A cocktail night in Shelter Island / Harbor Island →
2 stops, all within a short walk
1
0.2 mi
5:30 PMDinner
Stone Brewing
Brewery
2816 Historic Decatur Rd Unit 116, San Diego, CA 92106
Shelter Island / Harbor Island
4.3
2
7:00 PMCocktails
← San DiegoDate night guide · San Diego
Best cocktail bars for a date in San Diego
A proper drink between dinner and dessert.
58 spots · Jump to the list
These are bars you go to for the drinks themselves — a considered menu, careful technique, a bartender who can make you something that isn't on it. They sit best in the middle of a night: after dinner, before dessert, or as the nightcap. Restaurants with a strong bar are on the restaurant lists instead.
This guide ranks 58 cocktail bars in San Diego, from Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown to North Park and Oceanside / Carlsbad. Editors' picks come first, then the rest by rating, and the plans below build a whole evening around the best of them.
Nights people planned here
Published date nights with a stop on this list.
adventurousStaff Pick
romantic
Make a night of it
Routes around the top spots on the list, with the best-rated places nearby for the rest of the evening.
A cocktail night in Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown →
3 stops, all within a short walk
1
0.1 mi
5:30 PMDinner
2
0.4 mi
7:00 PMCocktails
3
8:30 PMSomething sweet
The list
Editors' picks first, then by rating.
Bar 1924
5.0(19)Shelter Island / Harbor Island · $$
Young Blood
4.9(26)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$$
Tower 13
4.8(20)Encinitas / Del Mar · $$
Mothership
4.8(20)South Park / Golden Hill · $$
Prohibition
4.8(16)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
The Noble Experiment
4.8(5)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Neighborhood
4.8(5)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$$
Oculto 477
4.7(21)Old Town · $$$
Sandbar
4.7(18)Pacific Beach / Mission Beach · $
Fifth and Rose
4.7(17)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$$
619 Spirits North Park
4.7(17)North Park · $$
Cove House
4.7(6)La Jolla · $$
Craft Bar Kamon
4.5(26)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Good News Bar
4.5(15)Hillcrest / Bankers Hill · $
The Cordova Bar
4.5(13)Little Italy / Middletown · $$
The Nolen
4.5(11)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Haunted Head Saloon
4.5(6)Oceanside / Carlsbad · $
J & Tony’s Discount Cured Meats and Negroni Warehouse
4.4(25)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $
The Office Bar
4.4(23)North Park · $$
Borrego Rooftop
4.4(15)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
The Rooftop Bar
4.4(9)Oceanside / Carlsbad · $$
Luau
4.4(5)$$
Realm Of The 52 Remedies
4.3(24)Kearny Mesa / Clairemont · $$
The Bar at Moniker General
4.3(16)Shelter Island / Harbor Island · $$
Showing 1–24 of 58 spots
Good to know
- What's the best cocktail bar in San Diego for a date?
- Our top pick is Bar 1924 in Shelter Island / Harbor Island, rated 5.0 out of 5. Young Blood and Tower 13 round out the top 3.
- Which San Diego neighborhoods have the best cocktail bars?
- Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown (9), North Park (2) and Oceanside / Carlsbad (2) have the most spots in the top 24.
- Are there affordable cocktail bars in San Diego?
- Yes — Bar 1924, Tower 13 and Mothership are all $$ or under.
- Do I need a reservation?
- It depends on the spot. Book ahead for Young Blood, Mothership and The Noble Experiment, while Prohibition and Good News Bar take walk-ins.
- What should we do before or after?
- Make it a cocktail night: dinner, then cocktails, then something sweet. The plans on this page pair each top spot with the best-rated places within about a 20-minute walk.