Only in San Francisco could a cocktail earn its own walking trail and not just any cocktail, but the martini: crisp, cold, and utterly uncompromising. This week, the San Francisco Travel Association raised a glass to history, launching the city’s first-ever Martini Trail, a curated map celebrating 23 of the city’s most masterful martinis and the venues that pour them with pride.
It’s a love letter to a drink that has outlived fads, TikTok trends, and the occasional craft-beer uprising. Fittingly, it’s being written in the city where the martini first found its swagger.
Where Gold, Gin and Glamour Once Met
The exact birthplace of the martini remains as disputed as the best garnish for it: olive or twist? But historians agree that San Francisco’s Gold Rush saloons had a hand in its making. Miners toasted their luck (or lack thereof) back then with gin and vermouth at the Occidental Hotel. There, a bartender named Jerry Thomas was said to have created a “Martinez” precursor that would evolve into the modern martini through a swirl of West Coast bravado and East Coast polish.
Fast-forward a century and a half, and San Francisco is paying homage not just to the drink but to the spirit of reinvention that defines it.
“The Martini Trail is both a toast to San Francisco’s history and a taste of its future,” said Anna Marie Presutti, President and CEO of San Francisco Travel. “This is where the martini found its swagger and where it continues to be reinvented.”
23 Stops, Countless Stories
Balboa Cafe_Exterior Balboa Sign Espressotini
The Martini Trail leads locals and travellers alike from the Embarcadero’s bay breezes to the candlelit bars of The Richmond, highlighting both legendary institutions and contemporary newcomers. Tadich Grill, California’s oldest restaurant, serves a martini so cold it could startle a penguin. Meanwhile, Martuni’s, a piano bar with a sense of drama, insists a show tune should accompany a martini.
Then there’s House of Prime Rib, where gin meets beefy tradition in a glass as polished as the silver carving trolley; and Wildhawk, which adds a modern wink with its citrus-forward riffs. Each pour is a snapshot of San Francisco, daring, distinctive, and cheeky.
Food and travel writer Omar Mamoon, who curated the trail, knows his martinis and his metaphors. A contributor to Condé Nast Traveller, Esquire, and The San Francisco Chronicle, Mamoon selected 23 venues that capture the drink’s classic simplicity and endless adaptability.
“The list shines a light on just a fraction of the many bars and restaurants in San Francisco making excellent martinis,” said Mamoon. “The Martini Trail is a starting point a fun way to explore the city and make your own trail, too.”
Where to Begin: The Trailblazers
For those wishing to sip their way through the city, start with Absinthe, Balboa Café, or BIX, each serving tradition with a twist. Bar Iris and Pearl 6101 add a modern edge, proving that even a century-old drink can feel new again.
Osso Steakhouse and Sam’s Grill honour the power lunch era, their martinis as bold as the bankers who once claimed the corner tables. Meanwhile, Brazen Head, True Laurel, and Bar Maritime showcase the city’s inventive mixology, where bartenders treat each cocktail like a symphony of spirits.
Over in North Beach, Zam Zam, a favourite of beat poets and bartenders alike, remains one of the last bastions of the no-nonsense martini: gin, vermouth, stir, pour, silence. Nearby, Stookey’s Club Moderne resurrects 1930s glamour, while Hi Dive Bar proves the martini doesn’t always need cufflinks; sometimes, it just needs a good view of the Bay Bridge.
A Revival Rooted in History
The Martini Trail’s launch event fittingly took place at Le Parc Bistrobar, inside the Galleria Park Hotel, once the site of the Occidental Hotel, ground zero for the martini’s origin myth. In a nod to its roots, the hotel today celebrates with a daily Sipping Hour. It serves complimentary gin martinis to guests in its lobby, a civilised ritual that Jerry Thomas might have applauded.
The entire initiative is more than a tourism gimmick. It affirms that San Francisco still knows how to host, charm, and innovate even as other cities compete for cocktail supremacy. The martini remains a timeless handshake between bartender and drinker in a world of canned spritzes and synthetic flavours.
As Presutti said, “San Francisco is always raising the bar.”
She’s right, and in this case, it’s literal.
Martini as Metaphor
Beyond the clink of glassware, the San Francisco Martini Trail serves a deeper purpose: to remind travellers and locals alike that the city thrives on creativity and craft. Whether nursing a gin classic at Starlite, a dirty vodka at Lillie Coit’s, or a poetic pour at The Progress, each martini is a miniature history lesson, cold, crisp, and garnished with civic pride.
The trail website (sftravel.com/san-francisco-martini-trail) offers an interactive map, tasting notes, and Mamoon’s list of 11 other not-to-be-missed establishments. It’s a tour that rewards curiosity and tolerance, ideally in that order.
Because in San Francisco, even a cocktail can be a journey, and this one comes with a twist.
🍸 The Martini Trail at a Glance
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Launched by: San Francisco Travel Association
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Curated by: Omar Mamoon
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Featuring: 23 bars across iconic neighbourhoods
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Highlight venues: Tadich Grill, Martuni’s, Absinthe, Bar Iris, Stookey’s Club Moderne, House of Prime Rib, True Laurel, Wildhawk, Zam Zam, and more
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Explore online: sftravel.com/san-francisco-martini-trail.
Final Sip
San Francisco may not have invented the martini beyond dispute, but it certainly perfected the attitude that goes with it: part refinement, part rebellion, and wholly original.
And if you follow the trail, you’ll discover that, like the city itself, a proper martini is more than a drink. It’s an experience crisp, confident, and audacious.
By Jason Smith
About the Author
Jason Smith has the kind of story you can’t fake, one built on long flights, new cities, and that unmistakable hum of hotel life that gets under your skin and never quite leaves. Half American, half Asian, he grew up surrounded by the steady rhythm of the tourism trade in the U.S., where his family helped others see the world long before he did.
Eager to carve out his own path, Jason packed his bags for Bangkok and the Asian Institute of Hospitality & Management, where he majored in Hotel Management and found a career and a calling. From there came years on the road, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam — each stop adding another thread to his craft.
He made his mark in Thailand, eventually becoming Director of Sales for one of the country’s leading hotel chains. Then came COVID-19: borders closed, flights grounded, and a new chapter began.
Back home in America, Jason turned his knack for connection into words, joining Global Travel Media to tell the stories behind the check-ins written with the same warmth and honesty that have always defined him.
