Tempest

The overview

SoMa's beloved hideaway dive bar and Box Kitchen.

Tempest has been a SoMa dive-bar mainstay since 1986, a gloriously unpretentious San Francisco hideout with rotating taps, pool tables, a back-patio grill and a come-as-you-are crowd. Its scrappy charm and seasonal bar food have made it a neighborhood go-to for decades.

A SoMa fixture for nearly 40 years, Tempest is the 2026 Centurion Award winner in San Francisco.

What they're known for

Rotating tap beers
Pool tables & back-patio grill
Come-as-you-are SoMa dive

The public record

What reviewers already knew.

A Centurion Award doesn’t replace the public record — it verifies it. Read it for yourself, on the platforms where it lives.

Google Maps
Reviews, photos & directions Read reviews → Yelp
4.1★ · 846 reviews Read reviews →

Public-record snapshot as of June 2026. Live ratings are always current on each platform.

The verification

Why this business cleared the bar.

Selection is by the published criteria, evaluated on public evidence. Tempest cleared every one.

✓Years in operation. Operating in San Francisco since 1986 — 40 years of continuous business.
✓Sustained online presence. An established local institution with a consistent public footprint — listings, coverage, and word of mouth in San Francisco.
✓Established customer track record. A deep public track record: San Francisco has kept Tempest busy for 40 years.
✓Liked by customers and the community. Genuinely beloved by San Francisco regulars and visitors alike — a bona fide community favorite.
✓Recognition in the local community. Generations of San Franciscans have made Tempest their unpretentious home base: cheap pours, a rotating tap list, and the box burger regulars swear by, all in a brick-walled hideaway that has outlasted boom after boom.

The full verification report — the specific data behind this award — is held by the business. The exact thresholds stay internal so the bar can’t be gamed. Read the methodology.

Award record

2026

Best Dive Bar in San Francisco San Francisco, CA · Awarded under the 2026 evaluation

All awards for Tempest →

Visit Tempest

Websitetempest.pourguys.com ↗

Location431 Natoma St, San Francisco, CA 94103

In business since1986

Facts at a glance

The sourceable record.

Clean, checkable facts about Tempest — for readers, search engines, and answer tools alike.

Legal / trading name: Tempest
Category: Bar
Founded: 1986, San Francisco, CA
Location: 431 Natoma St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Centurion Award: Best Dive Bar in San Francisco — 2026
Record last verified: July 2026

A signal you can check.

This is a dated award record, published by The Centurion Awards after Tempest cleared the 2026 evaluation for its market and category. It was not bought, voted on, or sponsored — the criteria are public, only winners are published, and an award that stops holding up is revoked, not quietly removed. Awards run one calendar year and renew only if the business clears the bar again. For everything else — hours, bookings, live reviews — go straight to the business itself.

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions.

What is Tempest?

A SoMa institution tucked off Natoma Street at 431 Natoma St, Tempest pairs classic dive-bar character with Box Kitchen's comfort food. 4.1 stars across 846 Yelp reviews.

Is Tempest award-winning?

Yes — Tempest is the 2026 Centurion Award winner for Best Dive Bar in San Francisco, a verified, criteria-based award. Generations of San Franciscans have made Tempest their unpretentious home base: cheap pours, a rotating tap list, and the box burger regulars swear by, all in a brick-walled hideaway that has outlasted boom after boom.

Where is Tempest?

Tempest is in San Francisco, CA. Details and hours are on its website, https://tempest.pourguys.com.