Zeitgeist

2/18/2016

It took me a while, but I finally ended up at Zeitgeist.

Funny that this was my first time though because i felt like I knew so much about this bar without ever having stepped foot in here.

This was in no small part due to: A) the crazy amount of hype it's received + B) stories from friends + C) the hundreds (thousands?) of highly animated Yelp reviews you'll see for Zeitgeist which are just ALL over the place.

I mean most of the review either claim Zeitgeist is the "best thing since sliced bread" OR a "loud, dirty, overcrowded dive bar". Well that solves things.

Personally I tend to agree with the latter, although I'd also add in there "..dive bar w/ GOOD BEER" for good measure because I mean that beer is gooood.

Seriously any place that pours Anchor Steam California Lager is A-OK with me.

But for all the whiners out here let's be clear: Yes. This is dive bar. Deal with it.

I'm sorry they don't offer $14 drinks that come with fruit in the glass and a side of quinoa but that's not a deal-breaker in my book. I'll take my $10 cheeseburger, homefries, pitcher of beer and I'm straight.

And the burger is good too. It's not like something you'd get at a more upscale spot but it more than does the trick, and for $10 you can keep your fancy burger. I'll take that pub burger any day. And did I mention it comes with homefries? Who DOESN'T like homefries? So good.

And lastly, there's the convenience factor. Like it's "Mission" but not really. As in - not 16th and Mission. Not 24th and Mission. Not in the OUTER Mission (Yikes). None of that. I'm talking about Duboce and Valencia, right off market. A quick 5-10 minute Uber away from basically anywhere. Sign me up. I'll be back.

4/5/2016

Decent beer selection and ample seating in bsckyard. It's pretty grungy, though. And we found it hard to enjoy out beers with all of the smokers around us. Is this not outlawed yet in California? There's so many other great beer spots to choose from.

But if you like divey bars where you can smoke, then this is the spot for you.

3/20/2016

A weird one. Ok beers, nice to have an outside terrace, and pretty decent ambiance. But the staff is just made of the rudest peoples I've seen (read other reviews)

TLDR: if you don't give a shit about who you give money to: it's a 4 start if you manage to talk to no staff member at all.
If you do give just a small shit, absolutely don't go there. If you still don't give the smallest shit but think you'll have to briefly talk to at least one guy there, you have 95% it's gonna be an ok+ evening and 5% you're really really not gonna have a good time.

Long story short: I got rudely kicked out for what a normal person would call "absolutely no reason"

My friend was kissing his girlfriend (if you're just a normal person who has a normal life that may perhaps includes some kissing sometime you would not even have noticed. But such was not the case of the angry person who came to us) )
So that angry person (let's call him Bobby - sorry to all the Bobby out there. There's no reason to take it personally cause I don't know you personally ) So Bobby came all of the sudden and was feeling like "I'm the man in control here and I like it. A lot" (he didn't say so explicitly with moving his mouth and making sound but we all got the message) and said (explicitly, with the attitude you may imagine) "You're out now"
So my other friend (not the one with the girlfriend, another one who was not kicked out, (--spoiler alert--) yet  (--end of spoiler alert--)) said "But why?" to which Bob responded "You're out now too"

That was a bit of a problem, you see. We were half done drinking our Saturday beers and Bobby wanted us (at least some of my friends) to leave; for 1) no reason 2) with probably not finishing the ok beers we had pay for and 3) with behaving like a person I was starting not to like. So my friend told Bobby "But why?" to which Bobby responded "'cause you're talking shit to me"
Ok let's pause one sec. I was not super close to the kissing friend, but now I was sitting right next to my friend. So I was like "well that's not an accurate description of what just happened, and I'm 100% positive about that" I'm not big in psychology or anything but I got a sense the guy was not being honest on purpose, like to serve some greater personal goal that I think is called 'self-estime-by-abuse-of-power'. Again I might be wrong so don't take my words for granted.
Back to action! So I told Bobby "well he just asked you an ok question." See no aggressively here, no clue of the pseudo-psychologic analysis I was doing in the background, nothing. To which Bobby responded (I'll let you guess that one). Ok then, we're four out (I was excited at this point because it was the first time I got kicked out of a bar, but also sad cause there was no reason. Like if you just had sex for the first time (wao!) but it had been horribly bad (does that count?)) But what about the unfinished beers? It's not right to not finish them. It is there purpose in life, as beer, to be drunk. So I said "well we have to finish the beers we have paid for" and Bobby said "nop. You're out now and you've no right to finish the beers" Again I'm not big in US laws but that didn't sound very right as well. Then (sensitive people please don't read) he took the closest beer and spilt it on the ground. Yes, exactly like I said, on the ground. Not only insulting us as people, but more importantly the beer as what it stands for and what's the reason to its existence. All right that was enough. The rest is not very interesting. Basically we just left as civilized people (the guy pushing us all the way outside, maybe in case we changed our mind and thought that this was a very nice bar after all and wanted to stay).

