Bars & Pubs, Restaurants, Brew Pubs, Brewers, Wineries, Spanish Restaurants, Tapas / Small Plate Restaurants
Notable Beer List, Bar Scene, Business Dining, Date Spot, Dine At The Bar, Group Dining, Private Rooms
The idea of brewing fresh, hand-crafted beers with authentic Spanish cuisine is the brainchild of Ron Silberstein, a former attorney turned Brewmaster, turned restauranteur! The Brewery and Restaurant are housed in a beautiful historic brick building directly across the street from the Moscone Center and the Yerba Buena Center for the Performing Arts (including the SFMOMA). Construction on the three-story facility began in December 1995. Ron's came to fruition with the first lusciously smooth pint of beer, poured in September 1996. The restaurant is the first brewpub in the United States to serve an authentic Spanish Menu. At ThirstyBear, Executive Chef Jessica Gorin incorporates some of the finest specialty ingredients from Spain, including manchego cheese, jamon serrano, chorizo sausage, olive oil, and piquillo peppers.
If you want good beers, then this is the place. If you want over priced food then this is also your place. Overall the bar doesn't feel like it has much soul to it. It is a decent place however to grab a quick beer after work if you dont mind a slightly pretentious vibe.
Posted 10/21/09 | Report Abuse
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Good food, drinks
by coog78
Nice spot for drinks and a snack. Ceviche was pretty tasty, though the small amount of flatbread was odd. Sangria was surprisingly really good, as we hesitantly ordered it instead of beer. Just wasn't in the mood for beer, but the fact that they brew on spot will ensure I order next time. Friendly waitress as well.
Pros: Drinks
Posted 07/08/08
Worth the stop
by John3B
Another great beer destination, close to downtown. IPA and Stout are especially good, and the food is excellent - different from the usual pub fare, but in a good way. Place can get really crowded after work, but we never had a problem finding a seat at the bar, or being seated by the hostess. Friendly, prompt service. Watch out for your credit card receipt though, they still have a machine that prints out your whole number!
Pros: Great beer, food and service
Cons: Can get crowded and noisy
Posted 08/01/07
good beer, good scene, eh tapas
by nomadslime
Generally a good happy hour bar. The beer is fresh and always a good pour, but it gets packed pretty easily even when it's not full. This is due to poor traffic layout in what is otherwise a huge space. I'm not big on tapas, but their selection is big, so I can usually find something I like. It's in a good SOMA location for the happy hour crowds, so it's particularly great on Thursday nights. Just don't expect a seat
Pros: beer!
Cons: space
Posted 04/15/07
vanillalicious
by marcuslav
I really like the Golden vanilla beer they got at this place it taste great. You can also try the calamari and the sour dough bread with the olive oil.
Pros: taste good
Cons: don't drink it to often
Posted 04/01/07
Make sure to ask for Sarah!
by onibean
I went to the Thirsty Bear for the first time the other night and had a great time. We sat in the bar area for drinks and appetizers. Our server was Sarah and we had so much fun with her! She made some great recommendations about food and beer. I had the lamb empanadas and they were to die for. I would definitely go back and ask for her!
Pros: great microbrews, fun service
Cons: parking was a challenge
Posted 03/31/07
An original concept
by kanya_dorland
The Spanish tapas are really good and fit well with the special brews including both light and dark beers. There is a good crowd after work, but it also a good lunch place, where you can find a seat.
Posted 03/13/07
One of my favorite restaurants.
by sancarlosrandall
Excellent food. The beer, even the vanilla beer, is very good. If I could go here every week, I would.
Pros: Food, Beer
Posted 12/06/06
Small plates and microbrews
by sw2k
Sure, sure, the tapas are quite tasty -- although I wish the Marcona almonds stayed on the menu -- and the festive atmosphere can't hurt , but I'll always think of Thirsty Bear as home to one of my favorite local beers - the ESB!
Pros: Nitrogenated ESB! Olives, etc.
Cons: Can be packed
Posted 11/23/06
Great drinks
by shoegal84
If you are going here for their happy hour, get in early if you want a seat. By early I mean, when they open! Ha!
This place is totally packed, but it makes for a festive atmosphere. Drinks are delicious and tropical. Pomegranate martinis anyones? Yummy!
If you want a change of pace after a bit, move on down to Kate O'Briens for drinks!
Pros: Drinks, food looked good
Cons: No seats!
