Zeitgeist

This place is very hispter for sure! My friend and I were visiting from LA and she insisted we come here Sunday morning for bloody Mary’s after a long night of partying Saturday night. I had never been and was pleasantly surprised by the open space. It doesn’t look that inviting or big from the outside but once you walk in, it’s a completely different story. There are several beers to choose from which was overwhelming to me at 10 am in the morning so I asked the bartender to pick something I might like. The service and staff are inviting. There is also a spacious open area in the back with benches. Just beware of the birds. My bag got pooped on.

Mistake 1. Going to this bar after the pride festival
Mistake 2. Blowing a single bubble in front of the rudest bouncer I’ve ever met.
Thought we’d visit this establishment because of the cool name. (zeitgeist roughly translated to English would mean time spirit). Either way upon arriving the bouncer asked for my identification. While going to retrieve it from my backpack, I placed my bubbles on the table. The bouncer stared at them in confusion because they look like an ice cream cone. So to help him realize what they were, I blew a single bubble. He immediately and abruptly told me not to blow bubbles in the establishment (because he would have to clean them) and also said there has been a fight over such an incident… I became enraged and left to meet with my friend who was on her phone outside. When she got off the phone she said she still wanted to go in so I said sure and proceeded to get my identification out. The bouncer then refused to allow me in … I’ve never been treated so badly by anyone over blowing a bubble! It’s very sad that he’s such an unhappy person that he feels the need to rain on my parade! Idk if the mans a homophobe, but I’ll never be back to this establishment EVER AGAIN!
Tip: hire a bouncer that is sociable and happy. Maybe one that knows a little about customer service :)

Cool dive bar with the expected and required sketchy characters. I really liked the patio area and the nice bathrooms. Imagine Ikea covered with band stickers and marker graffiti writing! Excellent music also. Great place to grab a few beers.

Probably my favorite bar in the city. Cheap, good beer. Decent, cheap food. Amazing outdoor space with picnic tables. Usually playing good music. It can be loud and crowded, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Cheap beers, great outdoor space, slow and overpriced food and asshole bartenders. Don’t give me shit for ordering a Tecate. You sell it, I want it — give it to me without snide remarks. Plus for good pinball.
Honestly if I lived in SF I might end up drunk here pretty often but it would never be my first stop.

Great public attendance, typical dive bar vibe/​design/​prices/​cleanliness, and good location. Rock/​metal genre of music playing, slightly understaffed and dive bar clean. Decent bar crawl stop in. May be returning.

I am already looking forward to first summer time beer in the sunshine (ish) its a great beer garden and thats the selling point… just arrive in the afternoona nd have some beer… watch the world drift by

Zeitgeist is great, but loud on weekend evenings, so if you’re looking for a more chill experience, avoid during those times. Still, despite being packed and super loud, bar staff are fast and friendly. Just a little hard to find a place to sit if you have more than a party of three. Bathrooms inside AND out back make the fact that you just drank a pitcher of beer less of a problem than it would be at some other spots.

Great place to enjoy beer and company. Just make sure you’re a cool person or you ruin it for everyone else!

Have been here on a few different occasions. My favorite time was on a Sunday during the day. Great weather, outdoor space, cool people, food, and lots of beer choices. What more can you want out of a place like this?!
The beer selection was fantastic. All local/​California beers which is what you would like if you’re a local. Gives off a hipster vibe when you first approach the place and walk in but it’s far from that. Pool table in the back room and the patio is ginormous. Some arcade games as well.
Haven’t tried the food besides the tater tots. Cuz if you come across tater tots you have to order some. I did hear from people that the food was good. Bathrooms were kept clean. And the place is rather clean all around.
Definitely would be going again. They can use some more genres at the juke box. Other than that, cool place to just chill.

