The Saloon

📍 North Beach 💰 $ 🍸 Blues Bar / Historic Dive

The Verdict

"The city's oldest bar. Come for the live blues."

What you need to know

The History

Ferdinand Wagner opened Wagner’s Beer Hall here when the street was still called Dupont and North Beach sat at the edge of the Barbary Coast. The wooden bar you lean against today was built outside the United States and shipped in during the 1860s. Wagner lived upstairs with his family and ran the place until his son took over.

The 1906 earthquake and fire leveled most of the neighborhood; The Saloon survived. The romantic version of the story has Navy sailors stretching a fire hose over Telegraph Hill from the bay to save the women living upstairs. Historians have found evidence of multiple fire hoses in the area that night, but census records from 1900 show no prostitutes at the address (just a musician, a bartender, a cook, and a bricklayer). Whatever the exact story, the wooden building was saved when most around it burned.

During Prohibition the bar operated as “The Poodle Dog Cafe.” When repeal came in 1933 it returned to being a beer garden. The name changed several more times. In 1984 it became The Saloon.

What to Expect

The floor has wax-filled bullet holes from old poker games. Gamblers shot downward when they lost; shooting at the ceiling risked hitting someone upstairs. The walls are dark and the lighting is minimal. Live blues from the small stage.

Live music runs every night from about 4 PM to 1:30 AM, typically with two bands splitting the evening. No cover most nights; Saturdays have a cover.

Cash only. Beers run about $5.

When to Go

Sunday afternoons have a long-running blues jam. Weeknights are calmer with easier access to a spot near the stage. Saturday nights are crowded and have a cover.