What an exciting evening!
- I got kicked out of a bar for the first time ever (I'm 25, it kind of sucks that I had to wait for so long)
- I meet a person very very close to the pure form of what you Americans poetically call an "asshole"
- I have one bar out of my to try list in SF, and really hope you now have too (I would not spent too much time on the psychology of why I'd feel good if you'd feel bad about spending money to this place, it's pretty straightforward)

I know there are more important things going on in the world, but it's not what Yelp is for so please excuse the time spent on this minor one.

3/18/2016

V.Cool bar with great music - apart from the shitty wannabe hard ass attitude of 90% of the staff! The fat doorman cheap shot punched my friend for calling one of the staff out on not letting his girlfriend use the restroom because they were trying to close up.

A bit of manners would give this place a 5 star rating because apart from the staff this place is great! Haha

4/9/2016

This spot is definitely my favorite watering hole in all of SF. After going to Speakeasy Brewery for some brews and a tour for a homie's bday, we came to this spot for an after party. There are tons of alcoholic beverages to quench anything your pallete desires. From craft beers to cocktails and everything in between, it made selecting a drink choice that much harder. Not only is there an indoor and outdoor bar/restrooms, but there's also a kitchen to order delicious bar foods from as well. Whether you choose to sit inside or congregate in the outdoor beer garden area, you will always be surrounded by amazing company. On a side note I would suggest using the outdoor area restrooms than those single occupancy ones inside, because they are way cleaner and not covered in piss. Overall, if you are seeking a true SF drinking experience then definitely make it a point to come here.

4/13/2016

Grunge beer garden, pretty sweet find. It gets pretty packed but once you get a seat on the patio, it's well worth the wait.

4/13/2016

I enjoyed this place a lot before. Beer selection is good. Food menu is okay. It's that one of the bartenders gave me a racist comment on people I hang out with. I decided I'm done with this place. White supremacist should enjoy there.

2/12/2016

Zeitgeist has an amazing patio!! Head out here on a warm sunny day - enjoy a beer and some bratwurst. They've got good food and a massive selection of beers. Order your food and drinks at the bar, wait there to pick it up, and head out to find a spot in the backyard.

• 

  Bratwurst and a Bloody Mary

  Bratwurst and a Bloody Mary

3/22/2016

Zeitgeist is the picture of a divey metal bar in the Mission. Good beer selection paired with a grungey atmosphere. I hear the food is solid, but the real draw is the outdoor seating in the back. It features long benched tables, trees, some graffiti, and it's a cool place to hang out in the evening when the weather is good. Beers are reasonably priced as well.

2/26/2016

This is the sort of bar hipsters love, for that authentic "dick" atmosphere (think of the hipsters, on the TV show, Shameless, who try to frequent the The Alibi Room).

Waited 15 minutes, to purchase a beer, while the bartender gladly ignored me, in favor of five others, who showed up five minutes after I did. Guess I'm just not hip enough to buy a beer here.

ANYHOW, walked off. I don't spend my dollars, to be ignored, in places pretending to be dive bars with "working class cool" (guess this is where Zeitgeist lives up to its name)- too many REAL dive bars in San Francisco, where they *GASP* actually serve drinks, to spend time and money here.

