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Whitechapel
Whitechapel
Patricia Chang

11 Places to Hide From Sporting Events

There are no TVs at these pleasant drinking places

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Whitechapel
| Patricia Chang

For some, professional sports seasons are the best times of the year. From opening day of the Giants to the Super Bowl, faithful fans are out at bars rooting on their teams almost every day. However, if you choose not to squeeze into a crowded sports bar to drink Miller Light, and fist bump with the bros, you can actually have your pick of some of the most popular bars in town without the crowds (or even TVs). Check out these 11 places around town that don't even have televisions on the premises.

If you change your mind, head over to this map of SF's Best Sports Bars for some guidance on where to drink buckets of beers with your buds.

Did we miss your favorite non-sports bar place? Let us know in the comments.

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The Interval at Long Now

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Get a side of education with your Gimlet at The Interval, a bar, cafe, museum, and cultural foundation all rolled into one. The drink list reads like a book, where each cocktail is broken down by style with a brief history lesson accompanying each. The space begs for conversation, with paintings, books, and various artifacts and prototypes for the Long Now Foundation. Escape the crowds in Fort Mason and find solace in The Interval’s cozy and provocative interior.

15 Romolo

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Hide away at this bar tucked into a North Beach alley, and avoid the crush. You’ll find some truly stellar sherry cocktails, plus a menu of elevated bar food. On the weekends, 15 Romolo hosts “Punch Drunk Brunch,” a boozy day-long celebration. This Super Bowl Sunday, come in and enjoy a cup of fresh, adults-only punch with comfort food brunch eats.

Top of the Mark

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Enjoy a leisurely Champagne Sunday Brunch free from football junkies at the Top of the Mark, where you can get away from it all high above the city (19 floors, to be exact). Sip on bottomless bubbles and enjoy an elaborate brunch buffet (for $89 per person) as you peer down on the chaos below. A live piano player will lull you into forgetting all about the maddening crowd.

Whitechapel

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Skip the beer and soak up the gin this Super Bowl Sunday at Whitechapel, where you won’t find a TV in sight. This London-style, period pub mimics an expansive underground railway station in 19th century steampunk London and houses the largest selection of gin in North America. Dig into the seventeen-page cocktail menu and you’ll find yourself immersed happily inside this bar all day.

Smuggler's Cove

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What better way to avoid the sports fans than to immerse yourself in tiki culture at Smuggler’s Cove? It's way easier to rid yourself of playoff-induced stress after a few of these deceptively strong cocktails.

Hide from television pollution at this cozy Hayes Valley bar, where drinks veer light and refreshing, and punch bowls can be found. No TVs, no problem.

Anina Anthony Healy-London

One of the hottest restaurants in town, this bar (and the dining room) gets packed seven days a week. If the game is on, you might luck out: Pop in and grab a seat at the bar for a morning beverage or sit down to a decadent brunch with killer French toast and one of the city’s best burgers.

Bill Addison

Blackbird Bar

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This neighborhood watering hole is the perfect place to sit back with a themed cocktail (currently hip hop-inspired “B-Sides”), peruse art from local artists, and shoot a game or two of pool. Hidden off the corner of the Castro and Duboce Triangle, you’ll likely avoid the crowds if you duck into this dark, unassuming bar. Bar Manager Matt Grippo shakes up a mean cocktail and you can hide out here all day from the frantic multitude.

Foreign Cinema

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You’ll usually encounter hours-long waits at this Mission brunch hotspot, but on big game days you can (probably) snag a table in no time. Order a Bloody Mary and sit back for a relaxing afternoon on their back patio. Soak up the sun and stay far away from the TVs as you feast on farm fresh brunch fare. (Their super cool movie projector doesn't count.)

Lone Palm

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Lone Palm deserves more hype than it gets — this off-the-beaten-path Mission dive boasts elegant white tablecloths, a killer dirty martini, and a crowd that isn’t your normal scene. You’ll feel like you stepped back in time to the 50s, before the sports TV took over our lives.

The Royal Cuckoo

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Dark lighting, kitschy decor, and killer cocktails make this a perfect bar to lay low. Thumb through the massive collection of vintage records that’ll distract you from the sports fanatics parading outside.

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The Interval at Long Now

Get a side of education with your Gimlet at The Interval, a bar, cafe, museum, and cultural foundation all rolled into one. The drink list reads like a book, where each cocktail is broken down by style with a brief history lesson accompanying each. The space begs for conversation, with paintings, books, and various artifacts and prototypes for the Long Now Foundation. Escape the crowds in Fort Mason and find solace in The Interval’s cozy and provocative interior.

15 Romolo

Hide away at this bar tucked into a North Beach alley, and avoid the crush. You’ll find some truly stellar sherry cocktails, plus a menu of elevated bar food. On the weekends, 15 Romolo hosts “Punch Drunk Brunch,” a boozy day-long celebration. This Super Bowl Sunday, come in and enjoy a cup of fresh, adults-only punch with comfort food brunch eats.

Top of the Mark

Enjoy a leisurely Champagne Sunday Brunch free from football junkies at the Top of the Mark, where you can get away from it all high above the city (19 floors, to be exact). Sip on bottomless bubbles and enjoy an elaborate brunch buffet (for $89 per person) as you peer down on the chaos below. A live piano player will lull you into forgetting all about the maddening crowd.

Whitechapel

Skip the beer and soak up the gin this Super Bowl Sunday at Whitechapel, where you won’t find a TV in sight. This London-style, period pub mimics an expansive underground railway station in 19th century steampunk London and houses the largest selection of gin in North America. Dig into the seventeen-page cocktail menu and you’ll find yourself immersed happily inside this bar all day.

Smuggler's Cove

What better way to avoid the sports fans than to immerse yourself in tiki culture at Smuggler’s Cove? It's way easier to rid yourself of playoff-induced stress after a few of these deceptively strong cocktails.

ANINA

Hide from television pollution at this cozy Hayes Valley bar, where drinks veer light and refreshing, and punch bowls can be found. No TVs, no problem.

Anina Anthony Healy-London

Nopa

One of the hottest restaurants in town, this bar (and the dining room) gets packed seven days a week. If the game is on, you might luck out: Pop in and grab a seat at the bar for a morning beverage or sit down to a decadent brunch with killer French toast and one of the city’s best burgers.

Bill Addison

Blackbird Bar

This neighborhood watering hole is the perfect place to sit back with a themed cocktail (currently hip hop-inspired “B-Sides”), peruse art from local artists, and shoot a game or two of pool. Hidden off the corner of the Castro and Duboce Triangle, you’ll likely avoid the crowds if you duck into this dark, unassuming bar. Bar Manager Matt Grippo shakes up a mean cocktail and you can hide out here all day from the frantic multitude.

Foreign Cinema

You’ll usually encounter hours-long waits at this Mission brunch hotspot, but on big game days you can (probably) snag a table in no time. Order a Bloody Mary and sit back for a relaxing afternoon on their back patio. Soak up the sun and stay far away from the TVs as you feast on farm fresh brunch fare. (Their super cool movie projector doesn't count.)

Lone Palm

Lone Palm deserves more hype than it gets — this off-the-beaten-path Mission dive boasts elegant white tablecloths, a killer dirty martini, and a crowd that isn’t your normal scene. You’ll feel like you stepped back in time to the 50s, before the sports TV took over our lives.

The Royal Cuckoo

Dark lighting, kitschy decor, and killer cocktails make this a perfect bar to lay low. Thumb through the massive collection of vintage records that’ll distract you from the sports fanatics parading outside.

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