SOM

At first I was afraid…
I was petrified…
Just kidding… sort of…
A friend was having a birthday here so the boy and I hopped in a taxi, gave the driver the address to this bar and was asked if we were familiar with the area. He then proceeded to tell us about the names of the gangs in that area and how its a killing zone near there and warned us not to go wandering off and to be careful.
Ummm scary! –2 stars for location.
There was also a $ 5 cover before 11pm and the bar was cash only (–1 star… cover for Mission? no thanks!). There doesn’t seem to be a dress code since I saw people with baseball caps and hoodies inside. The DJ that night played some old skool hip hop and hip hop I’ve never heard of… some of which was not danceable to. The setup of the bar is basically a rectangle with the bar on one side and dance floor on the other. It got pretty crowded around midnight.
Skip. there are better bars in better areas.

³⁄₅ music is hit or miss –
so i love this place because depending on the DJ, it will be all your old school jams and just the right mix of baby making and shufflin. or it could be for your frat party, whatevs. so on a good night, expect to «OooHHHhhhHHH» with the rest of the slightly sweaty bodies as that one song from you know that one time way back when comes on, your eyes meet, and it’s on.
the space itself is chill, dance area is like a big rectangle, the bar runs across the whole room, and the smoke patio is a decent size also.

my friends and i were walkin back to our car from the BART when i heard some pretty decent music bumping out of this hole in the side of a building on our random trip up to the bay (im from LA).
so we stopped in to this blue lit room to find it completely empty. lol it was ok though, it was early, so we headed to the bar. drinks were kinda pricey, but it was what it was.
within an hour or so, the place was getting pretty packed. i ended up callin my friend who lives in SF and he was ecstatic that we ended up there and says he goes a lot. the music was AWESOME! they had that local yay area music, and mixed in some good olé LA bangers, so we were having a blast.
if we are in the bay, we will definitely be back SOM!

I like SOM a lot. Depending on which party you go to, the music is good and I always get my dance on. For those who think SOM sucks, make sure you check who is DJing before you go. That will determine the crowd of the party, and the music.
If a DJ named A-​RON is scheduled to DJ and you like old-​school and hip hop music, it will be a good party, and you should definitely come to SOM to get your dance on :)
PROS: Good size bar. Music is generally good (depends on DJs). Very chill atmosphere and works well in the Mission. Bathroom is very clean! Like to dance here a lot!
CONS: Drinks are too expensive. Wish they would accept credit cards.

Place looks clean, bathroom clean, Bar was so pleasing to the eyes, Floor Layout was good.
Only had my alcohol so can’t review if food is good. Music at the time we were there was HIP HOP which was good, Chuy was the DJ, only reason why we’re there and how we found the place.
Cover was only $ 5 that nite. Will go back if I have a big crowd of friends, who likes to party.

The drinks here are horrible. I hate the atmosphere. It’s incredibly crowded. I hope you never come here.
Only one of those statements is true.

This is a cool space — seeing as how the inside is large enough to host some amazing dance floor space. The bar is rather large and the drinks are prepared rather well. Smoking area outside if you’re into that. I just find it ridiculous to charge such a large cover charge. i know that everyone has to get paid but with so many other bars around the corner it’s hard to pay $ 10+ on certain nights.
Keep doing what you’re doing but charge less. That’s all we ask.

SOM is on hit!
Som offers an awesome happy hour! You’re bound to stay longer than you plan to. However, I’m often there later in the night for what always is a fun, memorable time!
The staff is always welcoming and accommodating. I have celebrated a few birthdays here and always felt welcomed and like fam! The cocktails are made to perfection and sometimes are on the strong side, which is perferable.
The crowd it attracts is diverse — definitely different each time I go, which is refreshing.
More importantly, Som’s taste for music is right up my alley — a different feel and genre each night… givin’ the crowd the big names in djs.
What can I say, SOM is where it’s at! See you soon!

