The Milk bar

I had a really great time at this establishment. I was in San Francisco on a California road trip & stopped in mainly because of the name. Growing up I used to go to this live music bar in my hometown & it was called the Milkbar as well, so I had to poke my head in. I was there 30m after it opened on a Tuesday & was the first & only customer for quite some time. Myself & the very welcoming bartender Denali chatted for a hour or 2 about everything under the sun & was the definition of a down to earth human being. I had to leave before the comedy show but I will definitely check this place out when I find myself in SF again.

Went here for Comedy standup show. Bar is good for boys hangout. Comedy stand up is free every Thursday Friday and Saturday.

I was there to support a friends band. Admission included stand-up comedy which was a nice surprise. The service at the door was great! I didn't order anything at the bar. I'll go again. 4 stars

Kirk is the man. I have never had a better, more attentive, talented mixologist. Ever. In any city. The man is a born bartender. The music is great. The atmosphere is fantastic. But its the staff that does it.

No complaints about the bar staff, drinks, etc. but they don't pay comedians for their shows. Your tips don't go to the comedians, any door cover doesn't go to the comedians, you buying minimum drinks for a show doesn't go to comedians. Will change my review when that behavior changes or Connor doesn't run the shows anymore when he doesn't even live in the city and benefits only his pocket and the bar.

Credit card Overcharged!(scam) We went on a comedy night we had $20 for cover which included two drinks. I bought only one Heineken. I was charged $26 for that night. This happened with my friend too! So this is not a mistake, they do this by design and hope you wouldn't look closely.

This is a cool spot. There was a comedy show here that wasn't bad.

Love the flavors. They have some pretty unique desserts although they tend to be sweeter than I would like them to be.

Definitely not a fan of the drinks here, but the comedy show isn't bad. There is a cover of $20/pp. Small and intimate setting. You can bring outside food in :) Thanks!

Went to milk bar on a sunday night for a fun comedy show + drinks. Comedy show started at roughly 7:30 pm, tickets are free but they do ask for $10-20 in donations (cash or venmo!) Quite an enjoyable night overall :))

I almost never write negative reviews, but I don't know what else can be said. We visited The Milk Bar to see our friend's band perform on a Friday night. Since we arrived early, a comedy show was still going on so we decided to grab drinks at the bar. The place was relatively busy and consistently getting busier, but there was only one bartender (who looked visibly stressed), so getting an order in was a challenge. I also have to mention that as soon as we walked in, we were hit with an awful smell - very clearly the smell of vomit. I don't know if someone had thrown up earlier in the night, but it had definitely not been cleaned up sufficiently. Every single person walking into the bar commented on it, and it was just wafting through the entire space. The floors were also sticky and the bathrooms were far from clean. The drink prices were fair but one beer that my friend ordered was completely skunked - literally tasted nothing resembling a Bud Lite. Unfortunately, we couldn't even exchange it due to the understaffed bar. Once the show actually began, they added a second bartender, but even that wasn't nearly enough to keep up with demand. As a music venue, I had no issue with the place. Their sound setup seemed sophisticated and the show was a blast. I also really liked the photobooth near the entrance - such a cute touch! But overall, between the smell, hygiene issues, and staffing shortage, I don't plan on returning.

It's a Wednesday night at the bar. I do not intend to get wasted, haven't drank anything except a Vietnamese coffee that isn't working so I decide to take a quick nap upright at the table. I even paid for my ticket to see my boyfriend play with his band at 8:30-9pm. I just got off a full time shift and have been studying for school until 4am the night before. The gaurd came up to me and told me if I want to sleep then I should just go home. Again, I haven't drank a thing. I even did some school work while I was here. Two other friends witnessed this. Well now I am going to drink a bit and relax but the interaction was completely unnecessary. Who knows, maybe he might kick me out so I'll just kill the bad vibes with kindness. Leave hardworking band supporters alone! And don't take it out on the band either I hope. Great bar otherwise, my mom's been coming here since way back too. I hope to leave a better review next time. Time stamp: April 24, 2024

Comedy show was fantastic! Well... mostly fantastic. I'm the easy to please audience member, so I was laughing the whole time but some of those laughs were just to fill the silence ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The drinks were fairly priced, but very standard. "Haight Debates" is a fantastic concept, I will probably be coming back for the Tuesday night show in the future!

