12 Best Speakeasies in San Diego

Photo Credit: Nick

• 777 G St, San Diego, CA
• nobleexperimentsd.com
• $$
• Tailored cocktails
• Reservations Required

Noble Experiment is a cocktail bar designed to get you out of your comfort zone. A skull head wall greets you as soon as you walk through the door and features a menu full of experimental cocktails unlike you’ve had anywhere else.

The cocktail menu features drink suggestions everybody will love. However, if you are cocktail-curious, share a few preferences with the mixologist and watch them craft the perfect blend tailored just for you. Every drink mix is an experiment gone right!

How to get into Noble Experiment: Push the keg wall in the Neighborhood restaurant to reveal the secret door to the bar.

Young Blood

• 777 G St San Diego, CA
• youngbloodsucks.com
• $$$
• Hidden gem speakeasy
• Reservations required

If you felt part of the in-crowd for finding Noble Experiment inside Neighborhood, wait till you join the ranks of even fewer people who know about Young Blood. It’s a secret bar inside a speakeasy—you have to enter Noble Experiment to find the door to Young Blood.

It’s a reservation-only space with a limited-time session. Indulge in craft Dealer’s Choice cocktails in a classy setting of mirror tables, leather seats, and walls lined with exquisite bottles.

How to get into Young Blood: Open the wine cellar door inside Noble Experiment speakeasy.

False Idol

Photo Credit: Larken Egleston

• 675 W Beech St, San Diego, CA
• falseidoltiki.com
• $$
• Tiki-style speakeasy
• Reservations required

The hidden False Idol bar transports you from the sunny shores of California to an island paradise in the Pacific. This tiki-themed speakeasy immerses you in the tropical vibes—from the decor to the drinks.

Tiki masks and statues decorate the bar, paying tribute to false idols. An indoor waterfall and volcano represent the Polynesian ethos of fire and ice. They say you'll set off a timely eruption if you order the “Alkala the Fierce” cocktail.

How to get into False Idol: Enter through a large walk-in freezer inside Craft & Commerce.

Raised by Wolves

Photo Credit: Olivia K

• 4301 La Jolla Village Dr #2030, San Diego, CA
• raisedxwolves.com
• $$
• Old-world bar ambiance
• Reservations required

Raised by Wolves is an enchanted liquor storefront that catches everyone’s eye while walking through Westfield UTC. But what’s even more eye-catching is seeing the wall rotate you into a hidden library bar where you don’t have to worry about being silent.

The spellbinding charm of the old-world aesthetics gives you a cozy setting to enjoy craft cocktails. It has literature-inspired drinks like ‘Into the Woodlands’ and ‘Old Sport.’ Or try an Old Fashioned made from a late 19th-century recipe.

How to get into Raised By Wolves: sit on the chairs next to the mantle, and the floor will rotate you to the bar on the other side of the wall.

Mothership

Photo Credit: Cam Savard

• 2310 30th St San Diego, CA
• mothershiptrip.com
• $$
• Space-themed speakeasy
• Reservations not required

Blast off to a speakeasy in San Diego that’s truly out of this world. Mothership gives you 90 minutes to complete your space mission of discovering tropical cosmic flavors. Encounter intergalactic cocktails like the Wormhole, Saturn, and Astro Zombie that send your taste buds to a new galaxy. Between sips, gaze up at the stars on the ceiling. And the bathroom feels like something out of the multi-verse.

How to get into Mothership: find the door at Juniper and 30th Street and walk through the dark cave pathway.

The Grass Skirt

Photo Credit: celesté carmen2

• 910 Grand Ave, San Diego, CA
• thegrassskirt.com
• $$
• Tiki bar with tropical cocktails
• Reservations not required

It looks like a Tiki bomb went off inside The Grass Skirt. It brings an authentic island vibe to SoCal. Murals depict scenes from the Polynesian islands; palm straw hangs from the ceilings and tiki statues. Send your taste buds on an island adventure with tiki cocktails—Tropical Tony’s Mai Tai, Pineapple Express, and the Tiki Glass Shot (you even get to keep the souvenir glass).

How to get into The Grass Skirt: The secret door is behind Good Time Poke restaurant.

