Milk Bar, a venue that has served as a comedy club, music venue, and locals bar for over two decades, has officially closed its doors. The location will be renamed O’Reilly’s Irish Pub, with hopes to open by this Sunday, prior to the annual Haight Street Fair.
As it turns out, ownership has been transferred inside the family. Louie Caponi, son of the current owner, will rename the bar O’Reilly’s Pub, alongside business partner Neil Holbrook. The owners say the name pays homage to Holbrook’s mother's family. Holbrook is originally from Dublin, Ireland, and currently owns The San Francisco Athletic Club on Divisidero.
Across from Amoeba Records, at the corner of Haight and Stanyan, Milk Bar has long enjoyed foot traffic from both locals and tourists, and those wanting to see comedy and live music. Established in 2001, with its name and design inspired by A Clockwork Orange, the bar once flourished as a hub for comedy and music.
Mostly known as a small venue for comedy shows and up-and-coming artists, Milk Bar also hosted a variety of fun events over the years. It grew popular for "The Official Unofficial Hardly Strictly Bluegrass After Parties," packing the bar with spillover Hardly Strictly concertgoers who poured out of Golden Gate Park each October. Patrons may have voiced typical music venue complaints like sticky floors and the like, but performers have noted that the sound quality is phenomenal, and that is something that the new venue will continue to take advantage of.
The once-vibrant venue had recently gone mostly dark, and was not frequently busy. With fewer performances and a dimly-lit interior, passersby often glanced through its tinted windows during the day, unsure if it was even open. Holbrook hopes to breathe fresh energy into the former Haight Street staple, and bring not only live music, but a welcoming atmosphere back into the venue.
Holbrook notes, “The amount of foot traffic here is phenomenal. Felt like it was wasted a little bit, but also Milk Bar had a great run. It needed a rebrand.”
Renovation plans include a second stage, an electric fireplace, a stone wall, and a bright green exterior paint job. They may also include a record player through some form of collaboration or partnership with the famed, neighboring Amoeba Records. Following the closure of nearby bar/venue Club Deluxe, Holbrook added that Haight Street is in dire need of live music.
“It was a fantastic venue,” added Holbrook. “Live music is so synonymous with Haight Street, and we want to keep that part alive. Everything good that Milk Bar was, we want to keep, and bring our new idea, which is O’Reilly’s Irish Pub.”
Quintessential artifacts include green renderings out front, a wood-lined bar, and a high priority of quality Guinness pouring from the taps — as well as old family pictures from the motherland.
Though the rebrand is new, they want to retain much of Milk Bar’s remaining spirit. “It needed something new. The plan is to create a warm, welcoming Irish pub. Maybe you can stop by when your kids are getting records across the street at Amoeba,” Holbrook laughs.
The bar has no exact opening date at this point, though they are shooting for this Sunday, hoping to take advantage of the Haight Street Fair. History may repeat itself, as Holbrook opened San Francisco Athletic Club on the first day of the FIFA World Cup in 2014.
