Kilowatt Bar

Bought a couple beers, listened to live music on a Friday night with no cover. Bands were unique and space wasn’t too crowded earlier on in the evening so there was room to dance and move around. The overall energy was great and staff cleaned up quickly! All in all, solid place to be on a Friday night without the fuss.

I have never met a group of people who are so sincerely awesome, from the front door to the stage. You always leave with a smile on your face! It's a great place for live music or dancing because they book the best bands and DJs and their expertly made drinks are delicious and affordable. Their event space is so gorgeous! I can't wait to go back. I wish that I could give it 1000 stars!

One of my favorite bars. Usually has great love music, no frills offerings, and I recently learned they even have a private event space upstairs you can rent out. The bartenders are always friendly and fast. It's in a great area for more to do too.

Great little venue with good music. Fun stage and live music

Undoubtedly Mission's best kept secret and probably the few music venues still standing - KILOWATT was originally known as a great dive amongst neighbors - They've kept the original DIVY vibe but taken it up more than a few notches in experience. No frills, great vibe, great music - under new management - they converted the pool table area at the back into a stage for live music. Caught The Tunnel playing this past weekend and it was over the top. Gentry was pretty decent. A MUST mission POP IN experience. FIVE STARS 🎉

My band played here for the first time last month and the staff were amazing. Love the atmosphere, space, and location. They even had hot cider on the menu, which was perfect for warming up my vocal chords before our set. Had the best time!

Great spot for music and drinks, the staff is super sweet and helpful. No food, other than bar snacks.

Came by for a show my friend was playing in on a Sunday night. The bar staff was friendly and quick with drinks and the sound was good (but loud). They had free ear plugs at the bar which was great. We were a bit concerned about the smell of gasoline at one point…but quickly learned it was a motorcycle outside. Looking forward to seeing more live music here this year.

Dive bar with live music. I don't drink in bars. Music may start past official time depending on how many ticket purchases there are.

Such a fun dive bar! Went here during a Halloween weekend and the decorations were so cute and the vibes were great. I really appreciate how nice the workers were, inside and out the bar! The upstairs spot is also really nice if you want to chill. The prices were also very reasonable for the drinks. Would love to come back!

Amazing bar, and the music was the best, good selection of bands and we had such a great time, we are definitely coming back for more rock shows there!

Cool bar but rude bouncers. When we entered, we asked if he had heard about San Diego's Kilowatt brewery and he made a comment that he "didn't care at all in the slightest." Probably racist as well. Drinks are cheap and there are some cool entertainment options such as pool tables and darts. Darts cost a $10 deposit and are half broken when they give them to you. Cash bar only I think? Wouldn't come back knowing how rude the staff is. I'll go to Elixir instead where the bouncers are the most welcoming and actually enjoy talking to customers.

Great place to see a show I saw L.A. Witch last night at Kilowatt and had a wonderful time. More than anything else the sound was what really impressed me. It might be because they have such a small stage and lack of a sound system, but it was the best sounding show I've been to in a long time. I had been at the New Parish in Oakland and the Great American Music Hall earlier in the week and the show at Kilowatt sounded much better than the other two. The show started at 9:30 a long time after the doors opened at 8 but I'm not sure if that was due to the venue or the bands. I'll give them a pass on that for now. Another great thing about the bar is they have their two bathrooms as one female and one all gender. I really love it when a venue acknowledges that women tend to get the short stick on bathroom facilities. The staff was helpful and friendly and the entry into the show went very smoothly. I was impressed that they had signs outdoors for where to line up for the show. Kilowatt is just over a couple of blocks from the 16th St BART station so it's easy to get to or leave from. There are plenty of restaurants in the area so it's easy to pick up all types of food before or after a show there.

Loud music plus a pool table (quarters only) and 5 dollar draft beers. I like the skateboards hanging on the walls!

Great time good vibes. Went with a group of friends and we enjoyed ourselves. Thanks.