I would’ve given this place a 3 and half stars if I could.
I went here for an ex-​coworkers birthday on an Friday night and had trouble finding the place. Like another Unilocaler wrote, it’s pretty dark outside.
The cover that night was 10 dollars and the establishment is cash only. One of the bartenders gave me a look when I pulled out my card and then pointed at a little sign on the counter. Well I’m sorry that I couldn’t read a tiny sign in a dimly lit bar. The drinks were fairly priced and decently sized but they had no cream for White Russians. Damn.
The main room is pretty spacious and there are seats lining the walls of the room. My friend’s party landed on a Brazilian themed night so the music reflected that. I didn’t much care for it but there’s plenty of room to dance.
Gotta love a joint that has clean and decent bathrooms. 1 Star.
There’s also a small «cage» outside for smokers. Seriously, there’s grating surrounding the front of the bar that prevents people from carrying their drinks on the street. I thought it was pretty cool as some of the homeless people walk by and do their spiels to earn a few bucks. I particularly liked a fellow who rapped about his troubles… then I challenged him to a rap battle and lost a dollar. 1 star.
At least when I went there, one of the girl bartenders is a cute blonde with short hair. That alone gets 1 star. As for the crowd… a mix of 20 – 40 year olds. And they’re friendly… most of them anyway. Half star.

I was very excited to go here because I had bought tickets to see Kreayshawn & the White Girl Mob this past weekend.
My first thoughts: it’s pretty fucking dark outside. Why aren’t there more street lights?
I was pleased to see there were two lines, one for pre sale ticketholders and the other for those who didn’t buy presale.
My sister and I got in quickly, but waited 10 minutes to get our bracelets. It was really dark inside. The venue is a decent size for intimate shows. The VIP smoking room is kind of cool and people in line can see the «it» people having fun. The stage wasn’t really high. The bar is nice and sturdy, though there were no bar stools to sit on. There was also a security guard manning the bathroom doors. Who does that? The bartender we had was kinda snotty, but I don’t blame him; I’m an asshole at work too.
I’ve never been to a rap show before, but I should have known not to show up right at 10 pm. Anyway, I waited for Kreayshawn to get on stage. I even started right in front of the stage, but as the night grew on, so did the crowd and that’s when the shoving started.
I used to work in a bar and had to deliver pizzas that I hand tossed on heavy ceramic plates over my head, navigating through dancing crowds but NEVER in my life have I been smushed, smashed, shoved, pushed this hard since the Vans Warped Tour back in 2003 or 2004. Oh, and my favorite thing about being pushed and shoved? the people in front of me turning around giving me a dirty look when clearly my feet aren’t touching the ground because I’m being pushed around so much.
Instead of being in «one big room filled with bad bitches,» I was in a big room, filled with tall dudes, quickly becoming a mad bitch. IF YOUR MAXIMUM OCCUPANCY IS 168, DON’T LET IN 300 PEOPLE. It’s a fire hazard and it causes negative reviews on your business like this one.
Kreayshawn finally took the stage about 2 & ½ hours later and not only could I not see her short ass on the short stage behind 6′ tall skater dudes, but I couldn’t hear her! I did not spend $ 48 on a roundtrip Amtrak ticket from Sacramento to get shoved around by DUDES, not mean bitches, but DUDES, and listen to a Kreayshawn track played twice in a row. Speaking of «bad bitches,» shout out to the petite blonde chick who was standing at the bar wearing 5″ platform black stilettos, then changed into black chucks. DUH. wtf are you doing at a rap show wearing stilettos? Did you not listen to Kreayshawn’s music? «Basic bitches wear that shit, so I don’t even bother.»
I guess paying $ 5 plus a $ 1.something surplus charge is paying too much for good sound. Or maybe I got what I paid for: crap. I’ve been to high school gymnasiums where the sound was better than what I experienced at Som. Another thing I was dumbfounded by: the lack of cell phone service in the ENTIRE venue. To use my phone, I had to walk outside and into a lane of traffic to get a signal. That’s ridiculous.
Som, I wanted to like you, because I love intimate shows and I wanted Kreayshawn’s first show to be special to me, but it wasn’t the case. The sound being horrible and the White Girl Mob not knowing what to do just made everyone look stupid.
I will say some good things though: Some of staff was really nice, the Hundreds staff was also nice. I enjoyed the fresh cut flowers on the bar which were delightfully fragrant and refreshing; it made me feel pretty just standing near them. I like the light ambiance; not too dark, not too bright, it’s perfect. Drink prices are stiff, but they serve tall cans of PBR, which is great for a poor putz like me. This joint is also 1 block away from 16^th street & Mission BART.
I am completely on the fence about this place. I’m disappointed by the sound and overcrowding, but I like the friendliness of some of the staff and the ambiance of the bar itself. I will definitely be back because I believe every business deserves a second chance.
Som, if you’re going to have another live show, please stay at capacity and let the lines grow outside. The more fun the people are having inside by not being shoved or smashed by rude, towering men, the more money they’re gonna spend and the likelihood of them returning is high. Also, get the sound fixed. The sound, the music, is why people come out in the first place.
I hope to have a better experience next time, but this time, just wasn’t what I expected.

