve been here a couple of times for the Speechless presentation event and also a charity event. It’s a good event space, two levels, sizeable enough with a familiar-​feeling bar area. And it has that whole SF industrial look down. Drinks were kinda pricey, but the bar staff were friendly.

Came here last night for the first time to see Maceo Plex.
Place is small, two floors and looks like a small warehouse.
SOUND SYSTEM IS AMAZING.
There is nothing really wrong that I could point out other than that it gets SUPER HOT in here, more than other clubs I’ve been too. It feels like a damn sauna lol — I suggest not wearing a long sleeve shirt or jacket.
Literally the moment I walked in, the humidity just slaps me in the face LOL
Oh yeah, small bathrooms, about 3 – 4 stalls? It seems like there is no one to upkeep them. They were horrendous! Wish there were more bathrooms, because the girls line was way too long.
Love that it’s really dark in here too. It gives it a more intimate feeling. Nothing like I’ve ever experienced at other clubs in SF.
Staff and bouncers were friendly.
TIP: Make sure you buy your tickets in advanced because these shows tend to sell out fast and the line to buy tickets at the door is pretty slow and long.
–CASH ONLY bars.
Find street parking around the venue.
Oh yeah I definitely love the crowd here more. Super chill, good vibes everywhere. No attitudes. Love it. More mature crowd.
Would definitely come back. Probably gonna be one of my new favorite spots!
If you want to have fun, dance, surround yourself with chill people and good vibes, go here.

Always a good time, cash only bar, and decent bathroom size for the venue, plus a nice outdoor area when applicable.
I’ve been here for a few events; Nicholas Cage Art Show, Tribute to Robin Williams, Bloody Mary Festival, and a few others. Each event has been pretty entertaining, I seem to always enjoy myself at this venue and the staff is pretty involved with the events. The bartender isn’t a happy camper but everyone else is pretty joyous.
I would not hesitate to attend events here in the future, but make sure you buy in advance! This place sells out and the line to buy at the door is usually pretty long.
Ps. don’t forget to bring cash for the bar, or anything else you would like to purchase.

My friend and I came to public works for a house music event called zero fucks. The had a downstairs and an upstairs room. We went to the free event which was upstairs. The décor was cool because during the day it is an art gallery, they also had really awesome visual light shows displayed in the wall to get in the house music vibe. Overall, the upstairs was pretty small.
The bar was very tiny, but there wasn’t a huge crowd, so getting a drink was easy. The drinks were typical priced for a club or lounge of 8 $ for well drinks and 5 $ for a beer. The well drinks were in tiny cups, but they were very strong.
The local artists and music was great! I am not a house music person, but I really enjoyed their music!
I will go back again, because it was free, the vibe was fairly casual, the people and atmosphere was great :) 3.5 stars

I’m going to make a bold statement and say this is my favorite dance venue in SF. Good music, good visuals, good vibes. I love the atmosphere (simple, and very dark). I haven’t had a bad experience yet. If you wanna dance the night (and early morning) away, this is your place.
The only only only negative is that it’s cash only (hence the ⁴⁄₅). It can also get excruciatingly hot. But I guess if you’re hot, you’re probably having a good time :).