Was here for a brief date. Looking to come back soon. Super reasonable pricing and cocktails were…read moresolid with great friendly service on a slow Sunday evening.

Save water, drink tequila…read more We tried finding a nearby cafe to kill time but every one of them was busy with no seating. So here I am, sipping on Fortaleza Blanco ($19).... *Cheers* to the Sunday scaries and Monday hangxiety! O T H E R I N F O * HH Specials: Tuesday - Friday, 4 pm - 6 pm and all day Sunday. * Bring your own food. They also have chips and tamales for purchase. * They have a bottle shop next door where you can find small-batch, hard to find spirits. * Hip, industrial vibes with indoor seating and a covered patio. * Well-behaved, leashed dogs allowed in the patio. * There's a spacious lounge area inside that's perfect for large parties and available to reserve. * Plentiful of street parking.

Good friendly staff. Lots of room to move around at big events near Berkeley U. Good selection of…read moredrinks. Even bottled coke!

I have a fairly large at home bar with plenty of ingredients, so it gets harder to find a place…read morethat serves craft cocktails that I couldn't make myself. Tupper and Reed still stands tall above everyone else. I stopped in on a Saturday evening, feeling pretty mellow. After I arrived, a band started up that reminded me of the O Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack. You can't beat the ambiance, since this was an old music store, and the please is littered with antique record players and instruments. There are some negative reviews here about rude, more accurately, unresponsive bartenders, and I don't think they get what this place is all about. If you want a chatty, friendly bartender, go to an Irish pub. This place is all about creating unique concoctions in volume. Having said that, I'll tell you a story. In March 2019, I was with a chatty bartender here, since it was a quiet night. I was looking at the vast array of bottles, and noticed something that said "Buffalo Trace" but looked different from their usual bottle. I asked her what it was, and she didn't know. It had about three fingers left at the bottom, so she looked at me mischievously and said, "wanna finish it with me?" So we did. Turns out, that 375 ml bottle was worth about $300. It was one of their experimental batches, made with oats in 2002. I found a bottle online in England and got it shipped here. Best whiskey I've ever had.

Perfect neighborhood five bar. Great bartenders, excellent cocktails, good selection of draft…read morebeers, very unpretentious - what more could you ever want in a neighborhood place?

Great dive bar. Good service, good prices. Cool old school…read morevibe. 1000% better than Merchants

I rented out Penelope for my birthday party and was so glad I did! Being able to reserve the entire…read morebar and outdoor patio for my event made it feel really special, and the cost was comparable to renting a semi-private room at other bars in downtown or uptown Oakland. Johnny, the owner, was friendly, helpful, and easy to work with in the months leading up to the event. I had food catered from another local business, and he provided nice serving vessels, was flexible about how I arranged the tables and stools, and encouraged me to play my own playlist through the bar's sound system. He made the planning process and the night of the event stress-free. Penelope has a great indoor space with bar seating and tables, plus an outdoor patio out front with additional tables. I had 40 guests, and with the patio included, there was plenty of room for everyone to move around and mingle. The staff was great all night, efficiently mixing up tasty drinks while helping with a few things that came up. All of my friends loved the craft cocktails and mocktails, and the beer and wine were reasonably priced. I would highly recommend Penelope for a private event. It's also a great spot to stop by after work or for a late-night cocktail if you're just looking for a fun, welcoming bar!

Something unfortunate has happened here. I convinced my date to stop in for a drink and snack,…read morerecalling the delicious cocktails I had here years ago. We were stoked once we realized we had made it in 15 minutes before happy hour ended. But service was sooo slow. I understand there was one bartended working at the time but they really took their time, not meticulously crafting drinks, but rather talking to a friend. We contemplated going somewhere else when the bartender finally came to take our order, just before happy hour ended..sigh of relief! We made the cut off! We opted against the empanadas as we could see the cutting board in the kitchen area had a jacket on top of it. Well..the bartender slowly made our drinks, while still talking, then rung us up..just a few minutes past 6 and charged us full price. Lackluster customer service. Then, the drinks themselves were just bad..not balanced - one too sweet and syrupy in consistency; the other too bitter. This place used to be great but maybe they changed ownership. Used to see the owner here frequently working the bar. Now, I'd recommend Bocanova in the area instead - their happy hour also goes til 6, their drinks are top notch, service is pretty good, and you can get good food from the kitchen.

