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I LOVE DALVA!
Cheap sangria, reasonably friendly bartenders, usually not very crowded. It's my go to bar when I've been out all night and feel the need to throw yet another kind of alcohol into the mix. The back room is key--my friends and I have gotten rowdy and inappropriate in there many a time. But boo to the people who smoke in there.
Booooooooring.
Terribly loud music, almost too dark to see, bad artwork on the walls, and has a weird vibe in general.
I do like how they were playing old Disney cartoons on the screen at the back though. We watched one where Donald Duck put a revolver to his head while crying. Wtf? How were these cartoons appropriate for when we were all little?? Hahahaha.
Yep, so my friends were in town and having a get-together at Dalva. Somehow, it being their first time at Dalva, they found the oh-so-obscure back room and secured a table there. So I spent about ten minutes in the front area, which is how long it took to greet my friends, take a seat at the bar, order beers (reasonably priced I guess), get my card denied because they only take cash, go to their little ATM, get cash, and pay. It was dark and pretty subdued, but a goodly crowd and people chatting.
The back was also dark and had an irie vibe going on. It was nice to have our table and feel a bit like an island unto ourselves, but also to still have the atmosphere of the whole bar looming around, which is what people really seek when they go to a bar, right? You could just drink a six-pack at home if it was just about the alcohol, but it's also about the atmosphere.
So, yep, it was pretty good. Afterward I got on my bike and zoomed home.
Dalva is one of my favorite bars in SF! And it keeps getting better. Right after Thanksgiving they are opening a little hide-out bar in the back. Dalva will serve great cocktails and offer a very deep selection of spirits. I am looking forward to it!
i have really grown to love this bar. just like an old, worn in pair of jeans. love you, dalva. LOVE YOU SO MUCH.
this bar is really great. i went here when i had friends visiting from out of town because we are… Read more »
Their $7.50 Bulleit Manhattan is reason enough to come to this place, but the old school movies (Caddyshack last night) and the fantastic juke are the icing on the cake.
We spent about an hour and a half here last night, just hangin' out, drinkin' cocktails and shootin' the sh*t. The dark interior with red votives aligning the walls is a nice touch and it wasn't busy at all when we were here. It almost feels like a well kept secret in the Mission.
Definitely coming back for another Manhattan. "On the rocks" here is a good idea if you're going that route. These drinks will put hair on your chest and a swagger in your step!
This is a fun and friendly bar.
I had an event here and I'd like to personally thank the staff in general as well as Eric and Craig in particular for making this happen.
They have a separate room in the back past the restrooms that you can reserve. I didn't know this and thought I'd reserved the area at the end of the bar. I started getting a little put off by the interlopers until I got a few beers into me and then found out that my group was in the wrong place. I didn't see the back room but I liked the spot we were in so much that I didn't care.
One last thing; these guys know how to treat a person that brings in business.
I never seem to have anything nice to say about poor Dalva. My friends really like this bar, and some of my more recent retorts to their cries for "Sangria at Dalva!" include...
1. "Ugh. Their jukebox is full of hipster barf."
2. "Their walls are too bare. I feel like I'm in the Tower of London."
3. "IPA tastes BAAAD there."
Are these things true? Well, in my strange little warped world -- yeah.
BUT... They're also incredibly subjective. And, Dalva may have a few retorts of its own when it sees ME coming...
1. "Oh god. It's the bitch who can't seem to remember that she's ordered the IPA five times before and doesn't like it."
2. "Shit. Are we going to have to listen to ANOTHER drunken rendition of 'Do You Hear the People Sing?'"
I'm sure it has other gripes with me. Because I do go here a lot. I'm apparently the only person I know who has a beef with Dalva.
So I will call it a wash. And 3 stars.
Great job Tom! The meetup happy hour was great success ( Ali G )
Drinks specials, bartenders and company were all loads of fun. I'm surprised I haven't written any review of this place even though I come here once in awhile.
You certainly can't beat the Pee Wee Herman movie playing at the bar.
You will have your own DYL in no time with or without making out drunk. =P Har Har.
On Friday night the "Lady K" had some out of town guest in town and it was my job to pick the happy hour spot. I originally picked Monk's Kettle but any drinker knows that there is no way you are going to be able to just walk right up and grab a seat and pint in that place on a Friday night so.... we walked the 25 paces to Dalva which turned out to be just the right place.
