Two Sisters Bar and Books

I really love this place, looks and feels like something straight out of a book, small, cozy and great cocktails.

Good cocktails nice atmosphere
croded on weekends so come here on weekdays if you want to avoid clubbers and alcoholics that cant hang

I walked past the signage at 2PM and stayed in the area another couple of hours just to be able to come in. Definitely my kind of bar! Window seat with pillows is a nice seating option by the door, plenty of books at the built-​in bookshelves to browse if you are drinking solo. Food menu is small but they do offer HH. Limited liquor options, only had one vodka but it was nice and smooth. Prices were reasonable, place is small. Really dig this spot, would come back. wish they opened earlier than 4PM.

What to do when you have an hour to spare before dinner?
Hmm…how about some cocktails in Hayes Valley where it is cozy and warm? It sure beats walking around in the cold.
Sit. Relax. Unwind.
Order yourself some of that Smoke and Flowers if you’re a Mezcal lover. If you’re into infused drinks, I suggest trying the Marie Antoinette.
This place is great to bring your date, close girlfriends, or your buddy. Might consider getting here early to snatch a table because it’s in close quarter.
Overall, I recommend this place if you’re in the area. Cheers!

Came here one night to celebrate with my sister the end of an era (she recently changed jobs). It seemed appro, since we’re two sisters going to two sisters. Note: There’s not really books here. Just the booze. Well… books in the bathroom, but I’m not touching those. For obvious reasons.
The space itself is super small, and… well, intimate. Seriously. People waiting for their orders at the bar were darn near sitting on us at our table along the wall. Awkward. Super awkward.
I had an old fashioned, which was made really well. We also split some food, since we weren’t super hungry. It’s a good place for a LIGHT dinner. Like, super light.
Pork Stew: It was really tasty for me, but a little too spicy for my sister. That harissa doesn’t play! Maybe it needed to be served with more bread, but overall pretty good.
Potato Chips: Can’t get away from these, as my sister’s a potato lover. Its slightly thicker, so you really get more potato flavor. Comes with a nice dipping sauce too.
The clients were weird. Like a mix of self-​aware people, and self-​absorbed people. When we got there, two guys were really nice in noticing that we were looking for a seat and waved us down before they left so we could sit. It was nice, so naturally I want to pay that forward. When we were leaving, one young woman was scoping for a seat. Then a couple walks in (looking like date night), and also scoping for a seat. Except they stood RIGHT next to our table, Chinatown-​hovering style. But. We couldn’t get to the bar to get our check with them hovering in the way. Plus. The other girl came first. So… naturally, I ignore the couple, walk over to the girl (now waiting at the far end of the bar) and insist she takes our table after I get the check. Rude? Maybe. But so was the couple who was in the way (the guy put his backpack down on the ground in the MIDDLE OF THE ROOM! WTH!?!). So yes, pay it forward, but be aware of folks who might want a table in the tiny, tiny space.

This is my favorite type of day bar. Yes, you read right. DAYTIME DRINKING. Hello.
Stopped by this narrow and dimly-​lit bar in Hayes during a shopping adventure with the sis. This bar has specialty cocktails, wines, and beers… but they’re really known as a cocktail bar… so get that! They also serve some foods/​small bites if you’re hungry. I was very impressed by the ONLY one bartender working the happy hour crowd. Shoutout to homie for holding the fort DOWN. They had a great HH deal going on that day with Old-fashioned’s for $ 5 and same with some other small bites. I got the Smoke and Flowers tequila drink, and it was made beautifully and looked so pretty. However, the taste just didn’t do it for me. It had a strange Chinese-​medicinal-​aftertaste to me, but that’s just my personal opinion.
This place is great if you have a buddy/​date you want to talk intimately with. There’s a real lack of tables and open space, but that’s the beauty of it. This isn’t a place to get crazy or be trashy. Save this bar for a classy night or a good long talk.
I will be back, but only with the right company. There was classical ambient music playing it the background if I remember correctly… but it’s pretty tame/​quiet in this bar. The place gives off a little gritty vibe, but that doesn’t discourage me from getting a classy cocktail there.