I have to start out by saying that I love Zeitgeist, and I have for the 15 plus years that I have lived in SF — from the days when they use to host punk rock bands like the Barfeeders, etc.,
And honestly, I still love this place … which is why it pains me greatly that they are one of the only establishments EVER, in San Francisco and/​or other states as well, that has ever given me a hard time about letting my service dog enter their establishment. I have a legitimate service dog trained for the first 2 years of her life at Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) in Santa Rosa, Ca.
The door man said that they had been having trouble with «service dogs.» First of all, I just don’t believe that. If the dog was an actual service dog, then there is no way that dog had given them trouble in any way. What they are having trouble with is the multitude of people who go out and buy a vest for their dog and claim to have a service dog when they actually do not. This phenomenon of people pretending that their dogs are service dogs is really making it more difficult for people like myself who actually DO have a service dog, who is trianed and legally allowed to enter establishments.
So, boo to Zeitgeist for not being sensitive to the rights of the disabled and boo to the many individuals who are also not being sensitive to the needs of the disabled and selfishly lie about having a service dog — both of you together are making my life way more difficult. I’m pleading with individuals who do not have service dogs to stop pretending that you do, and for establishments to be more sensitive to the disabled community … we’re in SF for goodness sakes …

They have a nice outdoor area, where it’s easier to talk to people because the music is not that loud.
The reason for the 2-​stars is because the staff is rude and honestly killing the vibes in the place. Not one person smiled or welcomed us to the place. The girl checking the IDs cursed at us for no reason. Not sure what’s going on in her life, but she definitely took it out on everyone that walked through those doors.

What more is there to add after 2446 reviews? Simply put, this is a quintessentially hipsterish venue that offers a divey bar up front with a huge selection of craft beers, cheap nosh from the kitchen, and a huge, glorious garden in the back.
Amazing SF atmosphere anytime of the day — enough to make you overlook the griminess of the whole place and the indifferent service. The huge menu and beer garden alone is enough to win me over.

This place is amazing. Great dive bar in the mission… Came on cinco de mayo and had some good specials. Grab a seat out back and just chill and chat with your friends. Very nice place to hang out on a sunny day. Don’t pass this place up!

A sweet dive bar that’s a great place to meet up with a group of friends to chill and drink good beer. The beer list is long selection is varied, with a focus on local (Cali) beers. The bartenders are super friendly (especially considering how many customers they must serve per night) and will gladly pour you a sample if you’re not sure about a beer. I’ve never seen the legendary «Tamale Lady» but their burgers and sandwiches are pretty decent (and are quite satisfactory after you’ve had a few drinks). Prices are reasonable, as well. Make sure to bring cash.
Inside, there’s a pool table, a couple of arcade machines, and a few tables which are usually taken up so it’s usually standing room only. The real hangout spot is in the courtyard, which is wide open and full of tables, which makes it a great place to hang out when the weather is good. It’s also a popular spot to light up, which may or may not be to your liking.
The bathrooms aren’t the cleanest, but that’s par for the course for a dive bar.
If you live in SF, you’ll stop by this institution at some point. Come in with an open mind and a thirst for beer, and you’ll have a good time.

The customer service here is so unbelievably horrible I can’t imagine how anyone could ever frequent this bar. The staff is made up of complete jerks and I can’t help but believe that this god awful customer service is encouraged. The final straw: being served a burger with a blood soaked bun and after asking for ketchup being ridiculed for not leaving a tip in the tip jar.