We each had a great micro brew for $4 a pint! There was plenty of room to walk around to get back to the bar and our table! The noise was low key so we could talk to each other!
Certainly a place to go back to again. Enjoy!
I like the generious Jameson shots they pour here.
Maybe it was just because we were the only ones here on a Wednesday night til closing.
It's a good bar, really dark with a TV screen showing random stuff all the way in the back.
DJ was playing some mellow house tunes which went perfectly with the vibe.
Ahhhh.... nothing like relaxation.
You shouldn't have any problem catching a cab around here either.
My friends seem to love this place because we keep going back here but I have to admit I just don't understand the allure other than it's dark and the music doesn't completely suck. The place is narrow and can be really hard to move around in. The bartenders seem to know their stuff and if you are a beer connesiour you'll love the selection in this place.
It took me a couple visits to realize if you go back towards the bathrooms there is a whole other room that is fairly spacious with tables and benches along the walls which makes it the only part of the bar good for groups.
Unfortunately, despite smoking in public buildings being illegal and a Frigging sign on the wall that says No Smoking it seems that all the smokers know about this back room and light up back there regardless of whether you give them dirty looks or not. If you're lucky you'll get some marijuana smokers back there also. If they kicked the smokers out, this place might get 4 stars.
I love Dalva. Let me reiterate: I LOVE Dalva. And not only because of the amazing Trumer Pils glasses, one of which I successfully stole last year, but which broke right after I first used it. No, I love Dalva because it's a really relaxed, unpretentious (at least when I'm there), casual bar that offers a great selection of beers and hard liquors, good music, and a good atmosphere. I first went here on a date, and it's a good place for casual drinking with friends, more-than-friends or people you're interested in getting to know a little better. Especially the somewhat scary but overall pretty awesome upstairs room (which is where I plan on going to steal my next glass...).
Um. I love Dalva. That's pretty much all there is to say. I love Dalva. I love their Trumer glasses. I also love their proximity to Taqueria Pancho Villa (tofu tacooooooos!).
Oh yes. Yes indeed.
Despite being one of the most low-lit bars I've ever been to (with dark-as-pitch Elbo Room just down the street), Dalva does alright in the Happy Hour department. $3.50 snags you a well drink, beer, or sangria between 4PM and 7PM. $7.50 gets you a "belly warming Winter cocktail."
Only those who can stomach behemoth quantities of cream should order the latter.
I tried to be covert about getting a Hot Peppermint Patty (one of the "belly warmers"), but there's nothing subtle about an inch-high pile of Whip It! on top of your piping-hot potable. Nor is there any subtlety when it comes to the freezing cold restroom. It's like peeing in a meat locker.
In summary: pee elsewhere, drink here.
This is a nice bar, not the best layout but its ok.
The crowd is older then Deliriums crowd.
The beer selection is a little better.
Drinks are cheap! Two cocktails plus a $3-tip for only $16!
We came here on a Friday night at about 10:30ish. It wasn't packed, but was bustling. Very very loud place with a nice projector screen. I felt like I was yelling for hours, but we were only in there for about 30 minutes.
I'd come here again because the drinks are pretty good and it's cheap. And it's right across the street from my boyfriend's...so no need to walk far. =)
Eh...Meh...Yeah...
It's not a bad decor. I like to think of it as a lessor version of Skylark. Dark, divey-ish but not super divey. Bathroom in the back that's scary, but that's to be expected of any place in the Mission.
The problems are crappy drinks, weird beer selection, and not so friendly barkeeps. I might come back, but there are soooo many places I'd rather try first.
walking into dalva was like having someone wrap me in a chenille throw. shhh shhh. and off i go to my happy place after two days in the car with my family.
the bartender here knows how to keep a bar. his set up was impeccable. an array of sliced mandarines and limes just waiting to be squeezed into a mojito, a lively bunch of mint upright in a glass of water, a pitcher of sanguine sangria and an absinthe dispenser replete with spoons. such a drinking environment demands that i jump up and scream OUTRAGEOUS!
Dalva is a nice little mellow respite from the other 16th and Mission bars. Yeah it's a bit divey, but not in a "hey look how divey we are!" kind of way.
It's just a small little place, really low-lit with loud music and random movies projected on the back wall. I've only been here on weeknights so it's always SUPER mellow, so I can't really say how it gets on weekends. But from my experience the bartenders are cool and the drinks are just fine.