Ownership change and level of service has totally declined. It's cool that they have live bands again but most of the bartenders were terrible (not all, a girl named Chelsea was exceptional). One who did not see my heel got stuck in the bar stool (because someone stuck gum on it) cut me off. After one drink. She was really rude and rolled her eyes at me. I understand bartenders have a hard job to do. I feel bad for the band playing because no one went to watch or even clapped after the songs. The sound was a huge problem. The band stopped like 6 times. You can tell the place is run by people who don't have experience. Used to come here more than once a week but won't be going back.

As all good bars do, they let you order food from other places or bring your own. That is how it should be. I get tired of the same menu all the time. Service is exactly what I like, when you ask for a drink, they get you one. They don't hover or ignore. Accomplished drinkers don't like to be rushed or parched. If it is slow they aren't opposed to enjoying a good chat. They have a cool video tape collection. The programmed music is enjoyably eclectic but the reason I'm going back, after more than a decade of avoiding it, is because of the live music and change in crowd. The staff I've met and a lot of the patrons seem genuine, and that is refreshing. Welcome back Kilowatt! Thanks goes to the staff and new management for helping make it happen.

Awesome dive bar. A relic of seedier (better?) times. Great craft beer selection and very reasonably priced. 20(ish) for a pitcher of Stone Pale. Decent pool tables. No pretentiousness. A place you can just have a drink and not overhear the SF tech talk BS. Could use a water station.

Hi there!! Just wanted to inform Yelpers that new ownership took over in January 2023. We are still a dive bar. We still have sports on TV's. We have a pool table and FREE dart games. And as of February 2023... we are a music venue!! Please stop by and check out the new digs. Thank you!! -Kilowatt

Uptight and racist. Despite hearing about others less than great experiences, we still went. Had to fight to get our belongings back, including our cards, after we were not let back in after going outside to check on a friend. The bouncer tried to tell us we didn't have tabs open when we did and gave us somebody else's jacket.

Cool enough place, but...braindead bounders. i mean, bounce someone for getting knocked down in the pit. really? smh

Came here a few weeks ago to play some pool with some friends. The service was good but cash only and the drink prices were reasonable. If you come to play pool, let it be known that there are a few rules you need to abide by. Basically, there are two tables and if you want to play, you have to put your name on the board and challenge the winner of the previous match. If you want to play with friends, you basically have to keep winning until you and your friend are matched up, and then you can play one game. If you're okay with these rules, this is a solid place to play pool, but if you want to just spend the night playing pool with your friends and not randos, you might be better off going somewhere else

The bartender was very nice but the crowd attracted to the bar was kind of mean, exclusionary and juvenile.

Best bar in the city! the bartenders are incredible and there's amazing live music on a regular basis

Besides cash needed to order up drinks and maybe renting of the game supplies, I like this divey spot, which is a rarity these days in the Mission. If it is divey, it would be contemporary and not that old school vibe you get. Darts, pool tables and pinball machines for the most part on entertainment. Also, TV to watch sports' games. Casual and chill at its finest.

Two out of three bartenders were really nice and attentive out of my experience last night. My friend and I did enjoy the music and vibes there but one of the bartenders was really rude and neglectful. My friend had asked nicely for another drink when this bartender announced for the last call and he simply looked at her and walked away to another customer. He made this other groups drink while we patiently waited for hers. He even made eye contact with my friend and proceeded to ignore her... the nice gentleman bartender that served us first that I ended up I waving down and he came to us and we had told him we had asked his co worker for a drink and that he ignored us. So that other bartender came back over and was really rude the whole entire interaction with my friend and felt him being passive aggressive with her...As a customer that has already asked for another order and then this bartender then proceeded to be ignoring her felt really wrong for this bartender to come at my friend with an attitude. I know we all have our moments but that isn't the way to treat your customers. I'm only giving two stars because I really liked the two other bartenders because they were really nice and chill. That other guy needs an attitude adjustment...

