Specs’ 12 Adler Museum Cafe, the western jewel of dive bars and our city’s home to philosophers, novelists, travelers, progressives, poets, punks, drunks and broke-asses, is finally reopening! Specs’ celebrated it’s 53rd birthday this past April 26th, now it’s going to celebrate its grand re-opening this Thursday May 20th! Hours

Hallelujah! And say that exuberantly like Pharoahe Monch. San Francisco will be entering the Yellow Tier on May 7th which means, among other things, that indoor bars can open again without serving food. According to Supervisor Matt Haney, “Under state guidelines, in the yellow tier: Restaurants, movie theaters, libraries, offices, churches,

I’ve got some awesome news! We received a grant from the Civic Joy Fund to put out a literary magazine celebrating SF and acting to counter the stupid “Doom Loop” narrative. It’s a gift to the people of San Francisco. And after months of working on this project it’s now available

Today is the 53rd birthday of North Beach watering hole institution Specs’ Bar, whose full, proper name is Specs’ Twelve Adler Museum Cafe, and it is declared by this website that Specs’ “might be the best bar in the world.” Specs’ has been closed throughout the pandemic, but they posted

The kind of joints who have owners that work behind the bar themselves, the kind of businesses that have actual character built over years of serving a certain neighborhood. 

Anyone who knows me know how much I love Specs’. It’s hands down my favorite bar in the world. It’s weird and quirky and full of artists, writers, a drunks – both young and old. I wrote this pretty wonderful story about it right here. I just saw some good news

North Beach has a certain magic to it. The neon lights and the strip show barkers blend with the San Francisco night and the smell of garlic, creating something old school and current, ancient and timely.

First dates can be weird and awkward. That’s generally why you get booze involved. It smoothes out both you and your date’s awkward edges…most of the time. Whether you just met a hottie on tinder or you *gasp* actually met someone in real life, these seven bars are the perfect place to go for your first outing.

The bar in question is officially called Specs’ Twelve Adler Museum Cafe, but everyone just calls it Specs’. I don’t recall exactly when I first discovered the joint but I’ve been a regular ever since. To the uninitiated, visiting Specs’ is like walking into a Tom Waits song.