Since opening in 1919, Tosca has hosted beat poets, actors, authors, socialites, vagabonds, dancers, artists and other assorted celebrities and characters. Corner booths are named in honor of Hunter S Thompson (who penned his SF Examiner column there) and Willie Brown (former San Francisco Mayor, who still holds court there regularly). Francis Ford Coppola once cooked up an Italian feast at the bar, Jerry Garcia serenaded Ashley Judd in the dining room, Joan Baez was kicked out for not wearing shoes, Bill Murray, Sam Shepard and Billy Crystal played pool in the back room, Bono got on the bar at 4am. and requested “O Sole Mio,” then sang along with a recording of Pavarotti (he later opened his own Tosca restaurant in Dublin in the mid 90s). Wim Wenders and Sam Shepard wrote part of Paris, Texas at the bar. Lars Ulrich, Lauren Hutton, Rudolf Nureyez and Mikhail Baryshnikov all considered it a second home.

In 2019, Tosca’s 100th anniversary, restaurateur Anna Weinberg and interior designer Ken Fulk heard it was closing so the pair quickly joined forces to save it. As the new owners and passionate fans of the original establishment their goal was to return Tosca to its rightful place as a San Francisco institution.These days, regular faces at this celebrity-magnet saloon run the gamut from Le Bron James and Nancy Pelosi and tech titans Bill Gates, Sir Jonny Ive and Ron Conway.

Just as well known as the star-studded guestbook are the Tosca meatballs, Negronis and the legendary House “Cappuccino”—a famously boozy, hot chocolate / Prohibition-era cocktail.