Apparently there is also a back room for smoking, which I've never been into.
I'd consider myself a fan of Dalva, but I wasn't quite blown away. I'm a huge fan of the bars in the Mission in general and this one fits in nicely with the prototype of a Mission bar.
Dalva in a nut shell:
-Dark inside
-Loud music
- Big movie screen in back
- Nice and attentive bartenders
- OK drinks (could have been stronger)
-Chill crowd
I will definitely choose Dalva again when I'm in the mood for a more mellow bar in the Mission.
Wait, was there a back room where you can smoke cigs? I vaguely remember all this from my drunken state. Surprisingly, I only just remembered it this second. hmmmm, interesting.
From what I remember I really like Dalva. The bartender was nice, from what I remember. The space was nice, from what I remember. The crowd was cool, from what I remember. I had a lot of fun, from what I remember. If I could remember this much, it had to be kinda good.
At the seventh bar of Christmas I bought myself for me:
One Fernet
One PBR
One PBR
One Jack and Coke
One PBR
One vodka Red Bull
One pint of PBR
You can't smoke cigarettes nor weed all day upstairs anymore:
http://www.youtube.com...
It's what you were, Dalva that makes it impossible to grant you five stars for what you are.
Aside for that, for a small bar on 16th and Valencia, Dalva is quaint and romantic.
Great music, quality conversation if you want it - though people will leave you alone here.
DEFINITELY the easiest bar on the Valencia strip, when I'm around here I'm always sure to check in for a drink.
If you're gonna get out of your Mission hole to BUY a drink, might as well make it a venture worthy of your money.
It's always a radical feeling to have movies like "For a Few Dollars More" projected on the high walls of Dalva, while the DJ du Soir plays psychedelia, soul and new wave for your drunken pleasure.
Plus, once again, the back room, under the stairs, provides excellent hiding corners.
I don't think I've ever actually had a drink in the bar area. I usually arrive already drunk and I make a beeline straight for the back room. From there, I start to chain smoke and jive talk. I don't know how I end up with drinks in my hand, but it happens. I'm pretty sure the drinks are pricier than other bars in the area, because I always end up a few bills lighter.
I'm reading this review and it totally sounds like I get roofied/robbed at Dalvas. But it's not true! This is a cool spot if you're a smoker and don't want to deal with the cold Zeitgeist yard.
I didn't intend to come here, but am kinda glad that I did. We were just wandering down Mission, not sure where we were going to end up. It occured to me at one point that maybe we should just call it a night. Bars on a Friday in the Mission are not only crowded, but generally crowded with really annoying people that I want to stab.
We walked by this place and I just happened to glance in. The only thing I noticed was that it wasn't packed with people, so we went inside and immediately found a table against the wall.
It was suitably dark, which always works to my advantage because I like to do sneaky things to my dates under the cover of darkness. There was a DJ spinning cool hip-hop, and a projection screen in the back was playing a retro 70s movie.
They have a really extensive selection of beers I'm not familiar with. I ordered the one that looked like it had a dead body in a coffin on the handle. It tasted delicious and I'll have to go back to get the name of it. Some beers are served in these really weird beaker-like glasses that make people look as if they're guzzling their 10th grade chemistry class assignment.
People here were....normal....I don't know what it is about Dalva that repels all the people I want to stab, but none of them found there way here. Maybe it was just dumb luck, but I don't care.
Here's what just drives me nuts. Abuse of the common sense law. If I'm at a bar that's not crowded and the bartender is hassling me to hurry up and order my drink so he can tend to the waiting customers he doesn't have... fuck that. If it were crowded, that's one thing. If it's not crowded, get over yourself bartender. I just hate it when they're dicks.
Anyway, what I like about Dalva is their top secret back room where they sometimes host poetry slams. During said poetry slam sesh people are bound to be smoking hellza weed so be prepared to get face slammed by a fat cloud of smoke when you walk in. As soon as the smoke settles though, and as long as you can cope with how hot it gets in that little place, the top secret room can be way cool.