For my 350th Four Star Review, I wanted to share a cool bar in SF. We were on a mission to party, meet some chicks, and finish at La Taqueria El Cumbre in the Mission. After walking around a bit, we decided to drop by Kilowatt located on 16th near Valencia in SF. BTW, this bar is cash only. Everything about this bar is chill. The customers are cool, and engaging. No one tries to slide by you at the bar, order drinks and stay to crowd you out, a la Tasting Kitchen in Venice. In addition, the bartenders are cool. They let you have a taste of beer, know their handles, and pour stiff drinks. Lastly, the ambiance is cool. There are a couple of pool tables, and darts in rear. The women are friendly too. I met Christine from SF, who was a very nice person, that could carry on an intelligent convo. All I can say is "Mission" accomplished! We warmed up here, took Christine and her friend to Elbo Room & Asia SF, and got a late lite snack. I can't wait to return and complete another mission! LMAO!!!

Typical dive bar in the mission With it's eye-catching sign, it's hard to miss this place when walking down one of the busiest streets in the mission! The inside is pretty divey, as expected. Packed with people on a saturday night, mostly because of it's location. The booths and chairs feel slimy, and the cups they use to serve the beer look a little disgusting, with a weird "moldy" smell. The clientele looks like they're ready to party, though. The atmosphere is pretty good--everyone's chatting, and you can feel the energy in the air. Overall, a good place to go if you're looking for a divey bar

Props to my homegirl Jaime H. for finding this little spot for watching Football on Sunday afternoons. They play all the football games, plus there was some baseball action going on this past weekend too. GO GIANTS! The drinks were between $4 and 6, they let you bring in outside food and the bartenders and patrons are friendly - even if they are rooting for the opposite team. The overall vibe was fun and positive, we had a blast and were there for awhile. Dive right in, the bar is fun....

Wow am I glad I came in here!!!! What an embodiment of the neighborhood I love so much in one place + good ipa selection + popcorn, pool tables, dart throwing + apparently $5/$5.50 for pitcher mondays? start your week off right i guess LOL - cash only - little dark and stuffy (i prefer drinking in outdoor/airy spaces but that's also just me)

The bikers and hipsters which fill the space between the cute-dog-picture-covered walls of this fine establishment are going to have a West-Side-Story-esque Sharks and Jets rumble one of these days. And I hope to god I'm there for it... and that I've already give them my $10 and left my ID for one of the two sets of darts. Note: DO NOT FORGET ID and $10 when you return the darts. the drinks are strong. favorite sign above the bar I want to "borrow": "you're in the mission"

My friend and I stopped by this Sunday afternoon for a drink. He had gone to the restroom before the, overly talkative to other customers, bartender finally came to take the order. When we wanted another drink, it took forever to get his attention, even though the bar was close to empty. We soldiered on but when we tried to get a third drink, he walked by several times, even though our glasses were empty but he still had time to check his cellphone twice, and totally ignored us. BTW my friend is Asian. We had no drinks earlier and have lived in SF and in the general area for 40 + years and have never experienced such overt racism before. If this "gentleman" - self-described to another customer as 45, and Caucasian, disputes this account or if the management disputes that they are running a "whites only" establishment I would like to hear them.

If there's only one dive bar you visit in the inner Mission, please go to Kilowatt. Best place to drink and go shoot some pool. I used to play in a bar league and this is where we would meet up for some practice.

This waiter shut off everything my gay friends played at the bar including Ace of Base and Spice Girls. They payed money for these songs at the jukebox and this bartender literally said "I don't like this gay shit". Shame on you.

This place was a decent dive bar on the scale of dive bars found all across SF. I wasn't carrying cash and I wasn't going to use the ATM since I didn't believe in paying surcharges for accessing my money. They had a decent amount of beer selections and based on my companions who went with me, they poured their drinks on the heavy alcohol side. Good value for the money if you like a heavy handed cocktail. They have a variety of games like darts and pool but the majority of our group stayed in a booth near the front where the ATM was located. I chatted with the people lining up which was probably the most entertaining part of my night there. Was worth the visit although I'm not a dive bar kind of guy, I did enjoy my stay here.

