Zam Zam

Having stumbled upon this bar by walking down Haight Street, we decided to go in and see what it was like. We were in for a great treat. We sat at the bar and were immediately greeted by a male bartender who said he had recently joined the staff there. He was extremely friendly and told us about the bar's history. It used to only serve Gin Martinis. In fact, he told us a story about how the owner of the bar (1940's, I believe) would only serve Gin Martinis, and if you asked for anything else, he would kick you out of the bar. Of course that isn't still the case, you can order any drink you desire, but it made for an awesome story to listen to while we were there. There are even pictures of the old owner hung on the walls. There are some from a new years celebration & a few others. I ended up ordering a martini (vodka), just for the nostalgia of it. Before you say anything, yes, I know it wasn't Gin, but I'm not a Gin drinker, so Vodka was my selection. The martini was delicious, the setting was very interesting & learning about the history of the bar made the whole experience that much more memorable. The bar is very ornate, for being so old, but is a very casual place to relax and have a drink. I would recommend stopping by and checking it out. You'll be glad that you did.

Look, you need to understand what you are walking into here before you step foot in the place.
I used to drink here inow and again in the late 90s and will forever speak reverently of this establishment and the complete lack of tolerance for the bougie SF IPA f**kwads that began to exist back then.

Bruno ran the place with an iron fist, which has apparently been passed down. Always dressed in black slacks with a crisp white shirt on. He was a consummate professional. Opened when he wanted to, there were no set hours regardless of what it might have said on the door. The juke box only had 50's - 60's crooners available. Even back then it was a blast to the past. Place had a Rat Pack vibe to it.

YOU WILL be 86'd for the slightest of transgressions. He took no prisoners.

Order beer in a can? "I'm sorry sir, we don't serve beer in a can here. Perhaps you'd be more comfortable down the street at a different establishment?" and you'd be gone.

Have your hat on backwards? "I'm sorry sir, we don't serve clientele who wear backwards hats here, perhaps you'd be more comfortable down the street at an establishment that serves people wearing backwards hats". 86'd

And zero tolerance, zero, null, for a vodka martini. You had one chance to order it right, and he made it how he wanted to. Dirty martini? GTFO, but you'd be firmly 86'd, with class.

The best course of action back then? You'd fix your act before walking in the door if you found the place open. "I love your place, may I get a drink?" and you'd be happy with what you got. Normally a nice gin martini, 1 onion. Then enjoy the sights of people being graciously kicked out left and right around you. But, if you laughed at them, you were gone too.

You put cash on the bar to cover your drink, and more. And you tipped well from the first drink. Else good luck getting a 2nd drink poured. You played the right songs, you were not stupid drunk and too loud running your mouth

Looks like the apple hasn't fallen too far from the tree in the years that have followed. It isn't that hard, know your environment

Best Espresso Martini in SF! Best Dirty Martini in SF! Best bartender in SF!! This place is a total vibe and the drinks are made to perfection.

Cool and divey cash-only cocktail bar in the Haight. Had kind of an old school vibe and was really dark inside. Plenty of bar seating and some tables available too. Dog friendly, at least it was when we were in on a weekday afternoon.

Pretty large liquor selection available. I ordered an espresso martini, which came filled to the rim, and enjoyed every sip of it! Bartender was nice and funny. Good place to stop for a drink in the area!

Husband and I stopped by on a Saturday night for a few drinks. Everyone was ordering martinis so we had to give it a try. I'm not a big martini at all, but the gin martini with olives that I had was good and my husband liked his as well. The vibe is super laid back and a lot of people came by after a sports game. The energy picked up later in the night but it seems like a good place for a chill night if you come in earlier. Our bartender was awesome and crushed the drinks all night.

Peter is king. Best espresso martini in the city. Absolute vibes. I need 85 characters to post, so this is filler; I said what I said.

I popped in for a cocktail in Zam Zam a couple of times in 2021 and 2022 while biking around the city and most recently while walking around with a friend visiting from NYC.

They seem to specialize in making classic cocktails. They don't have any rotating cocktail menus or anything like that. Basically it isn't a fancy "craft cocktail" bar--and that's perfectly okay with me! However, if you have a recipe in mind, you can let your bartender know. I asked them to make me a New York Sour, which is basically a small layer of red wine floating on top of a whisky sour. The bartender didn't have any problems accommodating my request.

However, in my opinion, the drinks--even though they are pretty good--are not what makes this place stand out: it's the ambience and the quirky neighborhood folks who frequent the place. The bar is very small and intimate, so it's hard not to bump into a stranger--hopefully a friendly one haha.

As for the drinks, I'd recommend to just get a classic cocktail, a neat pour of your favorite spirit or a beer and enjoy the vibes.

To those who have posted low scores:

Anyone who understands the history of this place with Bruno Mooshei would understand that the proprietors have maintained a long-honored tradition of old-school (yes, cantankerous) barkeeping.

Bruno was the infamous Soup Nazi of bartenders who crafted awesome martinis.

This is an historical place with historical values.

If I could leave less than one star I would. The bartender was so incredibly mean, to my veteran friend. To greet customers with such curtness and insensitivity, to a veteran (POST-PANDEMIC) is so wrong. We are in the haight ashbury, you should be nothing but kind. Never say "fuck you" to a military woman. so wrong.

I have had a couple lovely times here until my friends and I encountered one of the bartenders who was outright aggressive and mean. This one experience has unfortunately ruined the whole bar for me because the fear of running into the same bartender again outweighs the previous good times I had at the bar.

Bartender was extremely rude to my friends and I. Threw us out of the bar (immediately after we ordered and paid for a drink of course) because my friend laughed. From the moment we sat down she targeted us and was nothing short of cruel. I have never been treated with such disrespect and unprompted aggression