This is Lazlo*'s dimly lit sexpot older sister. Or maybe it's the younger sister. Or maybe they're not related, but, like, dating**. Anyway, from the music to the movie projector to the awesome drink selection (especially for microbrews), the sibling bars bear striking resemblence. I prefer the location and the space of Dalva - there's something like a pulsating candle, something cavernlike about it***. This is definitely a place to keep it classy in the Mission - conspicuous absence of the more obnoxious varietal of hipster, as well as those desperate college seniors that hang out at Cassanova. It's not too noisy or too crowded, especially compared to its neighbors. A nice spot to start or end the night, and definitely date-worthy.
*http://www.yelp.com/bi...
**I went here with my brother. No one ever mistakes us for dating, thank gawd.
***though this may be partially due to its unfortunate narrowness.
we came here on a wednesday night for a friends going away. he told us that he yelped 'dive bar' and dalva is the best that came up and this place is pretty cool.
we came in before 7 so they had some drinks on special for $3.75. i originally was just going to get a mojito to sip on but asked the bartender what he made that was good. he said he had some fresh tangelos. he made me a tangelo daiquiri. it was so good. i had 2!
they have a little back room, a juke box with about 2 songs that i know, and stairs that lead to i dont know where. the walls have grates on them. weird. but ok
the drink was good!
Been here once with two girlfriends around 7 or 8ish, already hopping even then. Bartender was unbelievably nice, we ordered reasonably-priced beers from their respectable list of draft beer.
Sat at the bar - this is the kind of place to come with one or two friends or maybe on a date, not so good for groups of people. Dim lighting, clean and cozy interior.
Good location (in the Mission), we came here after an event at Needles & Pens and before hopping on BART. I'd be interested to come here later at night next time.
Yup- little Jeannetti went up to the city. Big day for me. I only got lost 4 times. YEAY!
I packed my gun, mace pepper spray, handcuffs- you know, all the necessary items a young lady needs to be protected from all the very bad people that live in big scary cities.
After realizing Gestalt was closed- little ole me turned to Mr. Joe C and say "oh my- what shall we ever do??". I learned a big lesson last night- you guys have bars on every street. That is such an amazing concept!! I'm going to suggest this idea to the city organizers of Willow Glen.
The lovely bartender made me a wonderful Grey Goose & Tonic. After just a couple sips- I started to feel dizzy. Oh my. This drink had quite a nice kick to it- much more exciting then the Shirley Temples I order back home.
My only suggestion: they need to get better beer glasses. Mr. Joe C kept spilling his beverage all over himself. (I think Mr. Joe was really tired last night.)
So ..... this place has been here for something like 15 years and was in the ranks of the other 549 out of 1187 bars in the mission I have yet to visit.
Well ... 550 down ... 637 to go!!!
Did I mention this place kind of rules?
They serve some nice whiskey cocktails ... they have a really cool dark back area to get your chill on.
I would say more .. but you should just go there.
Right next to BART as well for meet ups.
Awesome dark bar with an even darker back room that is absolutely perfect for under-the-table shenanigans, if you catch my drift. Fairly decent sangria and cheapish drinks. Too bad BLOWholes occasionally hog the bathroom.
Uncomfortably shaped seating area isn't really conducive to large groups, and the well tequila leaves you with a hangover that lasts for days... But if you are the type who doesn't let a simple brain-splitting headache mess with your day, they happy hour is cheap enough to make it a nice reasonable place to start a Mission pub-crawl.
Very chillllll... lots of distractions if that's what you're looking for.
Worth stopping in and having a few happy hour drinks if you're on 16th St.
Added bonus: mentioned in the 3eb song "Wounded," so if you're a 3eb fan, you have to go there for the effect.
Like a lot of things, Dalva is probably a bit over my head. Maybe it's the omissions that people like? I like old movies too but I like to hear the sound. I like a good DJ too but the acoustics in here were pretty bad. I like beer too but I can't really order good ones if I can't see the taps. Not a bad joint but I don't quite get it.
I did get a free pack of stolen Sherman's out of the stop. If those were yours you can have 'em back, they're making me cough.
I almost got in a fight here. And I know what you're thinking, "Stephy?! Sweet, innocent, demure, waif-like (yeah right) little Stephy?" *Gasp!* "Never!"
Well, it's true. I have been in a scrap or three in my years and the night it almost happened here, would have been justifiable because a girl violated....
The Bathroom Door Rule.