Oculto 477

Photo Credit: Nathan

• 2414 San Diego Ave, San Diego, CA
• oculto477.com
• $$
• Hauntingly good drinks
• Reservations required

Don’t be scared of what hides behind the walls of the Tahona Bar. Oculto 477, the Temple of Cocktails, is a speakeasy for thrills and chills. This speakeasy is for the brave-hearted who are able to locate it next to the El Campo Santo Cemetery and The Whaley House Museum, America’s most haunted house.

Inside, the dimly lit space feels like a pleasant nightmare with smoking drinks and specialty cocktails named Hire in the Cemetery and Occult Zombie. The ‘Risk it All’ option leaves your drink of choice with the chance of rolling dice to pick the ingredients.

How to get into Oculto 477: Speak with a bartender inside Tahona Bar to be directed to the secret entrance. You must confess one of the seven sins to enter inside.

Convoy Music Bar

• 4646 Convoy St, San Diego, CA
• convoymusicbar.com
• $$
• Best for listening to music
• Reservations required

Sit back, sip your cocktail, and enjoy the soothing sounds of music coming from the speakers inside Convoy Music Bar. It feels like you’ve been invited to an exclusive listening party to some of the best vintage sounds. It was inspired by Tokyo’s listening bars, where your taste in music can be the difference between having a good or an amazing night. Choosing a record to play is almost as hard as picking which cocktail to order.

Realm of the 52 Remedies

Photo Credit: Juju Dessert

• 4805 Convoy St, San Diego, CA
• 52remedies.com
• $$$
• Asian-themed speakeasy
• Reservations required

See the magic of alcohol inside Realm of the 52 Remedies. It’s inspired by an Asian apothecary theme, which provides the remedy to many of life’s difficulties—a good drink! The decor showcases ancient Chinese medicine ingredients. The liquor bottles behind the bar contain spirits that will remedy a bad day or make a good day even better.

How to get into Real of the 52 Remedies: Find the door inside the Apothecary room of Common Theory.

Room 56

Photo Credit: bestbars.org

• 831 Sixth Ave, San Diego, CA
• viiiv.co
• $$$
• Hotel lobby speakeasy
• Reservations required

Room 56 isn’t just another room in the trendy Moxy Hotel in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. It’s a spacious hidden venue popular for a welcome drink by hotel guests and also open to the public. It specializes in drinks honoring America’s founding fathers. In fact, the number ’56’ actually corresponds to the number of delegates who signed the Declaration of Independence.

How to get into Room 56: Share your reservation details with the hotel receptionist and be directed to a bookcase. Pull the red book and wait to be escorted behind a bookshelf and down a staircase by your server.

Bar Three Piece

Photo Credit: Arturo Besquin

• 3054 University Ave, San Diego, CA
• barthreepiece.com
• $$
• For whiskey lovers
• Reservations not required

If the Seven Grand Whiskey Bar is for whiskey lovers, then its hidden speakeasy whiskey lounge in the back is a haven for true whiskey aficionados. Hundreds of imported and domestic whiskey bottles line the walls of this tastefully designed space. Get your drink served neat, old-fashioned, or poured over hand-cut ice cubes.

How to get into Bar Three Piece: find the discrete door near the bathrooms inside Seven Grand.

Prohibition Lounge

Photo Credit: Andre S.

• 548 Fifth Ave, San Diego, CA
• prohibitionsd.com
• $$
• Prohibition-era speakeasy
• Reservations not available

Prohibition Lounge is an ode to the origins of speakeasies. It takes you back to the prohibition era of the 1920s—an intimate underground space for enjoying seasonal craft cocktails and live music. It’s an escape from the busy San Diego nightlife in the Gaslamp Quarter.

How to get into Prohibition Lounge: Find El Chignon restaurant and find a door marked Law Office of Eddie O’Hare next to it. Ring the doorbell and wait for the lights to come on to enter.

Stay Near the Top Speakeasy Spots in San Diego

San Diego has speakeasy bars in the Gaslamp Quarter, Downtown San Diego, Little Italy, and many other popular neighborhoods.

Find vacation rentals near your favorite bars and experience the hidden side of San Diego.