2/28/2016

I liked this place mainly for their beer selection. The cash only aspect kinda sucks, and so does the atmosphere which is very rough and "dickish." However, the beer selection is wonderful, especially in San Fran where finding a wide craft brew selection is difficult. If you're looking for good beer then come here, but if you're looking for a chill atmosphere then go somewhere else.

2/26/2016

A place to get a beer for $4 in San Francisco?! I'm in. They had a very unique menu with a combination of national and local craft brews. I tried a very interesting sour cider that I will have to track down in Chicago. Self-serve water station was nice. Beware that picture taking is forbidden here. I'm glad we saw the signs before we started snapping- we take lots of photos on vacation. Enjoyed the beer garden very much.

11/12/2015

What's better than a wide selection of beers and a beer garden? ...

Yea, I could not think of anything else either. Head over to Zeitgeist to enjoy local and authentic brews. If you find yourself overwhelmed by the extensive offerings, ask the bartenders for some help! They're not as scary as the rest of these reviews make them out. They also seem to serve burgers and such. It looked and smelled delicious. I might just indulge on my next visit.

1/30/2016

I go here, on average, once a year.  Usually for a tap takeover.  I try to limit it to that.

3 pints deep, I remember it's my dad's birthday.  I go outside behind a gate to stay out of the rain and ring him.  Security homie let a few people with bikes out, so I get out of the way.

Back inside, another pint.  That's enough.  Grab the bike, make like the other folks I saw and leave out the back door.  Security homie comes out, throws a hissy fit, calls us ass holes, and all the while my drunk ass self doesn't even know what he's yelling about.  

Oh - you're mad at me for using the emergency exit you let all your homies out through?  My bad, honest mistake.  I thought - since all these folks were leaving out the door - bikes go through the door.  Honest mistake for a guy who tries not to go here more than once a year and is 4+ pints deep.  But when there's a Sierra Nevada tap takeover, I make an exception.  Not again.

I don't know if the employees are on some sort of rehab program, or what, because the short security homie looked like he really wanted to deck me in the face over this massive offense.  But he probably needs this gig, like real bad, so he had to hold it together.

Zeitgeist sucks, and there's no excuse for brazen douchery.  I like the burgers and fries, so a star to you. We're taking our group of 30 to El Rio on Sunday instead.  In my experience, El Rio even charge consistent prices for their beer.

7/6/2015

I don't get why people are complaining that this place smells or is dirty, and the crowd is blah blah (I'm a type of person who usually doesn't care about the crowd as long as they are chill, maybe that's why I like this place). First this is a dive bar/ beer garden, and this establishment like most other dive bars functions this way. You ask why don't they have your favorite cocktail? Well, this place is mostly known as a beer garden in this area, not a cocktail bar.

So what is Zeitgeist about?

It's a bar with:

Tons of beer on tap
A few seatings inside
A not so bad pool table
And 2 or 3 arcade games

The beers are around 7-8 (a bit pricey).

They have food like these:
Macaroni salad ($3), home fries ($3), burger ($7), cheese burger ($8), and grilled cheese ($4).

So why do I like this place?

Because the outside seating is pretty cool and spacious with a lot of seatings, their beer selection is right on, and the crowd is chill. Honestly, this place is great for hanging out and catching up with your friends while drinking a few beers (oh and the music is not too loud, and they usually play metal).

You should not come here:

If the smell of weed bothers you (because there are a lot of people smoking outside).
If hipsters and metalheads annoy you.

BEWARE that this place is CASH ONLY, but they do have an ATM machine inside.

• 

  Pool table.

  Pool table.
• 

  Homemade fries.

  Homemade fries.
• 

  Patio.

  Patio.

1/22/2016

I'm a 50 year old dude...and my review is from a much different perspective than the average patron of this place. This place probably should have a higher rating...but it's the old fart scale here...

For a guy my age, this place sucks...outdoor seating, which is crammed packed with people...blaringly loud music...and rude 20-somethings getting their drink on...or in the case of the two guys thinking they were being discreet...smoking pot in the corner near a giant tree...and wondering why I was giving them looks...and they returning "What?...I'm not doing anything" looks.  I'm all for people doing what they want in their own homes...but until Pot is legalized...officially...keep that shit to yourself, I don't need to fail a random drug test from second hand smoke from a burner.  (Yes...second hand contact with pot smoke can cause you to test positive...though I will give you it would have to be the next day or so...and yes, I'm being a grumpy old man here.)

