haha. since when can you smoke cig's in a bar in CA? AT tempest, that's where it's still 1999 and the crowd was great. only stopped for a beer with a big crew. will def. be back again soon. read more

Cheap booze. Awesome food next door. Just a tad too dirty and pinch too sketchy.

Great dive bar, lots of space. They have high tables, normal tables, the bar, and a pool table in the middle. I hear the food is good too, but all I can speak to is the great moscow mules! read more

We appreciate Terry's good humor and support in the face of douche bags. I've always had a great experience here and the drinks are a fair price. Not to mention, the food next door is ace! read more

Picked up dinner at Box Kitchen, went in the bar for a seat and drinks. Clean, nice bartender, good prices. Will be back

Hidden gem. Typical bar food, decent prices, owners work on-site, staff is friendly. I like it, not easy to find little bars like this in SoMA, divey without being dirty. read more

This place kicks ass! Talk about a hidden gem, yeah this place is grimy and a totally dive, but hey if you're a local looking to chill and not sweat the details, you will love this place. read more

Love this place even though they allowed smoking inside. The place is relatively small but lively. Great setup for live music! You just have to make sure you get the right crowd to be there... read more

Talk about a hole in the wall joint... This would be it. But there are some great gems here, like $2 PBR on draft (yeah, thats right on draft, not in a can), bacon avocado burger, and a great pool table in the middle of it all. A great place for a nice quiet afternoon lunch. read more

It's a dive, but it's my kinda dive. The bar tenders are very friendly when I come here for lunch and so I'm a fan. It's great to have BOX restaurant attached so you can get pretty good food while you enjoy a few drinks. They always have some sorta sports on their screens. read more

Cheap drinks, decent beer selection and an eclectic crowd. I'm glad to have found this fun little dive bar so close to home.

The chillest. Solid beer selection (affordable). Lots of seating. Thumbs up.

Divey bar in the SOMA area. Pool table, cool music, tons of TVs. I would return here to watch a game, to chill with friends, even a birthday drinks night. read more

Drinks are so cheap here! The place is kinda hard to find. It's like in this dark alley by itself and you would see people hanging out outside all drunk. But give it a chance and go inside... read more

I love this place, it has a cool vibe, a pool table and can't beat PBR for $2. The only downside is that it is always crazy packed and I wish it had more than one pool table. It basically is the start off spot for me and my boys, we get a few drinks and then head out for the rest of the night. read more

Crowded, but fun and a great value! The long islands are strong and cheap, the atmosphere dive-y and grungy, and the food stand outside makes the case for the Tempest. I can't tell you how awesome it is to enjoy a box of their garlic fries while sucking down a beer or a cocktail and watching people maneuver their pool cues around the crowds. Would recommend any night of the week. read more

Only stopped in here for drinks after work late night. Friendly staff, mixed crowd, fun environment. Couple of pool tables. Definitely some history in this place. Drinks were priced well, nothing to write home about, good for small group. read more

I like the Tempest. Sure, it's not the fanciest place, but it is friendly and unpretentious. And you have to love those little tucked-away places like this that have a full bar AND serve food. We didn't get a chance to try the food here when we came, but we did have drinks and were served by the owner himself. I think that if you like places like Zeitgeist, you might like this place, too. read more

Pool! And Lenna & Tony are wonderful awesome and excellent! They'll make you laugh, it's like hanging with friends. oh wait.... they are my friends. (so this is biased) Fun place to be. So thankful I can have a smoke indoors. Cheap drinks and in the middle of the city. read more

I was dragged here by two of my cork workers and I'm glad they did, tempest what a cheap place to get f"ed up! Ok, so honestly this place is not very diverse at all, but who cares when your the only black person you get all the attention even better! I mean the bar tenders were dwn to earth hard core kinda peeps and they make there drinks strong u get what u pay for! Soo come here if u wanna get f"ed up and meet some hipsters but seriously if your a snob dnt come here you will and can get your ass beat at tempest I promise maybe you should go to swig instead! read more

The menu changes weekly. Food is excellent for a bar, cleanliness not so sure. The burger is a must try. Service, needs improvement. Once your food arrives make sure you ask for whatever else condiments you need because chances are your waiter may not come around ever again. Ask for two or three glasses of water, first because that's your last chance. They use to give complimentary cookies or brownies once you're given your dining bill, not anymore. read more

Bartenders are nice and they have good specials. Why don't they have happy hours though? Always sports going on in the background which is nice. read more

Yes, I loved it. Cheap whiskey ginger ($4) and good grub next door. Diverse, chill crowd. I'll be back.

