Bourbon & Branch is a Prohibition-themed speakeasy on the corner of Jones and O'Farrell, hidden behind an unmarked door beneath a sign that still reads "Anti-Saloon League." Entry is by reservation and password, after which you step into a dim, intimate warren of booths, pressed-tin ceilings, and serious cocktails. The building has real bootlegging history — it operated as an illegal saloon during Prohibition, complete with escape tunnels — which the bar leans into with house rules about hushed voices and no photography.
The drinks are expertly made and the atmosphere genuinely transporting, a deliberate pocket of old-world glamour in one of the city's grittier neighbourhoods. Book ahead, dress the part if you like, and treat it as a destination rather than a drop-in. It is among the bars credited with reviving San Francisco's craft-cocktail scene.