Oakland Bar Guide
30+ bars across Oakland's drinking neighbourhoods, curated by editors who know the city.
Oakland out-bars San Francisco half the time. Trick Dog opened across the bay in 2013 and quickly became one of America's most awarded cocktail bars. Drexl, Friends & Family, and Wolfdown built the wave next to it. The Uptown cocktail district holds the polished rooms; Temescal is the natural-wine and creative-class quarter.
Five neighbourhoods cluster the action. Uptown is the cocktail-and-music spine. Temescal runs the natural-wine and creative-class quarter. Jack London Square holds the waterfront bars. Rockridge is the residential boutique-bar district. Old Oakland covers the heritage downtown bars.
Cocktails run $14 to $18. Pints $7 to $9. Tipping is 20 percent. Most bars run to 2am. Reserve Trick Dog (originally SF, sister room here) — small format and frequently full.
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Cocktail Bars in Oakland
World-class cocktail rooms
Rooftop Bars in Oakland
Skyline drinks
Date Night in Oakland
Romantic spots
After Work in Oakland
Apéro-hour bars
Live Music in Oakland
Bands and DJs
Craft Beer in Oakland
Microbreweries and taprooms
Hidden Gems in Oakland
Unmarked doors
Sports Bars in Oakland
Watch parties
Top Picks This Week
Trick Dog
World's 50 Best Bars regular. Long marble counter, leather banquettes, and a tight rotating cocktail menu redesigned every six months. Reservations strongly recommended.
Drexl
Boutique cocktail bar with a tight rotating menu. Twenty-eight seats. The bartenders rotate the menu monthly. Best for an unhurried weeknight.
Friends & Family
Cocktail-and-natural-wine bar with a young engaged crowd. Brick-walled, candle-lit interior, and a tight rotating menu.
Wolfdown
Restaurant-bar with one of Oakland's tightest natural-wine lists and a craft-cocktail menu. Best for a long Friday-evening dinner.
Beauty's Bagel Shop
Bagel-shop-by-day, cocktail-bar-by-night. Tight rotating cocktail menu, long communal tables, and a thirty-something local crowd.
Heinold's First and Last Chance Saloon
Heritage waterfront bar from 1883. Jack London's original drinking room. Slanted floor from the 1906 earthquake preserved. Cash only.
Neighbourhood Guide
Uptown
The cocktail-and-music spine. Speakeasies, World's 50 Best regulars, and the densest serious-bar concentration in the East Bay.
Temescal
The natural-wine and creative-class quarter north of downtown. Walk Telegraph Avenue. Thirty-something residential crowd.
Jack London Square
The waterfront district. Heritage saloons, restaurant-bars, and the most photogenic Oakland sunset views over the estuary.
Rockridge
Residential boutique-bar district north-east of Temescal. Wine bars, neighbourhood cocktail rooms, and a quieter weekend pace.
Old Oakland
The heritage downtown district. Heritage cocktail rooms inside Victorian-era buildings, polished hotel bars, and a dressed-up evening crowd.
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