Black Cat Jazz Supper Club — Restaurant in San Francisco

This place advertises itself as Jazz & Supper club. It is not a good choice for either of these. We have been to this place twice, once in October of last year and once the last weekend.

The whole place is of the size of a typical living room and they pack nearly 25 people in the small space, with no room for anything, including waiters serving food, patrons trying to walk to the restroom etc. In such a small space, they play extremely loud music. There is no need for microphones, as you would be sitting virtually a few feet away from the band. I find it very jarring and had a borderline headache. On my first visit, they sat us in a corner (not what we reserved), from where we could not even see 2 of the 5 band members. As to the quality of the musicians, I am no expert, but I think they did their best. The first time we paid $15 per head for the tickets and this time $45. All this might sound fine, except when you learn about their business model, as I will talk about next.

Coming to the supper part, it's a collection of overpriced bar food. For example, for a high priced Hummus platter, you wouldn't get the expected pita bread to go with the tiny quantity of hummus they give. Instead you get a few thin crackers! After this dining experience the first time, we decided we could spend the same amount elsewhere nearby and eat real food. Problem solved, right? Wrong! After we had decent food elsewhere for about the same amount we would have spent here, we arrived there on time. The bar tender, playing the good cop showed us the menu book where it says the suggested minimum on food/drinks is $30 per person. Within a few seconds, the manager showed up, playing the bad cop, and sternly told us that we agreed to these terms while reserving tickets and therefore it's not just a suggestion. After adding miscellaneous charges (as one other reviewer goes into more detail), the amount is $42 per person, whether you eat their crappy food or not. The fact that you have bought tickets for the music has no bearing on this. The manager in fact frankly said that that's how they make their money.

There is nothing unusual about cover charge in a bar, where you don't pay for the music. There is also nothing unusual about cinema halls basing their profits on overpriced popcorn (but hey, nobody chases after you if you decide not to buy that overpriced popcorn)! This is a hybrid business model, where you are expected to spend about $50 per person on food and also buy tickets for the music.

If your idea of great way to spend an evening is to pay about $95 per person listening to loud/jarring music in a claustrophobic setting, this is perfect. Or if you're like me, who likes their Jazz to be a peaceful experience and who likes to spend money only in good food, I would suggest staying away from this place. Heck, you could order pizza and listen to Jazz on good home speakers, over this and still have a better time.

We came to SF in BART train, trying to avoid some parking hassles. Civic center seems to be a close enough stop. But the 8-min walk to this place is not very pleasant. You would encounter a variety of shady characters on the street, usually smoking cigarettes or weed, generally looming about, but they mostly keep to themselves, except for a couple of them who might ask...

I'm so sad this spot was not remotely worth it because I've been dying to go and love jazz clubs, especially the less bougie types. I never leave bad reviews but this was SO scammy. $300 for 2 cocktails, a basket of bread, and a shared sampler plate at a table with no view that I reserved yet got moved from. And it's not even a nice establishment.

Full story: I prepaid $70 to reserve a table for 2. Its 1 of 2 crammed in the back where staff constantly rush by you and that has an entire bar and column blocking the view. We had to work not to elbow the ppl next to us. The show was late, the DJ didn't have a mic so we couldn't hear him, and the music was a weird modern alien-themed jazz with french record scratches that my date and I at least got to crack up to. (I say that having been amazed at jazz shows and loving when ppl pull out saws, pots, etc. The chaos and improv of jazz is what I like and yet I can say this was awful.) The worst part was the price gouging though. I ordered bread while my date was late and despite getting the taster which includes that as the first item, they charged me twice rather than swap it. It's not like it needed to be prepared, it wasn't even grilled bread. The food and cocktails were good and I accept high prices in SF so was okay with it though. Then they only provide bottled water to upcharge you. Then we got moved mid-meal to a new spot directly behind the column at the bar because they overbooked. It was almost a blessing since we had no table space or back support on our chairs and my date got a crooked chair BOTH times. Service was slow since the staff are run ragged. At least they're pleasant, it was the only thing keeping me from being a Karen. The bill came and due to a "service fee" on top of the SF health initiative, on top of 18% included gratuity (despite they also ask for a tip again...) The total was $232 (so $300 considering the reservation cost). The food and drinks were good but you can find that elsewhere. The whiskey butter was far too strong, the salad was just a head of iceberg lettuce cut in half drizzled with ranch and bacon bits, and the lemon chicken sauce was so sweet my date thought they put the wrong thing on it. Also, it's in the tenderloin. As two women, it's not remotely safe to wait outside even the front door.

Please avoid at all costs. Go to ANY other jazz club in the city,...

We loved this place. Remember kiddies read everything before you complain about the price. Don’t go if you can not afford it. If you calculate what it would cost for a big venue concert ticket with good seats and without the dinner then you will know what the costs will be. There are no surprises they make it clear about all the up charging beforehand but we believed it was reasonable in California. It’s not hard to figure out. I wouldn’t bring a first date here unless you want to spend on someone you don’t know well. The waitresses were so nice. They went above and beyond to take care of us. The food was absolutely amazing, steak bites, salad, Pinot noir straight out of Sonoma, the key- lime pie mmmah! Wonderfu! We did research on the bands that were playing at the venue and that made our experience that much better. Amazing talent!! K. George and Sami Steven’s were an excellent example for the Black Cat. They made me a Jazz fan for life. A vocalist and a great band combo is a winner. We will be back if we return to San Francisco without a doubt. Don’t forget to use uber too or some form of transportation like this (Wayne driverless car might go here?) to get around. It’s not a good thing to dress up really nice and walk around in the city especially certain neiborhoods like the tenderloin at night. Most people somewhat dressed up for dinner here. It was a casual dressy or dressy but not tux and evening gowns. It’s a small venue with pep! I don’t think parking is a safe option here or anywhere if your driving a rental in San Francisco. If you have a rental - it’s not recommended in the city - make sure your hotel has a locked garage and you don’t take the car out unless you are driving away from the city areas. Cars were getting broken into everywhere - so yes Uber. If you stick around and enjoyed the music there was an opportunity for us to get an autographed cd to buy after. Also Thursdays are a little slower and because our table wasn’t reserved for the second period of the night we got to stay for free and hear more tunes.This was a great place to have dinner and just have a good time. We loved everything about it! I highly recommend the Black Cat if you are...