Now...with all the above out...I can see why this place is popular among the twenty to thirty year-old group.  The food here is excellent...and reasonably priced.  Their tiny ass kitchen puts out some great food...and I loved the burger I got...amazing fries...and I can't even remember what else we got, but it didn't last...I know I'd go back here simply to eat...it was that good.

Also, this place has an amazing number of beers on tap...a selection which is boggling to say the least.  Which actually brings me to another complaint about this place.  Several of the bartenders are rude as hell.  I get when things are busy, you need to move quickly to serve the masses...but being a smart ass impatient bartender is bulshit.  It's not the patrons fault if the menu is so vast it takes a study hall session to get through it.  That's where asking a few quick questions can lead you to making a suggestion which most patrons will take...and find very helpful.  (To those rude ass bartenders...If you don't like what you are doing...go find something else to do.  Having been a bartender for years when I was in my 20s...even in the busiest of clubs...I never gave people attitude...and see no reason for it...it just shows your lack of ability...or that you're just a-holes.)  

Anyway, if you like crowds...noise...great food, and a huge selection of beer...this is definitely a destination place...you'll have fun here. if your 20 to 30ish.  If you're old like me...maybe not so much...but I still recommend going at least once...or earlier in the day for food.

10/7/2015

Abstract:
I LOVE THIS BAR, I LOVE THIS CITY.

If you are with people who don't want to day drink in Dolores (which, get rid of them! you don't need those kind of people in your life!), splitting a pitcher of beer at a table in Zeitgeist's back patio is the best thing you could do with your day or night. Sitting out here on a Sunday afternoon kind of feels like you're at someone's bbq party because there's a ton of people and also bbq. That was a very complex thought, I know.

They are always blasting metal and I'm down with it. Bathrooms aren't bad and you can order from the outside window or inside at the bar.

I've never had food here, but it looks pretty good. Burgers for less than $10, what could there be to complain about?

Cardinal rule of the Mission: cash only. Don't be a chump.

3/20/2016

DON'T GO OR RISK HARASSMENT

Falsely accused of having a fake ID at the door.  If that wasn't enough, they proceeded to THROW MY ID out onto the street.  By sheer luck I was able to recover it, thank God or think of the fees of replacing that.  But if that wasn't enough they proceeded to "kick me out" old-fashioned style, screaming "get out of here!" and inspiring drunk people outside to steal my glasses.  They then proceeded to WALK ME a full two blocks, which was quite scary because there weren't many people in the direction I was forced to walk.  Needless to say this was extremely embarrassing to my friends who just wanted to show me a drinking spot.  Can't believe all this happened just because I presented an up-to-date, out-of-state ID.

3/30/2016

Just plain rude. I get that the "we don't give a shit about anyone" is the vibe they're going for...but it's just off putting. Every doorman and bartender I've ever interacted with has been an ass. Loud, dirty, wait forever for a drink. Every time I get dragged here I regret it. Time to take my business elsewhere

8/27/2015

(ZAI-Y-GUY-ST)  .... this is how you say it for those who are terrible at pronouncing words ( like me!)

Came here for a friends birthday last week! The place is located on Valencia and Duboce. At first, I thought it was a super dinky little bar but it turns out there's a nice spacious patio area right outside! The place is intimate on the inside due to the place being super packed on a Friday night.

They also serve food here too! I got the turkey sandwich with came with potatoes. The total was 8 bucks. Took about 10 minutes to make. Quality? It was alright. The turkey was really salty and it reminded me of my daily high school meals. Yikes.

The alcohol here is cheap compared to other bars that I've been in SF (1015 Folsom charged me 10 bucks for a shot of Fireball lawlz). Ordered a pint of Death and Taxes and Guinness which came out to a total of $14 after tip.

The ambience here is relaxing despite the heavy punk/metal music that they play here.

I don't live in the city but I would totally come here more often given the chance.

PS: Beautiful men here, ladies. *wink wink*