Well, we lucked in to another 5 star experience! In Emeryville on business and pulled up Yelp to…read morefind a restaurant within walking distance to our hotel. A lot of mediocre reviews close, but only a ten minute walk away we saw the Branch Line Bar. 4.5 on Yelp, but we felt it much closer to 5! A tiny Speakeasy vibe inside with a cool bar and only a few tables, but such a nice night, we sat outside. This is a bar, serving fabulous drinks, but is also blessed with a small but wonderful food menu. To pair with my "perfect" Margarita, I had their fancy burger, with jalapeños, bacon, avocado and spicy cheese. 9/10 for sure. My son had their fancy burger special steak, a melt in your mouth Filet, with crispy shoestring fries. 10/10 on his meal. And because it sounded so good, we shared the shrimp and rice dish as an appetizer. The rice was so good I wanted to order 100 lbs to take home. 100/10!! A big Thank You to Val for taking great care of us and making our night at the Branch Line a 5 Star experience all the way! Cheers, JimG

Very cool space. Food is very good and I've heard their cocktails are quite good as well…read more I do wish they are open for lunch though. Overheard someone said they would come here for lunch everyday if only they're open. Something about their grilled cheese sandwich. I'll have to try that some time soon.

Always solid here - inside bar also - pool table - great live music - local dive - good vibe oread more

I'm gonna be very honest with you. The only reason why they're getting three stars is for a…read moreBartendar. I think her name was Alex not sure who told her how to serve drinks but at any rate my first Bartendar (Wu Tang Clan tank top) curly hair with glasses was freaking amazing freakin rocked..full pour definitely worth the money, an extremely hospitable. Atmosphere was exceptional and the vibe was good, but then I went for another round of drinks after getting amazing service and good pours.. and then there was Alex. I didn't even get a full pour when she freehanded then she pulled out the measuring cup (after I observed the micro shot I got told her to make it a double) and she didn't even fill the measuring cup up, kindda was like "whatever"so I literally got (1) drink and paid for a double. I'll be back for sure because my BFF loves karaoke and this is my first time here so first impressions are lasting. The guys at the pop up food were so hospitable and very nice as well. I'll go the other way when I see Alex- yikes!

While staying in downtown Oakland, I was looking for a bar to go to after a concert on a Sunday and…read morefound Little Bird Bar! It was within walking distance from my hotel and was still open until 2 a.m. which was perfect. We sat at the bar and ordered a draft beer and a Red Bull vodka with a splash of cranberry. Both drinks came with a cute little rubber duck inside, which was such a fun touch! The bartender was really nice and talkative, and the drinks were reasonably priced... not crazy expensive at all. We had a couple of drinks, hung out for a bit, and then headed back to the hotel for the night. If you're in the area, definitely check out Little Bird Bar! It's a cute spot with friendly service, fun drinks, and great late night hours. I'll definitely be back if I'm ever in Oakland again!

Drinks here are smooth and delicious! We ordered a flight to Oaxaca, suffering bastard, whiskey…read morejack, and a passionfruit drink that the bartender made on the fly for mex Everything was so good! No notes here- loved suffering bastard (more refreshing, ginger forward), and the whiskey jack (smooth, complex), the flight to Oaxaca was spicy and delicious too. Will definitely be back- recommend others to try!

A fine, and even devenir experience. Went when it rained last December. The bartender was kind,…read moreendearing and very knowledgeable about wine. I had a delightful Italian Chardonnay (yes Italian). I even got educated about the relative cost of some higher end champagnes (was imparted with a value proposition about wine cost which I consider invaluable). Ambience was very much svelte and chic! Great 1st or 104th date spot! Wine so Cru, wine so cool, South Berkelean vino school.

"You telling me that wine is better than Pepsi? Huh, no way wine is better than Pepsi." - George…read moreCostanza, Seinfeld da Scene: Yelped them for pre-dinner spot. Kinda hidden on a corner right off University & 5th; make the right onto 6th & scoot around to park on 5th or University. They buzz you in, best to make a res., but seems like walk-ins are ok. Very modern, yet welcoming feel, tables spaced well for intimate encounters and a bar with Hightop seating. da Grub & Libation: I had res. for a buddy & I and belly up to the bar; they offered a table, but we're bar flies by nature. Very diverse wines by the glass & bottle so we had 4 different glasses w/ a modest charcuterie plate. da Service: Excellent, warm, friendly and genuinely so. I look forward to my next visit, whether it's for a contemplative glass in solitude or with the wife on a pre-dinner excursion. Hidden Gem, find them and enjoy!