FREE THE LITTLE MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is great bar that's always hosting the hottest events (hot for sf standards, so like an LA 6 and sf 10) there's comedy, good bands, great vibes. HOWEVER......I know there is a little man that is trapped in the air vent whose only job is to throw up every 3-5 minutes. The place reeks of fresh vomit and this is the only explanation. Please help spread the word to FREE THE LITTLE VOMIT MAN! He deserves to puke in an Uber like the rest of us! But seriously can y'all fix the puke smell? It's so bad lol.

Ugh. I went to the comedy night on Friday Feb 9th with my partner. I wanted to take him out on a fun date & I planned to pay for everything. I got tickets beforehand and at no point do they tell you there is a 2 drink minimum per person. At the door they make you pay upfront for 4 drinks, like why not just include it in the ticket price instead of surprising people? My partner is sober so I would have appreciated transparency. That's already bad enough but the door guy disregarded me entirely when I tried to pay and was just staring at my partner & judging him for not paying. I literally had to say, "HeLLOo can you stop glaring at him please?? I'm trying to pay." What an outdated & misogynistic way of handling that situation, made me extremely uncomfortable and made my partner feel bad for no reason. Gross. Will not be coming back.

Charge for events that don't even occur! When we walked in they didn't even check ID or ticket proof. Dj didn't start until 11 30 even though it said event was at 10pm. Event did not play music that was advertised on flyer Guy with bushy hair was friendly and gave strong drinks Guy with buzz cut was rude

Went to milk bar for a fun comedy show and had a great time! Strong drinks and friendly people in a large space. Can't wait to go there again!

I've been a few times, and sadly have encountered some rude folks that take tix during events, and one very rude bartender. Bartenders- I know deal with a lot of b.s. but to have zero patience is something else. Now I like to explore comedy shows, which are *free* on DotheBay, Eventbrite, etc. But the bar requires $20 / 2 drinks min. I'm trying to quit drinking and just enjoy a show for my own well being. (and no it's not impossible for a sober person to enjoy shows in bars... don't be ridiculous)

My friend and I went to the free comedy show at the Milk Bar and had a great time! The drinks were great, staff was friendly, and the comedy show was a fun experience. Unfortunately we had an issue with being overcharged at the end of the night for two drinks we didn't order. We all had a great time but the overcharge left a sour taste in my mouth. I followed up with Milk Bar the following day and Louie, the Bar Manager, went out of his way to make things right. He took the mistake personally, even though he wasn't the one who made it, and did everything he could to make sure my friend and I were properly refunded. His kindness, professionalism, and persistence restored my positive experience and feelings towards the Milk Bar. Louie really cared and went out of his way to make things right.

Oh, Milk Bar. I've had some blurry nights, but I've also had some super fun rangers as well at Mill Bar. Depending on the night/day of the week this place can be crackin' or straight up bootsie. My cousin's and I used to enjoy spending our Tuesday nights here, for Reggae Night. Lol. With that said, we'd arrive just a little before 11 and it would slightly full- by mignight this place was not only full of people but full of smoke from you know what. If you're okay with going home smelling like tree, then Tuesday's won't be that bad for you. The music is great; you'll be sweating from all the dancing you'll be doing! The layout of Milk Bar feels spacious, even when it gets "crowded." When you walk in the bar is to the left, there are tables and seats to the right and directly to the back you have the dark dance floor and the performers/DJ stage. The bar accepts cash/card.

The most bizarre and bumming experience to date! I was going to attend a friend's show. I go there early to meet friends there, and the door man for some strange reason? Refuse to let me go in, I did not even get close enough to the door, had no interaction with this person whatsoever, ever in my life?! I hadn't uttered a word, this person was super hostile and aggressive for only God knows the reason. I tried to appeal to him, I even said to him, that maybe he had me mixed up with someone else? Nothing was going to sway him from his mind set. So rather than push it, and get other's involved. I went my own way vowed to never go this place ever again, if this how they present their business. Mind those who could be reading this, I had not been to the Milk Bar in at least 7 to 8 years, and I have lived in the area for over 30 years off and on, so go figure?! No go!

