Toronado

8/16/2008 1:34:39 AM, saturday, august 16, 2008
Great selection. Friendly staff. Strong history. Decent bathrooms. Great special events. Overall, this is one of the best beer spots in the US. Can be a little crowded, but it’s definitely worth it,

8/11/2008 1:51:46 PM, monday, august 11, 2008
Nice assortment of beers, but too damn small when it’s crowded. Bartender was helping me get a couple of good brews.

7/27/2008 9:17:12 PM, sunday, july 27, 2008
Some place you could definitely just walk by if you didn’t know it was there. Nicely decorated with tap handles, beer posters, bottles, signs, etc. Long bar with lots of taps and pretty sizeable bottle list. Good selection of local brews on tap. The bartender did seem to get a little bit irritated one time, but otherwise he was cool. The music was a tad bit loud. I didn’t have food there, so I can’t say anything on that subject.

7/21/2008 11:31:37 PM, monday, july 21, 2008
Hmm, not as great as I thought. Biggest problem is it is WAY UNDERSTAFFED. 1 bar tender for a +40 foot bar on a Saturday night. The place was packed and took about 30 minutes to get a damn drink. Once the bar tender did get around to us, the beer was suprisingly cheap. Definitly a beer crowd there, but also a lot of annoying pousers, who would be called hippsters if this wasn’t on the dive bar side of the spectrum. I was also disapointed by the selection. Nothing really interesting (the days of Westy, HotD and Alesmith here appear to be gone. I had a Firestone Wheatwine, Palo Santo, and some Moonlight beers. Website is about 5 years out of date (both beer and which muni lines get there). Did I mention, parking is probably the biggest bitch to get a space in the entire city! Might go back at a quiter time, but I am not rushing to do so. They need to have at least 2 bar tenders at the bare (like bag of bones bare) minimum during standing room only times!

7/6/2008 10:31:40 AM, sunday, july 06, 2008
Great bar. Went on a Tuesday night and it was packed. Bartenders, for all of the mixed reviews, were very helpful. Female bartender suggested a cider for my wife, who does not like beer. Atmosphere was lively, loud, and fun. Tap selection was great as advertised. A bar I would definitely frequent if I lived in SF.

6/11/2008 1:08:00 PM, wednesday, june 11, 2008
Wow. I’m surprized I haven’t rate this yet. I guess I assumed I already have. I would like to say undoubtably the best beer bar in the bay area or in the state, but I’m not so sure that’s true anymore with so many other great places popping up. It still may be the best. Certainly around special events like the 20th anniversary or the barleywine festival. Always something great on tap and very knowledgable clientelle.

5/23/2008 5:11:52 PM, friday, may 23, 2008
Great bar with local crowd watching base-ball. No food available, but the staff didn’t seem to mind people bringing in hotdogs. Fantastic selection of hoppy beers, not so many stouts. Bit noicy later in th night. Overall great place.

5/21/2008 10:50:47 PM, wednesday, may 21, 2008
It’s all about the BEER. This is the kind of place I would take a 1st date. If she couldn’t hang then there is no use for a second date. This place has some of the finest beers anywhere coupled with the fact that it’s dive makes it a heaven for the true beer lover.

5/14/2008 7:30:48 PM, wednesday, may 14, 2008
The legendary TORONADO. I traveled all the way to SF for this? Located on lower Haight, its loud, Service is horrible, and the selction is excellent.

5/13/2008 2:00:42 PM, tuesday, may 13, 2008 [ Updated tuesday, may 13, 2008 ]
A classic pub on the American craft beer landscape. It’s somewhat of a dive inside, but not *too* divey, and certainly warm enough for me. The service can be slow and grumpy, and the crowds can be huge and cumbersome (especially during the Barley Wine Fest), but they always have wonderful local beers on tap (from places like Russian River and Moonlight, as well as Anchor, Bear Republic, etc.), and also have some great Belgian bottles and some occasional surprises. I like this place a lot, and I love San Francisco and the neighborhood where you’ll find Toronado (be sure to eat at Memphis Minnie’s across the street for some awesome barbeque), but as much as I hate to say it, I think the time has passed when it could be considered in the absolute creme-de-la-creme of beer establishments. I mean no disrespect, because it’s still absolutely worth a stop any time you’re in San Francisco. It’s just been surpassed by some truly outstanding, newer places that offer more.