Music was a bit weird throughout the night on the Saturday that we were there, but it did get much, much better toward the end.
What to love: (1) the cheaper bottle, (2) the ample seating area, (3) the not overly crowded bar, (4) our server who constantly checks in to make sure we aren’t thirsty from all that dancing and (5) the fact that the MIssion, 10 minutes away from the house, is way, way too far for the dumb Marina DBs to venture to.

What. The. Eff.
Five of us came through here last night for my birthday, after hearing awesome reviews of SOM. We were surprised to find that there was a line to get in. Really? A line to get in anywhere in the Mission? We figured it must be pretty fabulous if that is the case. So we stood in the cold for maybe ten minutes, then the line started moving. Once inside, there’s a cover. No big deal, right?
Beefy Door Man: thats $ 15.
Friend: What? Whoa. You want to hook us up? It’s my friends birthday. We’ve got five girls here.
BDM: Uhhhh whatever.
Friend: Excuse me?
BDM: NO!
Since we didn’t want to split up our group, we grudgingly paid, went in, and it was a shitshow from there. I felt like I was at one of those raves in SoMa ten years ago. Dark, industrial-​looking, concrete walls… with a slick and sexy cosmopolitan bar on the wall. What? weird. In fact, the rest of the night was weird. The music was confusing: DJ was playing an acid trip version of Destiny’s Child — «Survivor.» Dude. This is 2011. Please update your shit. thank you. The crowd was Tweeny Hipster, and some Awkwards all mashed up together. I got the sneaking suspicion that most of the kids were NOT quite 21. We did not pay $ 75 for cover to babysit a bunch of tweeny hipsters and tolerate drunk ‘tards dropping drinks on our clothing.
So disappointing. We were out in a record 20 minutes. The highlight of the evening was the two tweeny hipsters outside begging us to please come to Mezzanine with them. They couldn’t believe that I was celebrating my _​_​_​th birthday, and said, «You don’t look a day over 14!» Made my day. But SOM, you disappoint. And I was so looking forward to it. Your staff needs a thorough lesson in customer satisfaction and common courtesy. DONT YELL AT THE PATRONS, number one. and number two, don’t be a jerk. Thanks but no thanks. There are plenty of other places in the city where I can take five beautiful ladies.

Went to SOM for the first time last night to check out the J-​Dilla tribute, and had a good time.
The music was dope, the cover was a sliding scale, and there was a great mixture of patrons.
What I liked the most was the mens restroom (I’m a sucker for a clean neat bathroom). There was actually a sink in the toilet stall, and it wasn’t like the sink was all up on your shoulder if you sat on the toilet, there was plenty of space between you and the sink. lol enough about the sink.
The drinks were good, and fairly priced. Since it was a Sunday night, parking was readily available. What I wasn’t really fond of was their sound system, it’s as if the highs were set on «ear splitting» and that doesn’t do the DJ nor the music any good.
I would recommend this place for a chill spot, I heard there is House nights on Fridays, so I’m most definitely going to try to come on a Friday.