I just visited the Milk Bar on Haight st. for their free comedy show. My friends and I went on a Thursday evening, and we bought two drinks tickets at the door ($20 total, required for the show). We saw 4-5 different acts,all of which were funny. Each speaker held their own in front of our small audience. Afterwards the bar hosts karaoke. It was not a particularly busy night for us, but I saw some reviews for much more popular evenings. I niche event that costs you less than a few for two bar drinks, I recommend!

Went to The Milk Bar last weekend, and the bartender was acting really shady and overcharged me for my drink. After I paid for my drink, he went outside for a smoke break without giving me my credit card back. When he came back from his smoke, I asked him for my card, which he said he already gave me. He then went to "look for it" and gave it back to me with no receipt. I then asked for my receipt, which he said he already gave me. Once I got my receipt after asking for it several times, I tipped this guy 10%, and took a picture. I checked my bank statement a few days later and saw that I was overcharged from The Milk Bar. The bartender decided to tip himself an extra $5 on top of the tip I already gave. I know $5 isn't a big deal, but that's still stealing. I also paid a $10 cover to get into this place. I tried calling the bar several times and never got through to talk to anyone. I definitely will not be going back, and will warn my friends about going here. There are plenty of better bars/venues in SF that don't have thieving bartenders.

Awesome time just in the city grabbing a "quick one" of everything! Food beverage.. yeahhhh!!! Great adult beverage at Milk Bar. Thank you to the Alec (yes yes great mixing my cocktail bar star). Amazing hottie Jocilyn barmaid extraordinaire--- thank you guuuuurl for keeping the jams going, and making the vibe so right. See this crew again real soon. Get here fast if your in SF and want COVID safe jamming touchdown with your cocktail.

Ok so when the bands play in the back room it is loud but what do you expect its a live band. The bartenders serve up some awesome drinks and keep the partygoers happy. Great local bands get to perform on stage giving them what could be their big break. Stop in and order a IPA or a top shelf well drink while you get to listen to what could be your next favorite band.

I went to Milk Bar for the first time for a comedy show last night -- the tickets were free online, but I don't think it was made explicitly clear enough that there would be a $20 required payment at the door, which covered the 2 drink minimum. I hadn't been planning on ordering anything, but since the $20 included 2 drinks, I ordered two gin and tonics, which were pretty standard. The bartender was very kind! There were chairs set up for the comedy show, which was separated from the rest of the bar by a curtain. Other people hung out by the bar outside, which was a little messy and didn't have the most well decorated or spacious interior. The space was shockingly small, but luckily there weren't too many people there. If your goal is to attend an event, the space isn't bad at all, nor are the drinks. I gave it 3 stars because I've seen better bars in SF -- not a bad place, but not the best either!

This is a super fun spot for comedy nights and/or trivia nights! I have come here multiple times with roommates and there's a local crowd who enjoys their events. In addition to throwing events, they also have very reasonably priced drinks. Every neighborhood needs a reliable, casual spot and this one fulfills it for my group.

For all my friends who don't drink - Last month, I went to The Milk Bar in the Haight & asked the bartender for a nonalcoholic drink right after my friend ordered a beer. He told me I had to be above 21 to be inside and asked for my ID which I had already shown at the door. He didn't card my friend but carded me on the basis that I wanted something without alcohol. I showed him my ID but he was a total jerk about the whole thing. Just because someone comes to a bar & doesn't want alcohol doesn't mean you need to be rude. Additionally, the non-alcoholic options he offered me weren't great. Besides the service issue, everything else was fine.

