Catalyst Cocktails

What a lucky find. Thanks Yelp Stickers on the door... a large group of my friends and I saw those in a moment of indecision and then decided to walk on in. Glad we did. This is a blast-from-the-past kinda bar... I loved it. It wasn't very busy the Wed night we went but the bartender made a good drink stiff drink and they had a unique menu to select from - including fresh fruit and herb drinks that raise the bar.

After a couple of cocktails, we headed on out to Bondage-a-go-go...a lil warmer for the walk. ;-)

See ya there!

Holy incongruous juxtapositions!

This pseudo-swank watering hole is lodged firmly in the ass-crack of Bail Bond Row. Across the street sprawls the SF jail like a concrete Jabba the Hutt, and surrounding the Catalyst itself (including directly upstairs) is sign after neon sign advertising bail bonds for the lowly and incarcerated unfortunates.

Inside, however, Art Deco ceiling lights radiate over the bar like the crown of the Statue of Liberty dressed in gold bling, and tasteful artwork fills the wall space between frosted glass lamps.

In the back of this narrow shoebox space, dancers squeeze onto a postage-stamp dancefloor while the DJs spin...well...just about anything. Catalyst seems to welcome DJs who play the most random and unpredictable selections: reggae and dancehall one night, goth-industrial the next, and rockabilly rave-ups the night after that.

Make sure to bring your sense of absurdity. 12-oz. bottles of PBR are only $2.50, so even if the decor seems fancy, your anti-establishment side can still drink for cheap and revel in the fact that The Man hasn't put you in prison...yet.

Went here for the first time --- an old friend was DJing last night. Now I'm a TOTAL fan of this SOMA gem!!!

Absolutely ADORE Matt! Ne'er mind that he shares the name as THE ex-boyfriend, but man oh man. MATT is the BEST cocktail concoctionist EVER! He will not lead you wrong --- the Sangre Amado and the Black Dahlia are both O-mazing!!!

The art deco decor --- and the great DJs make me think of the LES in NYC. Something funky, but the crowd is not too quirky. All in all --- totally great vibe and drinks priced right.

I don't think I'd classify this place as a dive bar. It's not super swanky, but there's just something really cool about the space and those who choose to frequent it. The bar isn't swamped with people, but you know the measure of a bar by how many folks are still stopping by to snag that last call cocktail.

Sometimes I like to search my name in other reviews to see what I missed during the night:

"Keane held me while he sang "Wind Beneath my Wings" to me, but the weirder part is that i asked him to do it...?"

... sounds about right.

It was like the DYLs of my Yelp childhood. You know... when the world was still full of wonder and discovery? I met new people, tried new (albeit fruity) drinks, and hung out with some of the most spectacular individuals to ever grace this green earth.

Perfectly packed: lots of beautiful people, but more than enough room to be comfortable. Cocktails made from freshly squeezed citrus and berries (and no, i'm not too manly to partake). Excellent service from the barstaff who were even willing to explain the drinks to us. Two words: Chocolate Martini. There IS a God.

But at the end of the night, I began to get hungry. And Yelpers, who know more about food than anyone else, certainly didn't help.

Yelper: Mmm... I could really go for some donuts.
Yelper: Hey, that bacon dog cart sounds good right about now.
Yelper: McDonald's fries are so damn good.
Yelper: Naan n' Curry anyone?

*cravings*

You don't even want to know what weird culinary combination I made when I got home...

I am feeling very uninspired lately. Two of my friends have asked me why I haven't written a review in a while and I think I may just be Yelp-ed out at the moment. What else could I possibly have to add? My Yelp schtick is completely undefined and I've been going through a bit of a dry spell, so I can't even tell you losers about the hipster I'm boning (because there is none). Also, I do everything with you people, so what is the point? It's like I'm dating all of you and we are already in LTR mode. I have no new stories because you were ALREADY THERE.

However, I am forcing myself to write (as Natalie Goldberg would want me to do) because I am completely fucking sick of hearing about the fucking bacon dog cart and if I have to write 100 reviews of bullshit in pig latin & spanish in the next hour in order to avoid reading about the motherfucking bacon dog cart, I will do so.

Catalyst Cocktails allowed me to infect the ears of several dozen Yelpers with cheesy 90s pop & cheesy indie hipster dance music. To those of you who remember this night with the sing along of "Total Eclipse of the Heart", you are very welcome. I am especially grateful for the owner, who completely shooed away some drunk people who came up to my laptop and attempted to change the song because "no one" liked cheesy 90s pop hit, Rhythym of the Night by Corona (to which I say, you clearly have no sense of humor and no taste and no appreciation for the history of pop music). Thank you for understanding my territoriality about my playlist & my computer. I will be sure to return to Catalyst for some of the city's finest made Manhattans.

