{"id":224458,"date":"2026-03-18T00:03:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T00:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/224458\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T00:03:23","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T00:03:23","slug":"a-less-fratty-marina-former-tipsy-pig-space-is-getting-a-feminine-coded-cantina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/224458\/","title":{"rendered":"A less-fratty Marina? Former Tipsy Pig space is getting a feminine-coded cantina"},"content":{"rendered":"

The de-bro-ification<\/a> of the Marina continues with Tuesday\u2019s opening of Lobalita (opens in new tab)<\/a>, the modern cantina that has taken over the former Tipsy Pig location on Chestnut Street.<\/p>\n

The bar and restaurant is the latest debut<\/a> in a neighborhood that has been shedding its reputation for fratty bars and fitness studios thanks to an influx elevated food and beverage businesses<\/a>, including Little Original Joe\u2019s, Super Mensch, and Bar Darling.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A low-key den filled with dark woods, checkered flooring, and red diner stools, Lobalita is the latest project from hospitality pros Stryker Scales, Nate Valentine, and Jamal Blake-Williams, who have been on a tear the past two years, opening hot spots such as Bar Darling <\/a>and North Beach\u2019s April Jean.<\/a> These join a portfolio of established bars Peacekeeper and Harper & Rye, as well as the now-closed Mamacita on Chestnut and Padrecito in Cole Valley.<\/p>\n

Lobalita was perhaps the group\u2019s most eagerly awaited project, as it occupies one of the Marina\u2019s most popular bar spaces. Tipsy Pig, a beloved gastropub, closed last spring after 17 years. \u201cIt\u2019s a full circle of accomplishment,\u201d Blake-Williams says, noting that he\u2019s working with the same partners who opened Tipsy Pig nearly two decades ago. \u201cTo breathe new life into the street, and have my wife [Brittany Busacca] design it, means a lot.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"ALobalita continues the team\u2019s efforts to keep drinks affordable. | Source: Courtesy Lobalita\"AThe interior has a distinct through-line with the trio\u2019s other projects. | Source: Courtesy Lobalita<\/p>\n

The bar\u2019s name is an homage to the she-wolf, an icon of feminine power and strength \u2014\u00a0and a logical move for a group that named April Jean after two of the partners\u2019 mothers.<\/p>\n

Across all their projects, the trio makes a point of keeping drinks affordable, and Lobalita\u2019s cocktail list, all $14, includes likely stunners, such as the Lolo-lito, made with gin, roasted corn, lime, dry vermouth, and a mini elote, and the Holy Mole, a combination of tequila reposado, mole syrup, and sweet vermouth. Yes, there\u2019s an option for the many fans of the espresso martini, a riff on the carajillo (opens in new tab)<\/a>, made with Licor 43, a house cold-brew espresso blend, and espresso-cinnamon salt dust. But Blake-Williams cites the horchata-colada, made with tequila, coconut-horchata, pineapple, and lime, as the most drinkable option on the menu.<\/p>\n

\"ATipsy Pig was among the Marina\u2019s most beloved spaces. | Source: Courtesy Lobalita<\/p>\n

There are five beers on tap, almost all local, along with about a dozen world-spanning wines by the bottle. Of note, the program includes private-label Chilean house orange and white wines.<\/p>\n

On the food side, look for taquitos, guacamole, and quesadillas, complemented by tuna tartare cones with chipotle-agave sauce and mango mascarpone, and a lamb picadillo gordita with pistachio pipian rojo. There\u2019s also an entire section of two-to-an-order tostadas with fillings such as birria, al pastor, and \u201cpatito,\u201d duck carnitas with manchego, fig-guajillo jam, and chicories.<\/p>\n

Blake-Williams expects that tostada to be among the bestsellers. \u201cIt\u2019s breathtaking,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The de-bro-ification of the Marina continues with Tuesday\u2019s opening of Lobalita (opens in new tab), the modern cantina…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":224459,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[8697,32135,416,5434,8456,101,103,102,104,106,105],"class_list":["post-224458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-francisco","tag-bars","tag-boom-loop","tag-cocktails","tag-marina","tag-restaurant-openings","tag-san-francisco","tag-san-francisco-headlines","tag-san-francisco-news","tag-sf","tag-sf-headlines","tag-sf-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224458","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=224458"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224458\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224458"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224458"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224458"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}