The cocktails are great – really unique spins on old classics as well as some fascinating inventions of their very own. I love whiskey drinks, and theirs don’t disappoint. The food menu’s a little limited, so I wouldn’t recommend coming here for dinner. It’s more of a place to order food solely as a means of soaking up your booze, because trust me – one ain’t enough here. For that matter, two ain’t enough either, but you may also have better self-​control than I.
The prices are steep, but that’s way too standard for SF for it to make any real difference. It’s sort of like saying Antarctica is a bit nippy and North Korea is a bit sub-​standard on the human rights front. It’s part of the package deal people, get over it.
It is also EXTREMELY TINY. It pretty much consists of a hallway. There are 5 or so teeny, round tables squished up against one side, a bar on the other, and a baby kitchen in the back. It’s therefore a great spot for a date, or for cozying up to a friend or two, but don’t bring a whole gang.
There was just one thing I felt disappointed about. Where the hell were the books? I noticed a miniscule book shelf hidden under people’s legs and blocked by stools, but that, surely, could not be the one nod this place has to literacy. Short of staring avidly at people’s groin areas or groping my way past legs and privates, I could get neither a peek nor a touch of a book. Come on, Two Sisters! You give a place a name like «Bar and Books» and all the bibliophiles within a 10-​mile radius will put your spot on the map – but you gotta deliver! Your walls have plenty of space for some little, stand-​alone shelves. Heck, you could even artfully put some books up among your bottles. But the point is, I felt sufficiently boozed and not enough booked at your joint, and this saddened me because books are my raison d’etre and I can get booze a lot of different places. Until my local library installs a bar, though, I am desperately on the look-​out for places with names like yours. BOOKS, PLEASE, you otherwise lovely and successful sisters!

Cute lil wine bar… Perfect place to catch up with s friend or come here to relax and read a book! Their deviled egg here is Bomb!!! They put truffle oil and capers on. I’d definitely come back. The location is also snack in Hayes valley!

Love this little bar. Great cocktails. Limited selection of beer/​wine.
Back 40 is a great refreshing whiskey cocktail. All day long.
Girlfriend loves the Bees Knees.
The Lions Den used to be amazing but no longer on the menu.

I cannot recommend this establishment enthusiastically enough. My wife and I live just behind it, so it’s become our neighborhood bar. The food and drinks are always incredible, whether tried and true staples or unique and inspired selections from their seasonal menus. It’s more affordable than most places in Hayes Valley, and every bit as tasty. The décor is cozy and warm, and the staff is exactly the same. Owner Mika could not possibly be more welcoming or bright, bar manager Kat is brilliant, sarcastic, and brimming with talent, Michael is delightfully sassy and Russell is the kind of guy you would hang out with all the time. This is the first place I bring new friends, and I even served Two Sisters cocktails at my wedding.
Get here early for happy hour and get yourself a highly coveted seat.

This place knows how to make a proper cocktail! My current favorite is the harvest manhattan. Perfectly balanced… the spirit of autumn in a boozy smooth cocktail.
Bar bites are pretty good, too. I recommend the broccoli and shells (creamy pasta shells with bits of broccoli).
Great little gem in Hayes Valley. Definitely one of my favorites.

Such a cozy and charming cocktail bar that feels like your traveling back in time. Great place to have a conversation and catch up with friends over a drink. We came for happy hour around 5p, easily got a table, and ordered cocktails for $ 5 /​each. Super reasonable.
I’d definitely come back!

This Victorian flat turned lounge is charming and intimate in its vintage-​styled design and décor. I like the old fashioned French themed wall paper, velvet drapery and hide-​away ambiance.
Two Sisters is good for a cocktail or glass of wine before you and your date (or your on-​the-​town group of friends) head to another location for lunch or dinner. The cocktails are unique (flavors of smoked tequila and black pepper simple syrup, for example). The snacks (small plates) are good on the *very* average. I enjoyed the truffled deviled eggs topped with crispy fried capers, the best. The charcuterie wasn’t all that memorable except for the accompanying balsamic and red onion reduction which was really delicious and the portion itself of the charcuterie board was not stingy. Otherwise the meat, cheese and baguette could use a bit more creativity in selection. The house-​made pickles were of a different flavor than I’ve ever tried, and okay if you like very mild tasting, not too sour or sweet pickles. The pickled carrots had an odd, slightly moldy taste. Can pickles get moldy?! I ate three of them just to be sure I wasn’t imagining. My $ 12 rose Pinot from Sonoma was nothing to write home about.
The bar tender was friendly, professional and helpful. I appreciated the genuine service, so that’s definitely a reason to go for a $ 5 glass of happy hour wine next time I’m in San Fran.