Allow me to explain. It's a bar. There are chicks. This means that the drink to bladder ratio gets challenging. There is the magical thing called the "seal" but once that is broken, well, you are as they say in some countries, "screwed." Well, on my first weekend as a SF resident, we came here for drinks and my seal was definitely annihilated. And so, I did what any lady would do and excused myself and went to the ladies room. It was towards the end of the night and as seals go, many were in similar states as mine, but here's where the line was crossed.
As I walked over to the door, I reached for the handle and saw that it was locked. Cool, no worries, I will wait for the young lady to finish. I did, she came out and then I walked in and closed the door behind me. Then not 3 seconds. Count them. 1,2,3 seconds later, someone starts pounding on the door. I'm not talking, "Helloooo, is anyone in there, may I borrow some sugar" knocking, but more like a "Bitch Betta Have My Monaaaay. )(@#&#%)(&!!!" pound. That, my dear friends, is totally un#@&!ingacceptable.
And so I did my business for all of 45 seconds. Did the pounding end? Newp. Did it dull in its rudeness and volume? Newp. Did it piss me the hell off. Oh you bet, and so when I opened the door, I practically hit the broad with the door (intentionally of course) and got right up in her face and said, "45 seconds! Really. You can't wait 45 fucking seconds!" To which she responded some gibberish about kicking my keester. Yeah, yeah, yeah, suck it. I was new to town and wasn't all that interested in destroying the girl on a Saturday night and an arrest may have affected my first day at work, so I opted out. But believe me, the temptation was there to knock Impatient Patty the fuck out!
Anyhoo, I came here again last night and definitely had a much nicer experience. There weren't any drunk and unruly broads, just nice, friendly faces and some great nipple art on the wall. I know that sounds weird, but go in and look, this artist is awesome. I had the wine and I will say, it's not the best, but who orders wine at a bar anyway? No biggie and I will definitely be back again :)
You all have done this unless you live in the immediate area and even then only if you live like within 2 -3 blocks.
You go to Delerium, Amnesia, Casanova or Doc's Clocks. Then every time you go through the Mission, each bar you see, you're thinking "Oh, yeah, just another Dive Bar." Then you pretty much assume everything is the same bar, different name or at least I did this for Skylark before realizing I was right.
Dalva, however I find to be quite a decent place. For one, it isn't a dive. Yeah it has dive prices but the bar actually looks pretty nice and the seating isn't bad. The low lights make it a decent bar for a date or even a good place to meet with a group of friends.
The beers are good too. The one that stands out the most is that they have Hennepin from the Ommegang Brewery (which specializes in Belgain style beers) for like $4. I'd probably be able to remember a lot more if I wouldn't have had those shots of Jameson.
One star off because transporting a round of drinks from the bar to the back area can be a nightmare on a crowded night but otherwise I'm definitely coming back.
This is a great spot in the middle of alot of very crowded bars. Maybe it's more crowded during the weekends but the monday I was there it was great. Back room for lounging, tecate on tap, and good cocktails as well. Old funk on the jukebox, and old movies on a big screen. Like my friend said "not filled with alot of people in your face". A hidden weekday gem, so if you have not been, try to keep it on the down low.
So you've probably noticed if you take the time to read any of the stuff I bother to write with the narcissistic delusion that strangers in the world give a shit about what I think about anything, or everything, as the case may be . . . that I give a lot of 5-star reviews. Here's the thing - there are places I hate, but why pollute the internets with vitriol unless someone really does me wrong, or someplace is so horrible that I feel the need to warn others off? So I don't write a lot of 1 and 2 star reviews - a few, but not many.
Likewise, I am disinclined to write a review of a mediocre place at all - mediocrity does not warrant my commentary.
That leaves lots of 5-star enthusiasm for the places I really like.
I really like Dalva. I like the beers on tap. I like the DJ spinning stuff I've never heard. I like the lighting. I like the old wooden bar. I like the room in the back. I like that they'll accommodate a big party. I like that it's just a little grungy, but mostly kinda nice in there.
I like Dalva - get it? Any questions?
Stopped in last night while on our "bar crawl" in the Mission and was pleasantly surprised.
While its kinda a small bar, they have a great selection of beverages. Good variety of local beers and other beer-like beverages and a full bar.
I also appreciated the not totally disgusting bathroom that actually didn't have much of a smell. Hey sometimes bar bathrooms are some sort of evil hell hole you never hope to go in again and others aren't so bad. This one was not too bad :)
Definitely think that if we are in the neighborhood again we will be stopping by
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