Good San Francisco venue for cocktail party?

October 15, 2015 8:35 AM

I'm planning a cocktail party in San Francisco for some friends and colleagues and - coming from New York City - it's hard to tell from online searches what would be an appropriate place. Details...

- location: downtown SF, near or in soma (South Park would be good)
- should fit 40 to 50 people
- time: weekday evening
- best hosted at a nice bar or restaurant that does this sort of thing (i.e., not a bland meeting facility)
- would prefer a private space reserved for us (either a private room or a section of the venue)
- I'd pay upfront for some food & drink, so the venue would be guaranteed revenue upfront

Appreciate any ideas!

posted by mark7570 to Food & Drink (8 answers total)

I have been to this sort of event at the 111 Minna Gallery (and have walked by it as they've done many more). It's much closer to Market than to South Park, though. It's an art gallery by day so it's a nice space.
posted by brainmouse at 8:48 AM on October 15, 2015 [4 favorites]

I've been to a number of events at Chaya Brasserie, which is on the Embarcadero. Nice venue, good drinks, good appetizers (they have good sushi among other things) and a pretty view.
posted by janey47 at 10:37 AM on October 15, 2015 [1 favorite]

Southside spirit house, Press club (wine bar), Woodbury, District (wine bar), 25 Lusk, 111 Minna, Pink elephant, Hard water (it's further, but right on the water).
posted by danny the boy at 11:20 AM on October 15, 2015 [1 favorite]

Like a block away, Tres has a couple of spaces that work well for this, along with Mexican food and lots of tequila.

If your crowd are beer people, Thirsty Bear has a few different party rooms and did a nice job last time I was there for an event.
posted by zachlipton at 11:24 AM on October 15, 2015 [2 favorites]

Victory Hall fits pretty much all of your requirements -- it's close to South Park, has a separate space that can be reserved for parties, and they have good cocktails, beer, and food.
posted by littlemisslaika at 2:21 PM on October 15, 2015 [1 favorite]

A short hike from SoMa, but Le Colonial has a lovely and spacious upstairs bar area and pretty nice happy hour specials.
posted by psoas at 3:19 PM on October 15, 2015 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Thanks, everyone - great suggestions! Making phone calls now.
posted by mark7570 at 7:47 AM on October 16, 2015

We had a private event in the gallery space which is part of Foreign Cinema. It's called the Modernism West Gallery as it's an outpost of a private gallery called Modernism. It's attached to the main building, but in its own separate space, accessible via the center courtyard. It has its own awesome bar, and you get your own bartender with the rental of the space. They'll do passed appetizers or a little stationary set-up. Super good food, great drinks, and really beautiful space. Highly recommended.

They also have the Mezzanine space, Director's table and a few other spaces which can be combined. Email them and have a chat with the private rental space coordinator because she'll have a great idea of which space and what kind of food/drink would work best for your budget.

No idea about price, sorry!

Edited to add: it's in the Mission. I'm not from SF so not sure if it's too inconvenient for transportation from downtown or Soma!
posted by barnone at 1:17 PM on October 16, 2015