Kilowatt isn't my favorite but my husband loves coming here to have some drinks and play some pool. The place is big and the bartenders are nice. The ambience can get a little bit rough sometimes but nothing major. They have two pool tables and lots of places to seat. Kilowatt is close to other bars, and restaurants so it's definitely a place to start and then move forward to another bar, it's also close to bart and located in the middle of everything. Weekends they have a live DJ and they open their back room and you can dance.

I come here all the time. Great dive bar to shoot some pool, play some darts and even Pacman! Can get pretty crowded on the weekend, but thankfully it's not the tiniest bar in the Mission. Most drinks are around $5-7 In order to get the darts- you must give the bartender $10/your ID that they'll hold onto until you return the darts. Guess someone must have ran away with the darts in the past. Sadly, from the last time I was there, looks like something happened to one of the dart boards so try to get the dart board to the left if you can.

The aroma of musky beer drenched wood is strong with Kilowatt. As is the whiff of wet dog every once in a while. Or is that just a hippy? I can't tell. Regardless, any place that allows dog lovers to bring their beloved for a happy pat on the head is A-OK with me. I love Kilowatt for 2 pool tables, pinball machine, dart board, and nominally priced beverages. The crowd is mixed with punk rockers to blazer doners and from my experience, quite friendly. The best thing is Kilowatt is quieter than your typical Mission fare. This is a fantastic place to unwind the night or enjoy a dive bar night out and is conveniently located to the infamous danger dog stand.

I gots to give it up for the best pool spot in the Mish. Two tables, but two very nice tables for a bar. Too bad the tables attract the "I'm way better than you at pool" douche bags like flies to a pile of Oprah's shit (I assume flies like to eat expensive shit). Very common hang out for random dudes who stand around by themselves getting drunk, hitting on uninterested chicks, whooping ass at pool. Shout out to Evy for claiming lesbo status to shake that one guy off. He didn't really care though. Besides the aforementioned douche baggery, it's got a good pool hall-ish vibe. People are generally pretty good without being phenomenal so you can still compete even if you are just OK. Roll through on a Fri/Sat though and your ass is gonna be watching for a long time before you're up. Anytime I'm in this neck of the woods with a jonsin' for some pool, Kilowatt pops to mind first. That makes me a fan I'd say. The beer selection is on point too.

Kilowatt sits on an eccentric corner amongst many other bars with crowds, loud music and near dark alley ways. The street lights on Mission paved a carpet to lead you inside. Outside are those hanging out, doing drunk people things, smoking a cloud of happiness and the guy who checks your id, seems a little gone. No trouble getting inside. Loud music, but I love the retro feeling of this bar! There were tables everywhere, crowded and wet. Pool tables were in the back, alongside with a PacMan machine. At the bar, it took about five minutes for us to squeeze and grab the bartenders attentions, but he dove in took our orders and made me happy. I had the stronger vodka cran in a while, it was literally all vodka and a splash a cran for possible the pink color. It's cash only but atm outside. They serve about over 50+tap beers and they're only 4$. It's a chill bar to hang out at. The best part is the retro cash register! It was old school and that really completed everything for me. Last call was exactly at 130am for us on a Saturday night. They're serious about it, closing doors and I barely got out! Great place to be. Loud music. Good people. Great bartenders. And pool tables! Parking is a slight bitch, but it's alright. Mission, I take my hat off to you.

