Darts Bar Near Me in SoMa: Tempest Bar San Francisco

Whenever someone in South of Market types 'darts bar near me' after leaving Moscone Center or the Yerba Buena gardens, Tempest Bar at 431 Natoma Street stands out as the neighborhood's grittiest and most beloved refuge. Hidden down a narrow one-way alley between Fifth and Sixth Streets just south of Mission Street, this brick-walled San Francisco dive pairs steel-tip dartboards and a well-worn pool table with ten-dollar beer-and-shot specials and gourmet street food passed straight through the wall from the adjacent Box Kitchen.

Finding 431 Natoma Street on foot takes less than four minutes from the Powell Street BART and Muni Metro station at Fifth and Market Streets. Walk one block south across Mission Street, turn right into Natoma Street, and look for the glowing red neon sign and sidewalk tables halfway down the block. Cyclists riding the Howard or Folsom Street bike lanes can lock up right outside the front door.

Inside the narrow brick room, the dartboard and pool table anchor the rear social zone where players gather for lively rounds of Cricket and three hundred and one. Unlike sterile corporate game halls that charge by the hour, Tempest keeps its pub games accessible to everyone nursing a drink. Simply ask the bartender for the house darts, chalk your name onto the board when a game is underway, and step up to the line.

Operating hours cover nearly every schedule seven days a week. From Monday through Friday, the bar opens at eleven-thirty in the morning and pours until two o'clock in the morning, while Saturday and Sunday doors open at noon and run until two in the morning. Dropping by between noon and four o'clock on a weekday afternoon guarantees an unhurried dart lane with punk and classic garage rock humming from the speakers.

Drink pricing is famously immune to downtown San Francisco inflation. The bar's signature Boilermaker combos pair an ice-cold can of Pabst Blue Ribbon, Tecate, or Hamm's with a generous shot of well whiskey or tequila for eight to twelve dollars. Draft handles pour local California craft IPAs, crisp pilsners, and dark stouts for seven to nine dollars a pint, while straightforward highballs and spicy bloody marys keep tabs refreshingly low.

What truly elevates a night of darts at Tempest is Box Kitchen, the tiny thirty-six-square-foot walk-up window bolted directly onto the side of the building. Created by chef-partner Thinguyen and the Pour Guys team, the window serves scratch-made bar food from late afternoon until midnight or later. You order at the exterior sidewalk window, grab a numbered placard, and carry your hot tray right back inside to your table by the dart lane.

Menu highlights from Box Kitchen read like a love letter to late-night comfort cooking. The signature Tempest Box Burger layers a seared local chuck patty with caramelized onions, gruyere, bacon jam, and herb aioli on a toasted bun for fourteen dollars. Crispy Fried Pickles with house ranch cost eight dollars, Garlic Parmesan Fries go for seven dollars, and rotating specials like duck-fat tots or spicy fried chicken sandwiches run twelve to sixteen dollars.

Because the narrow Natoma Street alley stays sheltered from the brisk wind tunnels of Market and Mission Streets, guests frequently spill out onto the wooden sidewalk benches between dart legs to enjoy the fresh air. That effortless indoor-outdoor flow gives the bar a relaxed block-party energy on mild autumn evenings without ever losing its unmistakable South of Market dive-bar edge.

House etiquette around the back games area is casual and friendly. Keep your drink on the side ledge rather than the edge of the pool table, check that no one is walking back from the restrooms before releasing a dart, and hand the house arrows back to the bar staff when your group finishes playing. Winner-stays-on doubles matches are the easiest way to meet neighborhood regulars on Thursday and Friday nights.

Surrounding SoMa blocks make it easy to turn a visit to Tempest into a full cultural afternoon or evening in downtown San Francisco. Spend a few hours exploring the contemporary photography and painting galleries at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on Third Street, strolling across the rooftop sculpture garden at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, or browsing exhibitions at the Contemporary Jewish Museum on Mission Street before walking two blocks west into Natoma Alley for burgers and darts. Later at night, underground dance and live music venues like Monarch on Sixth Street sit just around the corner.

Visual character fills every single inch of the interior, from vintage skate decks, local band stickers, and framed concert posters plastered across the brick walls to dim amber Edison bulbs reflecting off rows of bourbon and rye bottles. There are no velvet ropes, pretentious dress codes, or paid table reservations here—just honest pours, crisp steel-tip darts, and a loud, welcoming San Francisco crowd.

Practical visitors should note that both Tempest Bar and Box Kitchen accept major credit cards, debit cards, and cash, though keeping a few five-dollar bills handy speeds up quick rounds at the crowded bar rail. Guests must be twenty-one or older with a valid photo ID to enter the tavern, and the ground-floor entrance sits level with the Natoma Street pavement.

Anyone searching 'darts bar near me' in downtown San Francisco who wants real dive-bar character, ten-dollar beer-and-shot deals, and unforgettable late-night burgers from Box Kitchen will feel right at home at Tempest Bar. Launch the Karpo APP whenever you are in SoMa to pair museum hopping with a few rounds of alley darts.