Li Po Cocktail Lounge
Cocktail bar · Chinatown
916 Grant Ave, San Francisco, CA 94108
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Highlights
Trademarked Chinese Mai Tais, dive bar vibe, historic Chinatown nightlife
Trademarked Chinese Mai Tais, dive bar vibe, historic Chinatown nightlife
"Our fondness for this Chinatown watering hole may in part rise from memories of the (literally) underground dance parties that took place here in the aughts. Nonetheless, this dive bar, founded in the 1930s and named after the Tang Dynasty poet, is a place to lubricate yourself with Chinese Mai Tai's and imaging yourself as Harrison Ford in any film that features him in a seedy, exotic bar scenario (which is many of them, no?)." - Volume
"The Mai Tais at this classic Chinatown dive are dangerously strong, so strong in fact that your vision might go blurry after just one. This place is an institution with an eclectic crowd of tourists, locals, and former fraternity stars who are always up for starting conversations with strangers. At just $12 a Mai Tai, this is one of the best drink bargains in the whole city—so go ahead and make some bad decisions. Everyone else here is too." - julia chen 1, patrick wong, lani conway, ricky rodriguez
"This classic Chinatown dive is an institution with an eclectic crowd of tourists, locals, and former fraternity stars who are always up for starting conversations with strangers. At just $12 a Mai Tai, this is one of the best drink bargains in the whole city—so go ahead and take a seat on the one of couches that seem like they’ve also been here since 1937." - julia chen 1, lani conway, ricky rodriguez
"Your old coworker’s best friend wants you to take her out while she’s here. She’s a big fans of clubs, but you can’t do that all the time - inhaling champagne sparkler-smoke and fake fog is hazardous to your health - and living here means finding more affordable ways to have fun. Plus, clubs are kind of the same everywhere. If you still want a fun night out, take her to Li Po Lounge in Chinatown. Get a few mai tais, find some seats upstairs or in the basement, and enjoy being somewhere that could only exist in San Francisco." - will kamensky
"Unlike most other spots in this guide, Li Po Cocktail Lounge is never filled to the brim. That doesn’t matter because, on any day of the week, you’re certain to run into someone who is looking for the strongest mai tai in town and a piece of Chinatown history—and those are always the types of people with the best stories. Also known as our types of people." - ricky rodriguez, julia chen 1