Really? Only 3 ½ Unilocal?That makes me so sad, I’m a regular and really enjoy coming here. I get it though, we’re in a recession and SOM doesn’t have dive-​bar prices, but have you seen the bathrooms in this place? They should get five stars on that alone. There are always fresh cut flowers and interesting architectural fixtures. There’s a swanky smoking room, $ 3 Red Stripes on Tuesday’s. Oh yeah, and that mysteriously sexy bartender with the handlebar stash is really nice.
In all seriousness, you should give SOM bar a second chance. It’s been open under new owners for about a year, I think. Formally known as pink, dust, muff, or some single-​syllable yoni reference. This establishment is home to a progressive music scene/​movement. Most of the music here is genre-​less, but I’ll try to list a few; Thug Jazz, Brazilian House, New Black Funk, Soul, Dancehall, Psychedelic Hip-​hop.
Give me a shout next time you’re planning on going to SOM and I’ll personally ensure a good time – at SOM of course. I’m not a call girl…

Was just here Friday night for a friend’s magazine party, so my experience might not really reflect how the vibe is on your average night.
On this night, the place was pretty packed. Lots of people showed up for the event, and while most crowded themselves by the bar to get a drink, the bartenders did a decent job of getting around to everyone. The drinks were pretty consistent from bartender to bartender, and roughly about what you would expect (mixed drinks ran for about $ 9).
The décor is pretty contemporary looks wise, and I really liked the wooden design of he bar. They have a decent amount of open space by the DJ booth to make a dance floor, though it seemed most people this night were content to just mingle and drink. As a whole though, the bar is relatively modest in size as it’s largely made up of just one room, with some bench sort of seating along the wall opposite the bar.
Overall, good venue to spend a relatively chill night of drinks and music. Of note for those that might get a bit nervous of the location — it is about a half block over from a semi-​sketchy stretch of Mission with a number of panhandlers, so that’s something you should be aware of. That said though, you should just look at it this way — being that close to Mission just means your drunken stumble is that much shorter for getting post-​drinking tacos!

I prefer SOM over Pink.
Pink was just always… off. The lighting was always off. The décor always seemed off. The vibe was off. The crowd was off.
SOM — seems alot more put together. Refined. Chic. Hip. Modern. Cohesive.
From the prominent statuesque wooden bar, to the abundance of padded pleather/​leather seating lining the club, to the high tech screen/​lighting juxtaposed in the center of the space — — SOM seems more SOMA than Mission. But that’s not a bad thing.
SOM adds a unique dynamic to the hood. When I stopped in here this past weekend for the Honey Sound System event — I wasn’t exactly wowed by the whole scene, but I liked how open the space was, the smiling faces busting dance moves throughout the place, and the general vibe.
If you’re in the neighborhood and looking for a new hip happy hour spot — or dance spot — SOM’s a good call.

