Best Manhattan In San Francisco?

After attending last night's Dueling Manhattans booze night at Jardinière—and after hearing several patrons worry about rye or bourbon selections, whether the cherries were brandied or maraschino—we wondered just where one could find the best Manhattan in town. We're already rabid fans of the White Manhattan at NOPA (which boasts white whiskey, Benedictine. bianco or blanc vermouth, and orange bitters), but we love the cheap ones found at most mid-level dive bars in downtown San Francisco. We'd like to anoint a singular sensation. Help us out, won't you?

In the comments, please give the names of venues in the city where you guzzle your favorite Manhattan. Several members of the SFist team will select the top 5 most popular digs. We'll then travel to said 5 boozy destinations to crown a winner.

According to Wikipedia, here's how the drink got its start:

A popular history suggests that the drink originated at the Manhattan Club in New York City in the early 1870s, where it was invented by Dr. Iain Marshall for a banquet hosted by Jennie Jerome (Lady Randolph Churchill, Winston's mother) in honor of presidential candidate Samuel J. Tilden. The success of the banquet made the drink fashionable, later prompting several people to request the drink by referring to the name of the club where it originated—"the Manhattan cocktail". However, Lady Randolph was in France at the time and pregnant, so the story is likely a fiction. The original "Manhattan cocktail" was a mix of "American Whiskey, Italian Vermouth and Angostura bitters".
However, there are prior references to various similar cocktail recipes called "Manhattan" and served in the Manhattan area. By one account it was invented in the 1860s by a bartender named Black at a bar on Broadway near Houston Street.

An early record of the cocktail can be found in William Schmidt's "The Flowing Bowl", published in 1891. In it, he details a drink containing 2 dashes of gum, 2 dashes of bitters, 1 dash of absinthe, 2/3 portion of whiskey and 1/3 portion of vermouth.
The same cocktail appears listed as a "Tennessee Cocktail" in Shake 'em Up! by V. Elliott and P. Strong...: "Two parts of whiskey, one part of Italian Vermouth and a dash of bitters poured over ice and stirred vigorously."

Contact the author of this article or email tips@sfist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Brock Keeling in Food on January 27, 2012 11:20 AM 0 Comments

Comments [rss]

GlaceIce

The BEST Manhattan in SF is being served at Elixir in the Mission. It's the ONLY one being made with 100% branded ingredients, therefore making it the only one that can be replicated and tasted exactly the same by everyone who orders it. In our opinion the 'best' is defined as the one you like the most and one which you can expect to be crafted and served to you each time you visit a place. By calling out your favorite bourbon / rye and asking it be served over Glace Ice, you will be satisfied each and every time at Elixir, a first in cocktail history and fittingly at one of San Francisco's oldest and most historical saloons.

pchazzz

83 Proof at 83 First Street makes a darn good rye manhattan. Love the brandied cherries.

dan7000

83 Proof and Royal Cukoo both have some very tasty marinated cherries, fancy vermouth, and great bourbon selections. But the best I've had was at Americano (I know) with Woodford burboun. Second place was at Dovre: maybe this isn't technically a manhattan because it's irish whiskey, but I had it make with a Michael Collins. Yum.

robert zonkers

yeah Royal Cuckoo deserves mad up props on theirs. Antica was present on my last visit, and you might get lucky and the organ dude will be there. totes brah

CitygalSF

House of Prime Rib makes a wonderful, classic Manhattan, served in the shaker.

Stephen Bassman

Glad our guest bartender gig helped inspire a dialogue about Manhattans in SF! Let me know if you need more tasters.

How about:

-The Residence (Black Manhattan)
-Blackbird
-Churchill
-Bourbon & Branch (The Revolver)
-Rickhouse
-Absinthe (Covered Wagon, Scarlett O'Hara)
-House of Shields
-Grand Cafe (liked traditional Manhattan, disliked variation with Cherry Heering)
-Jardiniere (bartender Greg Stone helped us concoct our variations)
-Nopa
-Top of the Mark

Could also be interesting to see who makes the best house Manhattan (give no preferences for rye or bourbon, specific brands, etc., and just see what they serve).

dan7000

Blackbird good.
Bourbon and Branch? - what is this, Disneyland? It's a funny place to take out of town guests, but seriously. Same with Rickhouse but substitute out of town clients for out of town guests.
Top of the Mark: brave pick. Haven't been for over a decade, maybe need to revisit.
Why does Nopa keep showing up? Which Bart line is that on?
Hard to argue with House of Shields.

wassaFOAMfinger

FEE FI FO FUM! I smell a hipster. I'm glad you don't like those places though, so we'll probably never meet.

Stephen Bassman

I think your objections to B&B and Rickhouse might be a separate convo. Even if you're bringing guests or clients, as you say, they're going to get a damn good Manhattan at either place.

Top of the Mark: I was surprised. I wasn't expecting much, but it was good! I've had versions at other lounges with views that weren't so good.

phoenixsf

Gitane, 6 Claude Lane, makes three kinds of Manhattan, sweet, spicy, and smokey. Each has a different kind of whiskey and bitters to give the desired flavor. They are all very good.

UrbanUndead

My house:

3 oz High West Rendezvous Rye
.5 oz Dolin Dry
.5 oz Dolin Rouge
Couple heavy shakes of Angostura bitters - OR - Miracle Mile Cherry bitters

Nice thick strip of orange zest to garnish

Rollo

The "Woodward" in the Ames hotel in Boston makes a solid Manhattan...Not saying it's the best, but they do things well there....

Go Pats!

-Your Mamma

SF Bar Experiment

I would love to help the SFist crew test out the top five!

Christopher Golis

Harris's Steak House makes an incredible Manhattan. If memory serves, their buyer travels to the distillery and picks the specific barrel they want to use.

fizzandpop

The worst I've had? Straight out the gun at the Marriot.

UrbanUndead

That just ain't right :(

Harley Cooper

I really liked the Manhattan at Mr Lew's. That made my night.

Rachel

Comstock Saloon, hands down, has the best Manhattan in town.

Tiffany Bukowski

The best I've had in the city was at Comstock in North Beach. Also, Rickhouse in FiDi boasts a damn delicious Manhattan. Then again, I personally veer towards a cocktail served by someone rocking suspenders.

Also... I tend to have too many and forget where I am. So there's that.

s b

Absinthe, the bar.

Ciaran

Unfortunately the best Manhattan I've had was in Alexandria, VA. But a friend recently turned me on to the joys of the perfect manhattan with half white and half red vermouth to make it a little less sweet.

periqueblend

Yes. Perfect is the way to go, and with a twist instead of cherry.

Andrew Dawson

Was it at PX?

B S

Is this post a subtle attempt to compare NYC to SF?

pauloleandro

the 'tenders at 540 Club in the Inner Richmond don't get enough credit for their Manhattan-making skills

Pete Dirksen

I am a fan of the rye manhattans at Rye. And request Antica Carpano for the vermouth.

Fifth Floor also has an excellent twist on a Manhattan using a bit of Fernet.