Great place!!! A+++. Good food, great drinks, cool atmosphere. 2 issues- had an issue with how to get to it exactly/parking & the pool table doesnt really fit when the tables are full. Otherwise no complaints ;) read more

What can you say about a dive bar? It's my kinda place, dim lights, good music, cheap drinks and a pool table. They also serve some great bar food, pretty much everything is deep friend and covered on aioli. The bathrooms are covered in graffiti but are surprisingly clean for a dive bar. You will notice often that around 3-4 pm there are a good amount of people sitting at the bar, this is an industry place for sure, servers, line cooks, bar tenders and chefs all take a seat at this bar. Also it's a dog friendly bar. read more

Great bar! They've got to pool tables and great bar food! The fried pickles were surprisingly awesome! Great place for drinks with friends

Chicken in a waffle was a good concept. Nothing special, felt mine was a little dry. I will comment on the bar though and say that $5 shots of Jameson are quite enticing. read more

Good burger nice atmosphere French fries are pretty dam good salads are pretty good as well nice place to chill and chat. My server disappeared on us lol so yeah minus one star. read more

Vacation from Denver: came here was a little worried about the location when uber dropped us off had a party of 4. Very small bar no seating for my group on a Friday which must meant its a cool spot right? No. Pool table in the middle of the walk way tables are 2 seaters but with 4 chairs. Rock jux box music not my style. Read other reviews about the food decided to stay: chicken toastda was actually pretty good. Kinda hard to bring it over to the bar side with timing it out right so its not soggy. would not go back though read more

pros: cheap drink specials, great food next door, pool table, wide selection of good beers. cons: music is not live, constant changing drink menu (hard to know what to ever expect), staff can be rude depending on whose the bartender, very divey! read more

Love this place! A friend and I were in SF over the weekend and found this dive by luck. Beer is cold, crowd is great, and you can smoke inside! Very laid back and worth the hunt to find! read more

If you're looking for a place that is super legit. This is it. You become family the minute you walk through the door, the people are hella real. I went by myself and met the owners, chased some down with fellow sport fans, held conversations while listening to sweet beats in the background, cheered on a fav. team and had a good time for a Sunday night just imagine other nights lol. It's located in a alley but its well worth the discovery. read more

Cheap drinks , cool bartenders, makes for a good time. They also serve food next door. Have yet to try food though.

This would be an Anthony Bourdain favorite if he knew about it. Cheap dive bar with, although rough looking crowd, nicest people ever. Hipster nation for sure, but besides the cheap drinks I can get here, is the AMAZING kitchen they have connected to it! I just had potato skins the other day with (if I recall correctly) slow cooked pork and chicken topped with delicatessen cheeses and quail egg... seriously the best potato skins I've ever had! I've had the burger and chicken sando before too... all fantastic! read more

Awesome bar with good cheap drinks. The food joint next door has really good food too. The bar also has free food on Fridays.

They have cheap drinks, great food, and a fun staff. This one of my favorite dive bars. It can get pretty packed here though

Perfect place for me and co-worker hairstylist/esthetician's can go to unwind from the week. The jukebox is always slappin some good hip-hop. With friendly bartenders like this it's no wonder why the vibe is good. Bikes hang from the ceiling and laughter comes from all over. read more

Super fun and a great beer selection. I had the BLT for lunch and the bacon was great. I would for sure recommend checking out.

For the area, this is a great little dive bar. It reminds me of my favorite watering hole, Spoons, in Walnut Creek. Good drink prices, fun and diverse crowd, no need to be pretentious. Cool place to go, good food next door, the only problem is it can get ridiculously packed, which I suppose may not be a bad thing, a few more visits may improve my view. read more

Came into town for a convention and so glad I found this dive. It's super chill, God music, good people, great brew selections and good prices. Reminds me of a few places on the east coast. Definitely come here if you have time to try some hearty libations and a short, delectable street-cart style menu at kitchen next door. Great job guys! Keep this place up. read more