Part of me has dreaded writing this review. Kilowatt is, after all, the reason I couldn't stand to look at, or even think about, liquor for a good month, and the reason I didn't visit Mission again for another five. Or, well, I suppose the real reason is that I did a poor job of holding my liquor, but Kilowatt was certainly the enabling factor here! Dropping by with the birthday girl after a dinner at Morac, I was shocked by how insanely packed the place was. There was no seating available, and even standing room was limited - being in a wheelchair, and thus shorter, also proved unfortunate, as many a person ended up tripping over me as they waded their way through the masses. Eventually, as I was feeling inclined to hightail out of there, two booths opened up in the corner. The drinks here are inexpensive though, and their shots are actually almost double the standard size. And... that's about all I remember, because once midnight hit, and my sixth or seventh double shot disappeared down my throat, so did a 11 hour chunk of my memory (I kid you not), that involved (from what I could piece together from friends) my disappearance, losing my phone (which I later found was picked up by a crackhead and sold to someone I can only assume was a prostitute), and somehow managing to push my way back to SOMA, almost two miles away, through Mission, in the early hours of the morning. Now, the low rating has nothing to do with this ridiculous experience, no no. If anything, it's probably one of the best, and scariest, stories of excessive drinking I have. The real reason is simply how obscenely packed this place gets - if not for that, I'd easily give these guys a three. But, as it is, I can't see myself coming back by choice, as I much prefer lounging around somewhere a bit less crowded, with drinks that are a bit fancier.

Its your average skater bar, I say that because on most nights the place is oozing out skaters to the alley on Albion. The drinks are strong, it is cash only but with an ATM. There is like two pool tables that take up most of the space. There is popcorn which is great, I'm always down to snack. The girls in the girls bathroom are ALWAYS nice, the bartenders are sick. I'll hit up the place whenever its always a good time.

For a dive bar, this is pretty good. The drinks are reasonably priced, and they also have free popcorn courtesy of a popcorn machine. Great service too.

WATCH OUT FOR THE BARTENDERS. They specifically try to short change you ALL the time!!! They always say "my mistake" but they did it multiple times to my party in the same night. They try to prowl on people. Very shady. Do not recommend risking it. They are definitely shady in the way they were trying to manage the situations either. If you come, youll notice that they always think of the drink prices off the top of their head, and the prices fluctuate even if you make the same order multiple times. AVOID

The guy with the shoulder length brown hair has the worst service made us the wrong drinks and overcharged us. He's done this before and I let it slide... he's obviously trying to pocket the difference

Came here to hang out with my birthday girl YuJin for her pre-birthday partay and had a blast! I actually didn't shoot any pool because I'm so rusty and I really don't want to get back into it again (addictive personality) but I certainly enjoyed watching others play! There were some old schoolers here, and everyone seemed to know each other. Although I was just an observer, many of the players were really friendly and talked to me about their experiences, and who plays what kind of games with what kind of an attitude (sneak-attacks, assholish, cry-baby, brutes, etc.). I think we were the only three Asian girls here (and one lady plays for the gal's team) so Yuj and I got our fair share of random, Asian-fetishist men using cheeseball lines to talk to us. Okay, that's unfair. Maybe they just thought we'd make good company, who knows. But they weren't "just being nice" because they were clearly using the tried-and-true lines used by playas and playa-wannabes alike. Appreciate the courage and gesture, fellas, but I have a man and so does Yuj. I'd definitely come back to shoot some pool the next time I'm back in the area. If I lived up north, I'd definitely make this a place I come to at least once or twice a month just to see the nice people, drink some beers, and kick some ass. ;) But I have to admit ... I'd most likely catch a ride here with a friend or take a taxi because FINDING PARKING WAS RIDICULOUSLY HARD! This whole area is POPPIN' on weekends so I think we spent a good 30 minutes circling around looking for parking. Ugh. But all in all, wonderful bar, and awesome pool hall. Lovely people of Kilowatt -- see you again soon! :)

Kilowatt is one of the more trustworthy places to have a Manhattan in the Mission. Slightly watery, but far superior to some of the other dingy, hipster bars on 16th. But HOLY MOLY watch out for pool sticks and stilettos damaging much needed organs and bones. Kilowatt can be QUITE packed on a Friday/Saturday....and once I get going, I have been known to lose control of my billards and walking skills. I should probably stick to flats or kitten heels when coming here....but then I just wouldn't be the sultry shiksa that I am:)

Hey yuppie, stop coming here and fucking it up. If you don't want me to punch you in the jaw or spray you down with beer, then stay away. If you are not a yuppie, then bring down the dog and watch some football. This is the best punk rock sports bar in the universe. Peter, you rule.