I really love this place. Went here to meet someone and the drinks are classic and refreshing and the service is also great as well. It’s a pretty small place but we got a seat at the bar.
It also isn’t too loud of a bar which is nice for conversation.
I highly recommend this bar. Pretty cool vibe and atmosphere

Nestled in to a little spot on Hayes Street, Two Sisters is as appealing inside as it is outside! A long, skinny hallway-​esque room (lined with tables and chairs) leads to a antique bar with a variety of creative cocktails! The bartenders are pretty great eye candy if you like the laid-​back fashionable type and the drinks are even better! I ordered the chamomile old fashioned (chamomile-​infused old forester bourbon, honey, bitters) — a «neat» (see what I did there?) take on a cocktail classic. A must try spot in Hayes Valley!

This is a great bar and I love the book theme. It’s small, but very cozy. There are tables on the righthand side and bar seats on the left. There’s food here but we didn’t have any. Looked delicious though. The drinks are yummy here and are on the sour side. Great selection of whiskeys.

Two Sisters
SF Hayes Valley
5pm Tuesday 14^th April 2015
Four Stars
First Drink of My SF excursion. This was a relative small place but we were still able to find a table to drink out happy hour drinks. Order your drinks at the bar. I had the $ 5 HH Calvados Cocktail. The drink had apple brandy, lemon, sugar shaken and served up in a coupe with lemon peel. It was a bit sweet but overall well balanced. The volume was relatively low so conversation was pretty easy.

Perfect little atmospheric cocktail bar in Hayes Valley with friendly personality and a girly but gritty Victorian feel.
The bar is of the long Victorian flat variety, right on Hayes, and has a handful of tiny café tables along the wall leading back to a long wood bar full of charm and bearded bartenders with craft cocktails served up in vintage 30s champagne glasses.
My favorite order on the giant hand drawn blackboard was called Smoke and Flowers, an unusual combination of favorite ingredients of mine re-​imagined in an unexpected way: hibiscius, smoky infused tequilla. Delicious.
This is a fun, convivial stop in Hayes Valley, and the vintage flavor makes it exceptionally charming.

Small vintage-​ish bar in Hayes
Ran into this little store while walking around the parks nearby. From the outside, this place looks like small library, with books on the entrance, small wooden tables and chairs etc. Once you go in, you’ll see this place is actually pretty quaint inside, with a bright bar and bookshelves etc. The place is kind of small so I’d imagine they’d have limited seats at night when there would be more people out drinking
In terms of the drink, I got an chamomile old fashioned, which didn’t taste that great to me. It was quite strong – the strong dose of alcohol and orange masked the taste of everything else, so it basically tasted like drinking pure alcohol with an orange in it, as opposed to, well, an old fashioned.
Overall, a pretty nice vibe and décor inside. Pretty cool place to hang out once in a while.

An hour before show time. Tired of nearly almost all of the Hayes Valley restaurants, as I’ve eaten my way through it, very much like the Mission or the Financial District or the SoMa. Tried very hard to think what else and it dawned on me that I’ve read somewhere that this place could be good. Once I came here with colleagues and we couldn’t get in because it was too busy.
Secured two counter seats. Score! One of us went to order: charcuterie for me, naturally, and pickle jar, also very me. My companion got a pulled pork dish and a cocktail. I stick to my water.
We caught up on things as I just landed. We talked about the rising food scene else where and our beloved New York has not changed at all. Though to our surprise, Daniel lost it’s 3 star Michelin rating.
The wall paper is very chinoiserie. I loved the design. Old 1920s music was playing. Very moody and intimate. It’s laid back and unpretentious. It’s a bit of a book reader’s dream. A drink, a small table, something light to eat, and then just read.
I had been on the go for a long time. Returning back to the new season of City Arts and Lectures down the street just seemed perfect when we got to eat here first.
Adding now to my-«Oh I’m in Hayes and I should go to Chez Maman /​Rich Table /​Plaj /​Suppenkuche /​Monsieur Benjamin this time», is Two Sisters. Way better than Grove down the street near the Nourse. So worth the walk on heels.