BoozeSan Francisco

The Brown Jug Closes Permanently Because of Lots of Illegal Stuff

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image from the the SF Bar Experiment

Another classic San Francisco dive bar bites the dust. This time though, it’s not because it was bought and turned into a fancy mustache bar, it’s because hella illegal shit was going down. If you’ve ever stepped foot into the Brown Jug though, this shouldn’t be a surprise.

Yesterday Hoodline reported that the Brown Jug was shuttered because an agent from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), was able to both sell stolen booze and buy cocaine at the Brown Jug. And the bartender facilitated the drug deal. From Hoodline:

The undercover agent was clear that the alcohol offered was stolen. In terms of drugs sales, the sale of cocaine to the undercover agent from a patron was facilitated by a bartender. Hirata also confirmed that the bar owner and multiple bartenders were involved in these transactions.

Not that any of this surprises me but, come on…really?

The Brown Jug has been a favorite of mine for many years. It’s always been a real motherfucking dive bar. I’ve sat there next to hustlers, conmen, all day drunks, and tellers of tall tales. But it’s also been full of regular neighborhood folks looking to play pool and get drunk for cheap. To put things in perspective, the Brown Jug recently made our list of 7 SF Bars to Cry in by Yourself.

Wild nights and strange stories come from the Brown Jug. It’s a shame to see it go. Read the whole story about its closing right here.

What are you wildest stories from the Brown Jug? Share them in the comments.

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Broke-Ass Stuart - Editor In Cheap

Broke-Ass Stuart - Editor In Cheap

Stuart Schuffman, aka Broke-Ass Stuart, is a travel writer, poet, TV host, activist, and general shit-stirrer. His website BrokeAssStuart.com is one of the most influential arts & culture sites in the San Francisco Bay Area and his freelance writing has been featured in Lonely Planet, Conde Nast Traveler, The Bold Italic, Geek.com and too many other outlets to remember. His weekly column, Broke-Ass City, appears every other Thursday in the San Francisco Examiner. Stuart’s writing has been translated into four languages. In 2011 Stuart created and hosted the travel show Young, Broke, and Beautiful on IFC and in 2015 he ran for Mayor of San Francisco and got nearly 20k votes.

He's been called "an Underground legend": SF Chronicle, "an SF cult hero":SF Bay Guardian, and "the chief of cheap": Time Out New York.