Let's make this a Packers bar, y'all! It kinda already is but I saw some VERY sad Cowboys fans there last week. Don't yuck my yum, losers! Jk They're humans and I love them. Great selection of affordable beers. Staff is really nice. TVs all over the place so any spot is a good spot to catch a game. They also have free hot dogs on Sundays. Free is my favorite word. This is a DIVE BAR so it's got that dingy, dark, kinda gross feeling so I feel really clean in comparison. Great for my self esteem and personal hygiene.

Seriously had one the worst experiences here last weekend & I didn't even get to buy a drink... The bouncer was clearly racist and made a "fresh off the boat" joke whilst checking our ids. He was adamant that my friend was not 25 and had the audacity to revoke the rest of my groups entry. Which was embarrassing because I was hosting a large group of people from out of state. Way to give them the San Franciscan Hello with a racial remark. By the way, the bouncer is a white guy with dreadlocks... so that explains a lot. Maybe next time I'll be able experience the inside of the bar & buy a drink. Choose wisely on whom you hire. Be professional. You're running a business.

DIVE BAR FOR PEOPLE ... AND DOGS. came here with a few friends for SF Giants game #5. Despite the rowdy overpacked bar due to the festivities and excitement, it was such a great atmosphere. wasn't much to see as we were crammed to our tables in the back but TV was visible in all angle, good stuff. Bar serves was fast. Unfortunately NO FOOD but you can bring your own food in. Mission is food haven so all works well. The most intersting thing would be dogs. Dogs outside, dogs inside. I felt like "karma" was my own dog as she walked around the bar like a regular. This is a bit strange, but i love that about this place. OH and they server Pear Cider!!!!!!

Dive bar with open dog policy! All the random nights I've come here, I've always managed to see 1-2 dogs lurking about~ which is the BEST. I also love that they have a wall FULL of dog portraits. Decent prices for drinks, pool tables, and pac man machine in the back. Only wish that there's more seating when it gets too crowded. TLDR: such doge, much dive.

I stopped here last summer for a cold beer before heading back to the office from a jobsite. I found it to be a nice dark and quiet bar that you could just stop in for a pint without the regulars staring you down. I learned about Kilowatt beause they are an AFM sponsor. I had hoped to run in to my friend Cliff, who's neither white, obnoxious, or a mailman. Cheers!

A bartender physically assaulted me (grabed a cup out of my literal mouth and spilled it on me) at 1:50 am. Proceeded to comment about how I "have to be at work at Google tomorrow". If you're into super judgemental and off-putting staff, this place might be for you. Honestly, I don't write positive or negative reviews about places often, but this guy was such a complete douche that in felt it was necessary. If you want a dive bar in the area with actual decent people behind the bar, go to Delirium. At least they treat their customers like human beings. The staff at Kilowatt make this place complete garbage.

Many years spent at this dive bar in the Mission, enjoy the red lights, pool table and drinks. Stop by for a taste, casual and cozy.

Well, this is a straight up dive bar with booths you can chill in. The bartenders were nice and it's in a good location in the Mission. They had some dark beer I really enjoyed but I forgot the name.

Super reasonable prices on beer! During happy hour (until 7 on Saturday) just about all the pints were $3.50. They had several craft beer options, including Stone, Bear Republic, New Belgium. Dog friendly. No food, but you can bring food in. TVs for sports. Cash only, so get ready for that annoyance.