Around Young Blood
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
← Best cocktail bars in San DiegoDate night guide · San Diego
A cocktail night in Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown
A proper drink between dinner and dessert.
15 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 15 cocktail bars in Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown. 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.
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.
Around Prohibition
3 stops, all within a short walk
1
0.4 mi
5:30 PMDinner
2
0.9 mi
7:00 PMCocktails
3
8:30 PMSomething sweet
Frost Me Cafe and Bakery
Dessert Shop
555 W Date St, San Diego, CA 92101, USA
Little Italy / Middletown
Around The Noble Experiment
2 stops, all within a short walk
1
0.2 mi
5:30 PMDinner
2
7:00 PMCocktails
Cocktail bars in Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown
Editors' picks first, then by rating.
Young Blood
4.9(26)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$$
Prohibition
4.8(16)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
The Noble Experiment
4.8(5)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Neighborhood
4.8(5)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$$
Fifth and Rose
4.7(17)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$$
Craft Bar Kamon
4.5(26)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
The Nolen
4.5(11)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
J & Tony’s Discount Cured Meats and Negroni Warehouse
4.4(25)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $
Borrego Rooftop
4.4(15)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Werewolf American Pub
4.3(13)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Ginger's
4.0(7)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Room 56
4.0(6)Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
Fifth & Rose
Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
The Diamond Room
Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown · $$
TORO
Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown
Good to know
- What's the best cocktail bar in Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown for a date?
- Our top pick is Young Blood, rated 4.9 out of 5. Prohibition and The Noble Experiment round out the top 3.
- Are there affordable cocktail bars in Gaslamp Quarter / Downtown?
- Yes — Prohibition, The Noble Experiment and Craft Bar Kamon are all $$ or under.
- Do I need a reservation?
- It depends on the spot. Book ahead for Young Blood, The Noble Experiment and Craft Bar Kamon, while Prohibition takes 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.