Probably the worst bar you could go to in the city. Avoid at all cost. Absolutely ruined our friends birthday with trash music and terrible service. Don't go here

This place promises events that have nothing to do with what is promoted also bartenders here are drunk and rude don't come here I came here to support local artists but the event that was "Promoted" had nothing to do with what they were promoting like I said before not to mention the security didn't care to check ids or tickets its embarrassing honestly I have never ever seen such a trash storm...sad

* music was so so * mix of music could have been better * drinks were so so * could use a more dance hall song selection People do come to hear the new versions of reggae. * sound check may help sounded like they were about to blow out a speaker.

a message to the owner. we tried to attend your bar on 10/28/23 & your bouncer was beyond rude. he asked us to wait outside (weird but understandable) (we were the only people outside & maybe 10 people were in the bar) & then he sat at the bar for about 5 minutes screwing around before he even approached us. you would have a lot more customers if you had more welcoming staff. didn't spend a dime at the establishment

My five stars goes to Erik Ross the manager. I greatly enjoyed working with him on having a band perform at the Milk Bar and found him to be a positive, caring force on the music scene. Very easy to get along with and a total joy to do business with. Thank you so much Erik and look forward to talking to you soon!

always a good time. the bartenders are fun & friendly. They don't have milk, trust me. I asked for a white russian. So name is a little deceiving but love the place anyways.

I live the semi-outdoorsiness in the age of Covid. The bands they book are good and the cover is reasonable. The drinks are good. I'd give them another star if they had a better selection of NA beer and NA drinks that aren't chock full of sugar.

This is one of the BEST bars in SF. Every night there's either an amazing band on tour or a world renown comedian trying out new material before a set. This is the spot they will talk about in 10 years as the nursery where the lot of major entertainers made their mark. This is Second City and Holy City Zoo mixed with the I-Beam and Nightbreak booked by Bill Graham himself. This is where you see entertainers in their natural element. No other venue in SF sources talent like this club. Word to the wise, take pictures, no one will believe you saw XX when they were just coming up. Pictures worth their weight in gold. Believe me. I LOVE the bartenders, managers and audio engineers. They're individually unique yet all have the same goal, to create an amazing experience. (Of course if you're a dick, you'll be treated as such. Word of caution if you can't handle your liquids, need your IPA in a sippy cup or someone to hold your hair while you prove you can't handle your liquids, stay in the Triangle. Y'all fuck up a good vibe with your insecure conformities and adulting issues.) This is a bar for kind hearted imbibers intent on seeing bands that in 5 years may sweep the Grammy's or daring to have their funny bone tickled by the next SNL cast member. Go. I promise you'll have an amazing time.

UPDATE: After 3 months of asking for payment, letting him know I'll be taking him to court for nonpayment, and posting a negative review, I finally got paid. Erik also demanded I take down this review or he'll talk to a lawyer about possibly suing me for libel/defamation. Sorry, that's not how it works. I appreciate finally getting paid, and I'm glad to update my review, but I should've never had to wait that long, and I'll never be compensated for all the time I wasted. If you're sensitive to negative reviews, pay people you hire on time, or don't hire them in the first place. I consider this matter closed and expect to get no more emails from you, threatening or otherwise. Original review: I'm sorry to say that Erik Ross, Milk Bar's general manager, is a dishonest person. After three months of asking and waiting to get paid for promotional work I did for his bar, still no payment. It's not that he denies he owes me, it's that he can't quite get himself to pay it. It's time to take him to court.

My friends and I went to the 22 & good 4 u (Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo music) dance party. We bought tickets ahead of time and all lined up as a group of girls. One of my friends who is 24 years old has a Michigan driver's license, and the bouncer was giving her a hard time about her ID. At first it seemed somewhat standard, with him checking with a blacklight and telling her it looked fake. Then, he spent several minutes mansplaining to her why it was fake, even though she told him it was real. He told her she needed to prove it was his before giving it back to her, even after she said she didn't even care about going into the event anymore, and when she didn't have another form with her (i.e. she didn't think to bring her passport to a bar), he said she could call the police to get her ID back. He even walked into the bar at one point with her ID, and we had to tell the ticket guy to bring him back because he was holding onto her very real drivers license. He was incredibly argumentative to us, yelling at me for being rude to him. We finally got in when she found a picture of her expired license on her phone to prove her ID was real. Once inside, we were minding our own business and about to join our friends, and the bouncer shows up and started being aggressively in my face, taunting me and asking if I had a problem with him. For such a low key event, this bouncer was absolutely out of control on a power trip and inappropriately holding onto REAL licenses, which proves to be a huge problem for people in the city.

