Bay Area Lounges (San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley: real estate, house, restaurants)

[nikkisixx]

Anyone have recommendations for laid back, lounge-type bars/clubs? (The kind where you can hear yourself talk)

I'm a big fan of places with outdoor sections (loud dancefloors are cool too, as long as there's a quieter lounge area as well)

Clientele: Attractive people in their early 20s

[mayorhaggar]

Pretty much the only way to drink in SF and hear yourself talk is to go to a bar during the day, like say before 6pm maybe. After that and most of them get packed. Also there's not many places you can drink outside for various reasons, small aging real estate for one thing and the windy chilly weather for another. There's a lot of restaurants along the embarcadero where you can drink beer outside by the Bay, like Red's Java House which is a great place to get an Anchor Steam and maybe one of their unique (and tasty) hamburgers on french bread. They have weird hours though.

In downtown Oakland, check out the Trappist which is the only bar I've been in in the Bay Area where you can have a conversation without shouting at night, they turn their music low and the people drinking there talk pretty quietly. Neat place.

Zeitgeist in SF has an outdoor seating area but it's kind of a dumpy acquired taste kind of place, it's like the backyard of a grungy tatoo parlor or something. It can be fun though.

[llowllevellowll]

Originally Posted by nikkisixx

Clientele: Attractive people in their early 20s

I only have recommendations for fugly people in their late 20s. Maybe in a few years.

Originally Posted by mayorhaggar

In downtown Oakland, check out the Trappist which is the only bar I've been in in the Bay Area where you can have a conversation without shouting at night, they turn their music low and the people drinking there talk pretty quietly. Neat place.

If Trappist is packed, check out Pacific Brewing Co. around the corner. Quiet, classy place also (and try their Sheppard's pie if you're hungry).

[jade408]

Kona Club on Piedmont Ave in Oakland
Adesso, as long as it isn't right around free happy hour time
Press Club, although not a bar (wine bar), has an ideal atmosphere for lounging. They usually have a DJ playing downtempo (unless there is a private event there)
Spats in Berkeley (Cal Students and older people drink alike)

[mayorhaggar]

Also Jupiter in Berkeley for a younger (and kind of rowdy) crowd. It's a huge pizza place where they brew their own beer and basically functions as a giant lounge with pizza available.

[04kL4nD]

None of these places being mentioned are really "loungy" to me.

Try Infusion, Pandora (if you like Karaoke), Martuni's, Lush, or Lime in SF
Somar, Bar 355, The Layover, Conga Lounge in Oakland
The Missouri Lounge in Berkeley depending on the night/crowd

probably more, but these scream "lounge" to me

[jade408]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

None of these places being mentioned are really "loungy" to me.

Try Infusion, Pandora (if you like Karaoke), Martuni's, Lush, or Lime in SF
Somar, Bar 355, The Layover, Conga Lounge in Oakland
The Missouri Lounge in Berkeley depending on the night/crowd

probably more, but these scream "lounge" to me

Layover, Lime and Somar are all pretty loud and crowded (fun, and recommended, but you wanted to be able to hear.)

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by nikkisixx

Anyone have recommendations for laid back, lounge-type bars/clubs? (The kind where you can hear yourself talk)

I'm a big fan of places with outdoor sections (loud dancefloors are cool too, as long as there's a quieter lounge area as well)

Clientele: Attractive people in their early 20s

Lounges San Francisco

For dancing, Slide and Ruby Skye are my favorite...however, I haven't tried that many because I always go to one of these when I'm in SF.

For lounging, there are a lot...just walk around you'll find some...Marina has a lot of wine bars, there's a chill place next to one of my fav thai restaurants "Osha Thai" they have a couple locations in SF, but this one is in Tenderloin...there's lots of them, I just don't remember most of their names...I only know where they are .

[mayorhaggar]

I just went to Frijtz on Valencia in SF...surprisingly chill (but had a decent crowd) at 10pm on a Saturday. The place is set up like a lounge with really low but good music and they serve fries, burgers, crepes and pretty decent beer.