San Francisco’s century-old Castro Theatre has re-entered the chat. Almost exactly two years after it went dark for an extensive renovation, the crown jewel of the city’s gayborhood has returned with a packed calendar (opens in new tab) of concerts and cinema, headlined by Sam Smith’s monthlong residency starting Tuesday.
During the closure, the area’s restaurant and bar scene saw lots of churn. While the Castro has been on the upswing this year, anyone looking to make a full evening out of a show will be navigating a very different nightlife landscape. To help you make the most of your evening, here are our picks for where to get a preshow snack or a full dinner — and where to keep the party going afterward.
Where to grab dinner before a show
Anchor Oyster Bar
Castro restaurants may come and go, but Anchor Oyster Bar (opens in new tab) has been a fixture since Harvey Milk ran for supervisor. The ultimate spot for cioppino, crab cakes, and a dozen oysters on the half shell, it has one of the Castro’s most charming parklets. But plan ahead: The restaurant does not take reservations and closes at 8 p.m., and the wait list frequently fills up by 7. 579 Castro St.
Blind Butcher
Intimate, dimly lit, and with a dining room that opens to the sidewalk outside, Blind Butcher (opens in new tab) is the Castro’s only full-service new American restaurant. It’s as meaty as the name suggests, with pork chops, ribeye, and a rack of lamb alongside smaller bites like shishito peppers, truffle lobster mac and cheese, and “octopodaki,” a spicy, citrusy preparation of octopus over chickpeas. A brawny, Old World-heavy wine list seals the deal. 4068 18th St.
Where to pick up a quick bite
Confections from Aegean Delights. | Source: Courtesy Aegean Delights
Marcello’s Pizza
The Castro doesn’t lack for pizza, but there are several reasons Marcello’s (opens in new tab) is the best of the bunch. For starters, it’s the most quintessentially New York-style slice shop, and its consistently brisk business means fresh pies emerge from the oven practically until closing (11 p.m. on weekdays, 1 a.m. on weekends). It’s also right across the street from the theater, meaning anyone short on time can dash over for a $7 slice of pepperoni on a white paper plate. 420 Castro St.
Aegean Delights
This 5-year-old confectionery right out of Greek myth — yes, that is a statue of Poseidon reclining in the front window — offers various flavors of baklava and Turkish delight, the latter in both cube and roll form, as well as coffee and tea. Also offering mosaic lamps and evil-eye necklaces, it’s as much a shop as a bakery. As it’s open until 9 p.m. daily, it makes a great spot for a sweet pre-theater snack on date night. 545 Castro St.
The best bars for a quiet drink
Last Call
With all due respect to the peerless Twin Peaks, that theater-adjacent bar is likely to be mobbed as soon as a show at The Castro gets out. Instead, walk around the block to plant-filled Last Call (opens in new tab), a smaller, quieter, and equally lovely place for a cocktail. Unlike Twin Peaks, it would never be described as library-like — the jukebox is one of San Francisco’s best, and there’s likely to be movies playing on the screens — but it’s an oasis all the same. 3988 18th St.
Lobby Bar
The recently revamped Lobby Bar (opens in new tab) on the ground floor of the Hotel Castro is perhaps the most elegant and sophisticated bar in the Castro, and one of the neighborhood’s few trans-owned spaces. Mixologists pour craft cocktails like the D-E-Rye Hire, a spirit-forward combination of rye, bourbon, amaro ciociaro, sweet vermouth, angostura, and chocolate bitters ($17). If you want high-volume pop girlies on the stereo, the Castro has plenty of options — Lobby Bar is where you go if you want to have an actual conversation. 4230 18th St.
The scene at Lobby Bar. | Source: Chris Behroozian for The StandardThe best party bars
Lookout
There’s no more high-energy venue in the Castro than the second-story, perennial favorite Lookout (opens in new tab) — except for maybe the nearby Beaux. Whether it’s hosting drag shows, watch parties, house-and-disco nights, or guest DJs from underground parties such as Quiche, Lookout all but guarantees a boozy good time. A long-teased renovation is in the works for later this year, but for now, the view from the balcony is unparalleled. 3600 16th St.
Q Bar
It was closed for years due to a fire, but Q Bar (opens in new tab) roared back to life in late 2024 as a small yet bumping club. While much of the Castro’s bar scene is happy-hour-centric, this hot spot gets going later in the evening, making it ideal for a raucous, post-show dance party to the sounds of hard techno, ’90s throwbacks, or bangers from the 2010s. 456 Castro St.
Q Bar gets going late in the evening. | Source: Michaela Vatcheva for The Standard