Zeitgeist seems to be the most polarizing bar in San Francisco; however, I encountered nothing during my visit that would put me on either the side of those who zealously defend or vehemently attack it.
Here’s my experience:
After a tour of The Armory, my friend and I decided to walk to Zeitgeist. Curious to see just what made the place so infamous, we entered and were «greeted» by a bouncer who brusquely asked for our IDs. Nothing unusual — we handed them over. The amount of time he took to look them over was a bit silly though. I had to resist the urge to laugh as he pulled out a magnifying glass.
After verifying our IDs, he handed them back and nodded us in. Before walking away, I asked if we would be able to take pictures.
«No.»
No problem — we were there to play by house rules. It was a Saturday night and the place was packed. Starving, my friend and I made our way to the counter and ordered two burgers with home fries from the friendly cooks before making our way outside. We waited for a while before going back in to see if our burgers were done. They weren’t, but it wasn’t much longer before we got them.
We headed back out because, aside from the bar, there wasn’t much space inside to sit. Once we parked our butts in the first bench with space we saw, we dove into our food. Talking then became impossible, because (a) our mouths were full and (b) it was loud.
Speaking of the food, it was unexpectedly delicious. Whatever had been used as brine gave the pickles an interesting, tangy flavor and the home fries were excellently seasoned. The only part of the meal I didn’t enjoy was the secondhand smoke coming from the patrons next to us and the pervasive smell of marijuana.
Since we weren’t in the mood to drink, my friend and I left shortly after we finished eating. We used the restroom, which was surprisingly clean, before meandering out.
And that’s it. Zeitgeist wasn’t bad, but I would not put any effort into going there again. Was the bouncer rude? No, just curt. Were house rules strict? Yes, and I can understand that for someone who has no idea what the rules are, getting kicked out would probably be incredibly frustrating, but hey — ignorantia juris non excusat.

I’ve been looking for a dive bar like this. It being outside is just an added bonus. Prices are pretty good. Friend and I split a pitcher for $ 21.

Grunge beer garden, pretty sweet find. It gets pretty packed but once you get a seat on the patio, it’s well worth the wait.

This spot is definitely my favorite watering hole in all of SF. After going to Speakeasy Brewery for some brews and a tour for a homie’s bday, we came to this spot for an after party. There are tons of alcoholic beverages to quench anything your pallete desires. From craft beers to cocktails and everything in between, it made selecting a drink choice that much harder. Not only is there an indoor and outdoor bar/​restrooms, but there’s also a kitchen to order delicious bar foods from as well. Whether you choose to sit inside or congregate in the outdoor beer garden area, you will always be surrounded by amazing company. On a side note I would suggest using the outdoor area restrooms than those single occupancy ones inside, because they are way cleaner and not covered in piss. Overall, if you are seeking a true SF drinking experience then definitely make it a point to come here.

Decent beer selection and ample seating in bsckyard. It’s pretty grungy, though. And we found it hard to enjoy out beers with all of the smokers around us. Is this not outlawed yet in California? There’s so many other great beer spots to choose from.
But if you like divey bars where you can smoke, then this is the spot for you.

V. Cool bar with great music — apart from the shitty wannabe hard ass attitude of 90% of the staff! The fat doorman cheap shot punched my friend for calling one of the staff out on not letting his girlfriend use the restroom because they were trying to close up.
A bit of manners would give this place a 5 star rating because apart from the staff this place is great! Haha

It took me a while, but I finally ended up at Zeitgeist.
Funny that this was my first time though because i felt like I knew so much about this bar without ever having stepped foot in here.
This was in no small part due to: A) the crazy amount of hype it’s received + B) stories from friends + C) the hundreds (thousands?) of highly animated Unilocal reviews you’ll see for Zeitgeist which are just ALL over the place.
I mean most of the review either claim Zeitgeist is the «best thing since sliced bread» OR a «loud, dirty, overcrowded dive bar». Well that solves things.
Personally I tend to agree with the latter, although I’d also add in there «.dive bar w/​GOOD BEER» for good measure because I mean that beer is gooood.
Seriously any place that pours Anchor Steam California Lager is A-​OK with me.
But for all the whiners out here let’s be clear: Yes. This is dive bar. Deal with it.
I’m sorry they don’t offer $ 14 drinks that come with fruit in the glass and a side of quinoa but that’s not a deal-​breaker in my book. I’ll take my $ 10 cheeseburger, homefries, pitcher of beer and I’m straight.
And the burger is good too. It’s not like something you’d get at a more upscale spot but it more than does the trick, and for $ 10 you can keep your fancy burger. I’ll take that pub burger any day. And did I mention it comes with homefries? Who DOESN’T like homefries? So good.
And lastly, there’s the convenience factor. Like it’s «Mission» but not really. As in — not 16^th and Mission. Not 24^th and Mission. Not in the OUTER Mission (Yikes). None of that. I’m talking about Duboce and Valencia, right off market. A quick 5 – 10 minute Über away from basically anywhere. Sign me up. I’ll be back.