I had a great first time here. My friends got us tickets for a comedy show and it was possibly the best deal in the city ($25 for the show and includes 2 drinks and a cheese quesadilla). I was shocked at the price for everything included. The comedy show itself was a little hit-or-miss but there were several hilarious comedians that made it worthwhile.

If you are looking for live music in Haight Ashbury, beside Club Deluxe, Milk Bar is the place to go. To be honest, it is a little grimy. I went here on a first date the first time I came here, and that was not the best move. They have comedy shows weekly, and live music on the weekend. Pretty much the only place you can dance in Haight Ashbury. If you are bar hopping on Haight Street, I would definitely check it out, but not really worth driving across town to come here in my eyes.

I've come here lots of times and only do when I want to support up-and-coming artists. I've come for the free comedy and to see friends perform music. Milk Bar is one of the "support your friends"-type bars, where your musician friends will debut their band or solo acts. It's kind of a warm-up place to do so, much like Neck of the Woods or Elbo Room (which will be gone January 1st so sad). A smaller venue to give performing on stage a go? Thats a great concept why only one star? Because like every other bar and business establishment, Milk Bar only cares about one thing and that's their bottom line. But unlike other places, it's the *only* thing that matters to them, but not enough for the staff and owner to give good customer service, and as a patron you end up feeling like cattle. The cheapest drink to get at the bar is $8 and it's a shitty beer. You'll be asked to pay $10 to see one local band essentially practice onstage who will play 3 songs and call it a night. The photo booth will eat your money because it's been without film for who knows how long and the bartender will tell you to take it up with the company who runs it to get a refund (why not just put tape over the dollar slot or put up a sign that it's out of film?). There are plenty of superior bars on Haight, don't bother with this one if you can help it.

Andrew is hands down the best bartender I've been served by. Not only does he make you feel included/welcome (we aren't from SF) but, he makes amazing drinks. If you're in San Francisco do yourself a favor and get a drink at the milk bar.

Went to the Thursday night comedy show - had a blast!! Tickets were such a deal, you get a table, 2 drinks, and food included in your ticket price. Comedians were great - v funny and entertaining, it was really nice to have a semi normal night out, given COVID restrictions, Milk Bar made it work! Comedians performed on the side walk facing out to the well lit outdoor dining area. Overall, had a great time. PS If there's any way to get an additional speaker or make the existing one a bit louder that'd be helpful! Sometimes it was just a bit tough to hear the comedians given their masks (which I'm glad they're wearing!) and all the hustle on Haight street.

The Milk Bar offers a free comedy show every first Tuesday of the month and my boyfriend and I went here to check it out. We got a beer and sat down for the show which started around 8PM. The improv comedy show was decent. There was some really funny comics and some that needed to work on being less awkward. I must say, improv comedy is hard so props to them! Oh, in the men's bathroom, the urinal is waaaaay too close to the sink and there's no divider lol.

I have a friend who is obsessed with this place and always insists on coming here, so I finally checked it out. Cool place! Super chill venue, good for any type of evening from dancing to comedy. On that note, I really do need to come here more often because I just learned that there are comedy nights here! My friend just comes for the dancing. Bartenders are cool. Music is awesome. Came here with my boyfriend, and we enjoyed a beer at the bar before continuing on our date night. No complaints here. I could see why my friend has become a regular at Milk Bar!

A-OK. It IS a dive with $8 beers. The men's room IS one step above public lavs in Roman coffee shops. But the comedy acts were quite good, so it's A-OK in my book!

Cool little spot that been around the height for a long time. Its a good dive bar to have a drink at height street. They do need to work on the cleaning part of the bar and bathrooms. But overall just a regular dive bar.

I was trying to use the bathroom and ALL of a sudden the whole club was SUPER PACKED. The line to the womens bathroom was madness, so I said, "eff that, different packages but they still do the same thing!" and convened to the men's room. Luckily the line wasn't long and got the only stall that was blocked by a wall in under 1 minute. Unfortunately, a few females got the same idea and started careening towards MY STALL. Holy smokes. I can't pee under that kind of pressure! Moral of this story: It's packed, pee before you go, or pee really fast. This joint is cracking.