Posted 06/28/06
Only for Salt lovers
by chicgal
I've been going to this place for more than 5x and I found it that the foods have become more more saltier each time that I came. The fried calamari used to be very good, but now it's like we can't even finish it coz it's way to salty. Drink selections are good and the ambiance is pretty good. Service was ok..average.
Pretty cool place, but hey..go easy on the salt will ya...
Pros: good place, fast service, good beers
Cons: Too salty foods
Posted 02/18/06
Great Staff!!!!!
by daverichards
All I have to say is that this place has the hottest waitresses ever. Hands down, sexy, classically beautiful and the drinks were awesome. Best Ketel One Martini I've ever had, and best brews around. The bar staff is SO friendly and personable... go just for the helpful and hot service if nothing else. Paella was darn tasty also!!!!!! Yummy food and waitresses...
Posted 09/10/05
Go for the beer, stay away from the food
by mwleejr
This is a great place to go for a beer for happy hour. There's usually a pretty lively scene, even post-dot bomb. However, the food is mediocre at best. If you want quality tapas or Spanish food, there are other places in the Misison that are way better and maybe even cheaper.
Pros: Good for Groups, Good for Happy Hour
Cons: Food is mediocre
Posted 06/08/05
Accomodating staff, despite a long wait
by jenca78
We took some friends from out of town to Thirsty Bear, because it's a different kind of eating experience then they have at home. We made 6:30 reservations on a Friday night, and were not seated until 7:30! However, it was the first time I have experienced SUCH an apologetic staff. The manager came over and apologized profusely, then gave us three appetizer plates for free. This is NOT common in SF, so I was pleased. Overall, the food was great, as was the beer, and the service was very fast. The place is very loud, so it's hard to hear your friends talk, unless you are seated at the windows right on the street. Despite that, I had a great time.
Posted 05/28/05
Great happy hour
by bhebdon
Had a great time for an office happy hour. The beer selections were unique and the appetizers were excellent. Highly recommend the artichoke thing. It was tasty. Although the beer selection is not huge, the brews offer variety with unique tastes. The atmosphere was fun and energetic and the service was attentive.
Pros: Beers, Appetizers, Service
Posted 03/23/05
Sunday FLAMENCO
by vladshapiro
Thirsty Bear is a great place to hang out and enjoy some tapas like Albondigas, Gambas and Bacalladitos. Wash it down with their hand-crafeted beers or try their specialty drinks like Ibiza Breeze and Thirstyrita. All this, plus enjoying a live Flamenco performance every Sunday at 7pm.
The atmosphere is relaxing, staff is fun and Sangria flows like Niagra Falls. A deffinite SF hot spot, not to be missed.
Pros: Friendly staff, Incredible food, Great music
Posted 06/18/04
Nothing Exciting
by lord_humongous
Everybody raves about Thirsty Bear. I'm not sure why. Their beers aren't very good and the food is just average. It sure looks like a really cool place, though. I won't try to go back again but I wouldn't run away screaming if my friends wanted to go.
Pros: Nice ambiance
Cons: , Bad beer
Posted 04/19/04
Decent lunch
by DJF
Unfortunately, I did not try the beers as I was on work lunch. The beer and tapas menu looked excellent. The lunch menu is nice and offers the aforementioned tapas and five or so sandwiches and salads. We tried the BBQ pork and seared ahi. Both were tasty but a little on the small side. They are served on hamburger sized buns. I left knowing I could have ate more.
The restaurant is in a nice brick building that would be more suited for after-work drinks. I will go back to try the tapas and beers.
Posted 11/24/03
I'm confused?
by Headbicer
The beer is good and so is the food. But at a certain time during the night, they move all the tables and call this place a dance club? As soon as they do that, the overcrowded place, becomes a ghost town? Where's the logic in that?
Posted 10/18/03
TERRIBLE
by tonykoc77
One of the worst establishments I have ever been to in San Francisco. The "tapas"(actually very low quality bar food) was so bad I had to send it back and leave. The location is caverous and crowded. Not worth wasting your time on.
Cons: Terrible food, Poor service, Noisy
Posted 09/15/03
Nice place to hang out...
by vandana_nair
Tapas, ambience were ok; sangria, not (watery and tasteless)... give the sangria the skip and try one of the cocktails instead. Other than that, we enjoyed a great evening out at this joint.
Once we were in, the service was pretty decent, although we had our doubts, on meeting the hostess, whose face seemed permanently set in an expression of contemptuous distaste.