Zeitgeist has an amazing patio! Head out here on a warm sunny day — enjoy a beer and some bratwurst. They’ve got good food and a massive selection of beers. Order your food and drinks at the bar, wait there to pick it up, and head out to find a spot in the backyard.

Des dizaines de bières pression, une déco mad max crazy biker, des vieilles bornes d’arcade, une cour intérieure bondée et sonore, un BBQ qui fume tranquillement et alimente régulièrement les tablées en burgers (veggie included) et autres hot dogs. Une bonne escapade en plein coeur de la ville.

Não tenho certeza porque este é um dos lugares mais avaliados aqui, mas aparentemente Unilocalers amam dive bars. O Zeigeist é um boteco/​bar de rock que tem um quintal nos fundos e além de drinks vendem hambúrgueres.
Eles abrem cedo e por essa razão se você procurar «Café-​da-​manhã» no Unilocal vai encontrar esse lugar logo de cara, mas aqui não há comida de brunch, só hambúrgueres. Por outro lado, se você curte bloody marys, talvez este seja o melhor lugar para tomar algumas e começar o Sunday Funday com estilo.
Mas num geral eu não sou fã daqui. Você não pode tirar fotos, o «bouncer» olha o seu ID ao mesmo tempo que corta pickles (sem zueira) e a música é muito alta para conseguir conversar.
Por outro lado, o local está bem localizado e é ideal para começar um bar hopping pela Mission.

Llegué aquí de la mano de las dos CMs de brasil, buscando unos huevitos y juguito para desayunar, pero ellas siempre andan en busca de peligro, así que si se puede encontrar un sábado a las 10 am y además desayunar… why not??! (SFX: riff de guitarra eléctrica)
Llegamos a un lugar entre cochambroso, abandonado y que se ve vive los estragos de la vida de noche. A la entrada, un dude vestido de choppero que cortaba limones nos hizo un ademán con su cuchillo para que le mostráramos nuestros ID´s, y yo: «creo es mucho para solo querer un huevito y tocino», pero bueno, IDs mostradas y entramos a un lugar que tiene country de música de fondo, un par de vatos jugando pin ball de Terminator, una moto crucificada en la parte alta de algún lugar y un patio con piedras y aserrín y mesas y sillas que se ve han sido testigos de muchas cosas.
Bueno pues al final ni huevito ni nada, que ahí preparan tragos para hombres y no para maricas, y que si queríamos jotear fueramos a otro lado por juguito y esas huevadas que queríamos comer.
Como premio de consolación, estas garotinhas me llevaron a un Laundromat a unas cuadras en el que puedes tomar milkshakes y comer fruta mientras ves tu ropa dar vueltas en alguna de las lavadoras. Puntos extras para los mexicanos amabilísimos que atienden dicho Laundromat/​café/​tiendita/​whatever.
Al primer lugar le doy dos estrellotas solamente por el gran nombre que tiene y que definitivamente habla del espectro de los tiempos que te encontrarás ahí dentro.
P.D. Si tienes 15 años meibi te la pasas bomba aquí, meibi.

I absolutely love this place. The perfect level of divey, huge outdoor seating area, friendly bartenders, huge beer list, and ALL OF THE DRINKS ARE DOUBLES.
The perfect place to chill with a group of friends, especially on a nice day like when I came here yesterday! Packed on the weekends, but the patio is so spacious that it’s not congested or annoying. I spent 6 hours here yesterday and had a wonderful time. I recommend the Bloody Mary-​very spicy and strong!

