Mr. Tipple’s Jazz Club

What you need to know

Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio is a jazz bar on Leavenworth Street in the Tenderloin, styled to look like a 1940s recording studio. The room seats maybe 60 people at small tables, with a stage built into what looks like a recording booth. Live jazz plays nightly, and the cocktail menu is built around the theme.

What to Expect

The format is jazz with cocktails. Sets run throughout the evening, typically starting around 7 PM. The musicians are local jazz players rotating through regular residencies and guest spots. The room is small enough that the music fills every corner without amplification.

Cocktails are the main draw beyond the music, priced in the $15 to $18 range with names referencing jazz musicians and recording history. There’s no full food menu, just snacks and small plates. This is a drinking and listening room.

The speakeasy aesthetic is deliberate: dim lighting, vintage fixtures, and a general sense that you’ve stepped out of the modern city. It works without feeling forced.

Visiting

364 Leavenworth Street, Tenderloin. Open nightly. No cover charge most nights, though some special performances may have a minimum. Reservations are recommended for weekend evenings.

Same Tenderloin caveat as other venues in the area: the street can be rough, the interior is warm and welcoming. Take a rideshare to the door if the walk makes you uncomfortable.

Getting There

Powell BART is about a 10 minute walk south. The 38 Geary bus is a few blocks north. Rideshare is the standard arrival method. No dedicated parking.

Skip this if you want to talk over the music. The room is set up for listening. Conversation between sets is fine, but this isn’t a bar that happens to have jazz. The jazz is the point.

📍 Location: This activity is in The Tenderloin. Explore the neighborhood →