Pros: ambience, service
Cons: sangria
Posted 08/18/03
Good spot
by tildenm
Two attractive hostesses welcomed me into the Thirsy Bear with a smile. So, TB definetly got off on the right foot with me. The beer is good, the tapas are good, and this is a great stop either after-work or for a friendly get together.
Pros: Two cute hostesses ;), Beer, Atmosphere
Posted 08/18/03
Good After Work Spot
by cheryllbradley
I would recommend TB more during the day or right after work than for dinner - it does tend to get quite crowded...of course if you've had enough of the tasty beers (vanilla and wheat are good..as I'm sure the others are) you probably won't mind. The service is not stellar, nor is the food but both are decent for a lunch/after work spot. The prices are pretty reasonable.
Pros: Good Beer, Fun for after work
Cons: Gets very crowded
Posted 07/28/03
Yikes
by pizzymcgith
The place is overcrowded most nights with the marina crowd before they head home. It is, unsurprisingly, too loud and uncomfortable to stand in. The food is very very poor. The beers are, however, very very good. If you can get one.
Posted 06/01/03
MMMM BEER!
by Extreme
I love the beer and the apps a lot. I like it because after work this is a great place to get some good beer with the boys. I think I will keep coming back:)
Pros: BEER, APPS, Space
Posted 03/26/03
Thirsty? Very.
by bayareafoodie
This was one of the worst experiences ever. The food was terrible and the service was worse. It is so loud in this restaurant that you cannot hold a conversation! So, avoid this SOMA restaurant.
Posted 02/20/03
skip it
by cuteynfatal
I've eaten here 3 times, hoping that my previous attendance was an aberration. Nope. The food was barely passable each time: uninspiring, americanized (badly) and bland.
Posted 01/18/03
top tapas
by irasf
EXCELLENT FOOD, SERVICE AND VALUE. GO AND TRY DIFFERENT TAPAS EACH TIME... YOU WON'T BE DISAPOINTED
Pros: SERVICE, TAXI'S ACROSS THE STR, COMFORTABLE
Cons: LOUD, AREA, LOUD
Posted 12/07/02
A happy hour joint- not a tapas place...
by banananutbread
If what you are looking for is great tapas-- there are about a million tapas restaurants I would recommend first. This however is a good place to meet people for happy hour-- as the bar and beer selection is great. I will say one thing though. After a long tough day at work, a good cocktail with a plate of Patatas Bravas tapas is great.
Posted 12/05/02
Tapas and Beers, Oh my!
by howudoinsf
Used to be a frequent diner at Thirsty Bear and thankfully, since the dot.com bust, the place is a lot less crowded. But the beer is still fresh, the Bear typically has about 10 brewed on the premises and the tapas were very good. The papas fritas were spicy and the paella (while small), very well done. A good spot for a group of friends if you don't mind the sparse decor or noise...
Pros: Fresh Beer, Tasty Tapas
Cons: Noisy
Posted 10/18/02
Good Place for Hang Out!
by poesiacc
If you and your friends enjoy beer and a lot of small plates on the table, this is the place. Beer is special, sangria is ok too if you want a refreshing fruit drink, but I personally prefer beer. Its fish cheeks is yum...! The mushroom is pretty good too! There are pool tables on the 2nd floor. It's a fun place to hang out with your friends and it also has the romantic atmosphere to spend time with your date.
Pros: Romantic
Cons: Street parking
Posted 09/30/02
Nice for a beer and a bite
by Landsend
Well-crafted beers and some good tapas. Nice place to stop off at while downtown.
Pros: very good beer, nice tapas, great space
Posted 08/15/02
Go for the beer, pass on the food
by jennypie
Thirsty Bear is great for a little post-work mingling with co-workers, or as a meeting place with friends before moving on for the evening.
They have several great beers, including a stout that is absolutely dreamy. The atmosphere is fun, lively, and excellent for people-watching.
When it's busy (any day of the week at happy hour), service can be a little slow and frustrating.
I've tried most of the tapas on the menu, and have found it sub-par. Potatoes are bland, dry, and barely have any sauce. The so-called aioli that is served with the calamari tastes more like mayonnaise with a tiny bit of lemon. I do love their ahi tuna and broiled beef, but for the most part, the tapas is disappointing.
This is a fun place to stop for a few drinks, and their beers really are worth trying. Just don't expect anything earth-shattering from the kitchen.
Pros: Great people-watching, Good beer, Inexpensive
Posted 07/22/02