I don't remember much what I did last night.
Something about pantomiming outside and entertaining the bouncer.
I really don't know what else I did. This must be how it feels like being Keane for a night. I no likey.

4 stars for getting me fucked up off of 2 lemon drops and having ample space where I could sit to nurse myself back to normalcy.

This place has a great decor complete with cool artwork adorning the walls, a fantastic fruity concoction cocktail menu, bartenders who are on top of things and make strong drinks, a bail bond place upstairs, a dance floor and comfy booths, food until 9:30....and..........this is the only place outside of a karaoke lounge that I have heard 100 people break into song when Bonnie Tyler was played............

"Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit lonely
and you're never coming around
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit tired of listening to the sound
of my tears
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit nervous that the best of all the
years have gone by
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified and then
I see the look in your eyes
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then I fall apart
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then I fall apart
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit restless and I dream
of something wild
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit helpless and I'm lying
like a child in your arms
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit angry and I know I've got
to get out and cry
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified but then I see the
look in your eyes......."

Priceless!

Not sure if you youngsters remember the Gin Joint, but Catalyst took over the space a couple of years ago. It still retains its classic and stylish charm though, and there is a real sense of stumbling onto something, especially since it's located amidst the Bail Bonds off Bryant Street.

There are big comfortable booths, a long bar, even a dance floor, all tucked away into a room that feels just perfect with about one hundred people in it. The bartenders and owner are cool too, really friendly, and ready to pour some serious adult beverages. With it's speakeasy history, order a Martini or Manhattan.

This is a fab hideout, most nights are pretty quiet, perfect for loose lips and saucy conversation.

The ratio of bail bonds places to cocktail bars in this neighborhood is unsettlingly high. As is the ratio of Justice to cocktail bars, now that I think of it.

(Speaking of which, you Californians may be onto something with your renaming courthouses Halls of Justice. That phrase is begging to be said in the movie-trailer-guy voice. Yelp, I think we need a "record your review" feature so that it makes sense when I say Hall of Justice three or four times in a pseudo-deep voice now.)

Hall of Justice.
Hall...of JUSTICE!
HALL. OF JUSTICE.

That was fun.

HAAAAALL of justice.

Okay now I'm really finished.

Anyway, despite the strange neighborhood full of bail bonds and justice, this is a pretty classy little bar with an extensive drink menu and live jazz. Well drinks are $2 on Tuesday, but I'd recommend sampling something off the cocktail menu, like the blackberry margarita, which was fantastic. And, if you are the type of person who likes to mix your drinking with your getting arrested, you're in luck, because upstairs is a bail bonds place and around the corner is the...

(say it with me in a funny deep voice)

Hall of Justice.

My friends and I stumbled upon this bar after dinner at Yellow Pa Taut, the Burmese restaurant around the corner, and before Bondage A-Go-Go (don't ask). Why did we choose this bar? It wasn't for the "People on Yelp Love Us" stickers, although I was glad to see them when we walked in, but it was actually because I parked right across from it and wanted to go someplace close. Luckily, it was a great decision!

This review is just for the drinks because until I looked at their website I didn't even know they served food. I've had the Catalyst Cocktail, their signature cocktail, made up of Vodka mixed with Raspberries, Blueberries, Blue Curacao and Razzmataz. This was yummy, but not too strong. The Black Dahlia is made of Vodka, Fresh Blackberry and Orange Juice, Lavender Syrup, and Soda Water served on the rocks, and is a little stronger, but nice and tasty. Drink number 3 was the Sangre Amado, made with Vodka or Gin, with Fresh Strawberries and Grapefruit, a dash of bitters, Rosehips-Hibiscus Syrup, delicious and sort of tart. My favorite drink was the Catalyst Mojito, one of the best versions I've ever had of this drink.

Want to know what makes the drinks here so special? All of the juices and fruits are fresh, you can watch them pull the fruit out of the fridge to crush it into your drink. And, the syrups and mixers are house-made. I don't think I've ever seen a bar go that far to make all of their drinks that well. But, this is also part of the reason that I give Catalyst 4 stars, instead of 5. Both times I've gone, they've run out of some of the fresh ingredients so I can't necessarily have the drink I want to try.