I don’t get why people are complaining that this place smells or is dirty, and the crowd is blah blah (I’m a type of person who usually doesn’t care about the crowd as long as they are chill, maybe that’s why I like this place). First this is a dive bar/​beer garden, and this establishment like most other dive bars functions this way. You ask why don’t they have your favorite cocktail? Well, this place is mostly known as a beer garden in this area, not a cocktail bar.
So what is Zeitgeist about?
It’s a bar with:
Tons of beer on tap
A few seatings inside
A not so bad pool table
And 2 or 3 arcade games
The beers are around 7 – 8 (a bit pricey).
They have food like these:
Macaroni salad ($ 3), home fries ($ 3), burger ($ 7), cheese burger ($ 8), and grilled cheese ($ 4).
So why do I like this place?
Because the outside seating is pretty cool and spacious with a lot of seatings, their beer selection is right on, and the crowd is chill. Honestly, this place is great for hanging out and catching up with your friends while drinking a few beers (oh and the music is not too loud, and they usually play metal).
You should not come here:
If the smell of weed bothers you (because there are a lot of people smoking outside).
If hipsters and metalheads annoy you.
BEWARE that this place is CASH ONLY, but they do have an ATM machine inside.

Salut les gens !
J’adore cet endroit à mi-​chemin entre un bar de biker et un biergarten berlinois on apprécie :
L’ambiance détendu de l’endroit.
La terrasse patio
La bonne sélection de bière
Les prix
La bouffe pour ceux qui veulent
Le billard et les flippers pour ceux qui aiment.
Un endroit à la cool dans le coin Mission /​Valencia.

Als die Kollegen ankündigten, wir gingen abends ins Zeitgeist, hörte ich mich ein bisschen um und vornehmlich kam rüber: Cooler Ort mit «Biker-​Schnauze». Ich stellte es mir so vor wie in der Haifisch-​Bar in Hamburg: «Wie? Wasser?! Das gibt es hier nicht!» So ungefähr war es auch. An der Bar habe ich zwar selbst nichts bestellt, aber der Kellner, der die leeren Biergläser in schwindelerregende Höhen stapelte um sie anschließend abzutransportieren, hatte ähnliche Bemerkungen bzgl. mangelnder Nachschubbestellungen drauf.
Ins Zeitgeist kommt man nur nach ID-​Check. Die Bar an sich ist relativ dunkel und beeindruckt mit der passablen Sammlung an Biersorten. Es sind auch einige deutsche darunter. Wir sind allerdings direkt in den Biergarten gewandert, der ziemlich groß ist und scheinbar auch eine Seltenheit in San Francisco. Mit Outdoor-​Grill, der leckere Burger im Angebot haben soll. Das Publikum ist sehr unterschiedlich.
Ein schöner Ort, um den Abend ausklingen zu lassen. Er hat gute Chancen mit dem nächsten Besuch auf vier Sterne zu klettern. Aktuell bleibe ich jedoch noch bei drei Sternen.

Si y’a une place où je me sens à l’aise peu importe le soir, la situation ou la crowd, c’est ici. Personne né se juge, la musique est bonne (si t’aimes le rock, le métal et le hip hop) et la cour arrière est définitevement une des plus cool en ville! C’est grunge, c’est chill, c’est là où on se la coule douce. C’est bon pour une bière après la job ou pour un bloody mary le weekend par un après-​midi ensoleillé!
Tu rentres. Pas de niaisage. Passes te chercher une bière ou un pichet et va te trouver un spot. À la table de billard, dans un recoin près des vieilles enseignes en néon ou va te tirer une buche à une des dizaines de tables de piqué-​nique à l’arrière. Peu importe ton choix, just relax and enjoy!
Bonne brew!

Sehr schöné Bar in der Mission. Netter Biergarten, immer was los. Auf jeden Fall zu empfehlen.

Si vous êtes à San Francisco quand il fait beau (très rare, je sais) et aussi si vous êtes assez jeune, si vous né vous inquietez pas de service brusque, si l’odeur de kif né vous derange pas Zeitgeist est parfait.
Partagez une table de piqué-​nique avec un hipster barbu, buvez une bière ou trois, et parlez des fixies et les maux du gouvernement jusqu’à ce que le soleil place C’est la vie San Franciscainne.