2.5 STARS
Friday, 2.11.10 — Night 2 of 4 of our Singles’ Awareness 4-​Day Party Extravaganza.
I really have mixed feelings about this place. It came highly recommended by one of the girls at work who said it was «like» Bruno’s but more sheik and with a better crowd and good music. In an effort to change things up a bit, I suggested to my friends that we hit up SOM. Ugh, what a mistake…
COVER:
Price depends on who’s promoting that night. On 2/​11, cover was $ 5 before 11 PM (if you’re on the GL) and $ 10 thereafter.
LINE:
Non-​existent and this was around 10 PM.
DRINKS:
Specialty cocktails and top shelf liquor: $ 9-​$ 10. I don’t recall the name of the cocktail I had but it was made with Hendrick’s Gin, maraschino cherry liquor and lemon. Ugh, one of the worst tasting cocktails ever. It tasted like lemon alka seltzer. I could barely taste the gin and there was no hint of cucumber from the Hendrick’s or taste of cherries.
STAFF:
The staff at SOM are awesome, hence the 3 STARs. The bouncers were very friendly and non-​pretentious. We chatted with one of the bouncers who said SOM normally is cracking to the point they are over-​capacity and close after 2 AM. Erm, I found this odd as it was still dead at 11 PM when we left.
Although our bartender, Jay was super nice, his bartending skills was questionable. He had to refer to the list of the ingredients when making my cocktail which is one of their specialty’s. When I asked him about my cocktail, he said it tastes like a cherry mint, but as you read, it tasted nothing like that. And, this was the first time I’ve ever seen a bartender measure out EVERY single ingredient to a «T».
MUSIC:
The music was whacked and was one of the two reasons why we left. The Dj was playing non-​mainstream, unrecognizable hip-​hop and it was not exactly something you can easily dance to.
CROWD:
The crowd is the second reason why we left. It was dead for a Friday night, and the crowd that was there was not our cup of tea. Think sausage fest of Asian Kayne West wannabes with the «Little Man Complex». Sorry boys, but popping your collar doesn’t make you appear any taller!
AMBIANCE:
Along with SOM’s staff, its cool ambiance is the reason for the rating. It reminded me of a hipster version of Matrix. I loved the wall made up of empty wine bottles, the large flat screen tv, and the dark grey coaches that lined the wall. The dancefloor was basically the area between the bar and tv. The front patio where local artists were painting added to that hipster feel.
PARKING:
Street parking. Do note that SOM is located in the sketchy part of The Mission where there’s not much foot traffic like where Bruno’s, Lazlo, Medjools, and Beauty Bar is located at. So, be careful walking back to your car.
Sorry SOM, I REALLY wanted to like you, but 45 minutes was more than enough before we bounced the hell out out and went to Bruno’s where it felt just like HOME!

Great music. good vibe… nice bartenders.
Happy Hour til til 10pm… what’s not to like?

Friday, 10:00PM.
The Mission has a bad rep for being too dirty and being an unwelcoming place for people to get their groove on. Since my friends and I don’t care about that stuff n’ just wanna dance, we visit the area once in awhile anyway.
Glad we did, because we checked out Som… a bar/​club different from the rest in the area. Crowd is still diverse, though the dress code is on the classier side without the bourgie ‘tude.
The music was interesting: ol’ school hip hop (sparingly) with house and Latin beats. We were bummed that there wasn’t more contemporary stuff blended in, so throughout the evening, people got bored and stopped dancing.
Last Call:
+Lots of space at the bar
+Plenty of room to boogie
+Ventilated enough so I don’t smell cigarette smoking from the entrance
+Shout-​out to Jacobo, who accommodated our large group (20 plus heads) and reserved two tables for us for no charge
— Mix some more contemporary muzak and you’ve got it going on!
We’ll be back when we’re in the Mission and up for something different.

Pink gone. SOM in … long awaited. but the wait is OVER ~
Came here a week before the grand opening for Halloween (I heard the Grand Opening was packed and really good times … I missed out :(…) and was really amazed by how much it changed from when it used to be Pink.
* No more couch wall so it’s more spacious to make room for all those step-​slides I bust on the dance floor.
* THE LONGEST BAR … wow … and the Shotwelll they have at the other end of the bar for SHOTS ONLY is such a great idea (you know the ppl over there are ready to have a crazy good time)
* The lighting on the cabinets filled with oodles and oodles of alcohols behind the bar makes SOM look upscale and posh. **If you look closely, there’s little animal figures and vines running through the cabinets (hahah very interesting.)
* The bottle wall looks so amazing. Hundreds of wine bottles in a huge glass frame separating the entrance and also the smoking/​break room ~~ so creative.
To top off the gorgeous new interior, DJ fresco Hakobo can be found spinning here with his usual entourage of amazing DJ’s. I absolutely love the music he spins (Old-​school hip hop beats, MJ, and other non-​mainstream sounds… sometimes they play mainstream, which is all good, too: P)
GOOD TIMES TO COME :) Find me @ SOM