Milk just has a magical way of coming back into my life at those much needed moments. It's been a bit of a strange week and walking down Haight Street tonight after stopping into Haight Street Market I couldn't help but grin when I heard some solid bluegrass/folk pouring out of Milk. Despite carrying a big bag of groceries, many of which needed to be refrigerated, I couldn't resist popping into Milk and getting my jam on for a little. I love how there's no cover on Sundays, there's usually solid live music, and how they even keep hula-hoops on handy by the front. I hula-hooped that strange week right into next week. Trust.

Had a party here and everyone who came was charged different cover. Will not be having future events here due to this. Don't mind paying cover for a band, but when you change it up on everyone in a group it gets annoying and makes it seem like you are ripping off half the people. 9pm - $10 10pm - $5 10:15pm - $10 10:45pm - $5 11:00pm - no cover

Your experience here will undoubtedly depend on the day of the week and whom you go with, but for a Wednesday night, this place was awesome. A few friends and I went to see my friend's band Rio Rio perform, and if there was air conditioning, this would be the perfect place. Located on Haight Street, next to Whole Foods, we enjoyed the casual, friendly vibe. Drinks were moderately priced ($6 for a beer) and the music was great. As you walk in there's a large bar to the left and white booths to the right. In the back there's a decently sized stage for live performances. We asked why they were called The Milk Bar, but it was just in reference to a band the owner used to play in. Aside from the fact that we went on one of the hottest days of the year and the AC wasn't on, we had a great time hanging out and dancing to the live bands. We registered through Facebook (through Eventbrite) and got in for free. Cover is usually just $5. Would definitely go back for a fun evening.

Can be extremely crowded, so if you have issues with personal space (as in, you need some) this may not be the best spot for you. Then again, you might get lucky and be offered a piggy back ride by an extremely tall basketball player (a pro in Japan) which will alleviate all crowd issues, because you'll simply rise above them.

I was pleasantly surprised with my experience here!!! Wandered over with a group of friends on a Friday night and was told there was a cover to support the DJs. Wasn't too thrilled about that and almost left, but they ended up charging us significantly less to get us in. First thing I noticed was a trio of AT-ATs above the store. Being a huge Star Wars geek, that made my soul happy. The music was some sort of awesome old-school swinging music which allowed me to dance like a complete idiot and not look totally unapproachable and un-cool. My friends had a great time dancing off our drinks and we left extremely happy with how the night had gone. I would definitely come back again although I will bring cash in case there's another cover charge (I'm hoping not)!!!

Warning: I've only been to Milk Bar for Queen is Dead, so this review will probably be heavily influenced by my experience at that night. First, I'm not really into the location for Milk Bar. If you're going to be at this bar til close, there's no muni line running back to my house. So while you can get there easily from the mission, duboce or castro earlier in the night, you're looking at a long walk or cab on the way home. Next, I'm not keen on the crowd that's attracted here. It's just my best guess that the bar itself brings in this crowd, because it's certainly not the usual sect you see for britpop nights elsewhere. Think college kids. But it's not all bad here. I really enjoy the way Milk Bar is divided up. In the front of the bar, there's a lot of room at the bar and couches to just hang out and have a mellow night, if you so choose. In the back, you've got the dance floor, which is a nice size and easy to move around in. Also, the drink (read: beer) selection was very acceptable. I don't remember everything on tap, but there was enough choice to keep me entertained through the night. I doubt I'll be here on any sort of regular basis, but I wouldn't mind coming out for Queen is Dead once in a while.

This place is ghetto, yo! But I have to admit that the music was really good - Not your typical 20 songs on repeat that you'd hear in your average hiphop club. The crowd was very diverse too - They're not the most friendliest people but at least they're not very ghetto. JONASAPPROVED!

Amazing music, comedy, and drinks. Best place for Friday and Saturday night hangouts and partying. Great Monday Trivia. Been to a bunch- landing here from now on.

WOW. Finally found a club that plays great underground hip-hop. It brought a tear to my eye when I heard Nas' NY State of Mind playing LOL. Forget about Skylark, this the place. The female bartender mixed a very good 'liquid coccaine' and 'surfer on acid'! Drink prices were decent too. There are some booths you and you're friends to sit. This IS MY FAVORITE SPOT NOW. Should be your fave spot too if you're into underground hip-hop. It's on point for real.