Award-winning San Francisco bar PCH reopens after fireplace
Scrolling through Instagram on a recent Tuesday, Kevin Diedrich said one image caused him to pause. His award-winning bar, Pacific Cocktail Haven, appeared just as it used to on-screen. It had been a year since an early morning fire triggered by electrical issues forced the celebrated watering hole to temporarily close.
“Last week was our one-year anniversary on Feb. 22,” Diedrich told SFGATE in early March. “It showed up in my Instagram feed … and it was tough. There was so much blood, sweat and tears that went into that place.”
Last February, Diedrich was stirred awake around 3 am by the firm buzz of an incoming call. On the other line, a loyal PCH customer frantically cried, “Kev! Kevin! Your bar is on fire. You’ve got to get down here.” It’s a call Diedrich will never forget as he described the difficult moment to SFGATE after the fire was extinguished. Diedrich then grabbed his belongings and sped to his bar, just a few blocks away from his home , and was confronted with every business owner’s worst nightmare.
Thick, black smoke billowed from the structure as fire crews actively worked to get the blaze under control. By 4 am, the fire was out but it was far too late for the Lower Nob Hill bar that endured severe structural damage. The fire also destroyed all the existing bar equipment, including funky glassware gifted to the bar by customers and Diedrich’s personal collection of rare liquor bottles amassed at conventions or on his travels abroad over the past 10 years.
Owner Kevin Diedrich poses with his signature Thrilla in Manila cocktail at the new location of the Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
“The equipment wasn’t really a concern because that can always be replaced,” Diedrich said. “We had a nice collection of mugs that people would bring from their travels and we would put them up on the beam. Those are things we can’t replace. I think the liquor was the hardest thing for me because they don’t make a lot of these bottles any more. But, at the end of the day, it’s just alcohol and no one was hurt.”
Five years of business had vanished in a moment, but Diedrich, an eternal optimist, wouldn’t let the fire crush his fighting spirit. Nearly a year after the incident, Diedrich, along with business partners Andy Chun and Jan Wiginton, looks forward to reopening the bar March 16 — just three doors down from its original home.
PCH will shift from the bar’s former moody atmosphere at its previous location and welcome guests into a new bright and warm space at 550 Sutter St. Dozens of lights suspended from the ceiling will illuminate exposed brick and a sundry of tropical plants positioned throughout the space. It’s a look Diedrich describes as “subtly tropical” but “not over the top.”
The new interior location for Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
The larger PCH will also offer more wiggle room to comfortably host about 100 customers at max capacity where it can avoid the bottleneck issue often experienced at the former building. But among the greatest features PCH will gain, especially at the two-year pandemic mark, is a gated courtyard positioned by the storefront that Diedrich said is a “game-changer.”
“The biggest thing that attracted us to the building was having this gated courtyard in front of the sidewalk,” he said. “That’s something to be very excited about.”
Securing a new home for PCH was a combination of perseverance, good luck and a connection with the landlord at the new site. The latter came during the pandemic, when PCH was allowed to use the courtyard to seat customers for outdoor service, in addition to the four parklets PCH already owned.
A live plant wall along the exterior seating at the new location for Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
After the fire, Diedrich lost 100% of his equipment and inventory, which resulted in about $430,000 of total losses. He said his insurance only covered $230,000. It was yet another blow for Diedrich, but with the help of a friend, PCH was able to raise an additional $53,000 of donations on GoFundMe that helped pay for staff wages. The stress of it all had Diedrich and his team weighing their options, even entertaining the ugly idea of calling it quits. But he was resolute. Remaining closed wasn’t an option.
“I’m just the type of person who just doesn’t back down on a fight,” Diedrich said. “PCH was my first bar — my baby. So, I said, ‘Let’s buckle down and see what we can do.’”
Determined to stay within Lower Nob Hill, Diedrich and the team reached out to the landlord at 550 Sutter St. to ask about setting up a bar and eventually struck a deal that will bring PCH, which was dubbed the “Best American Cocktail Bar” in the 2020 Spirited Awards, back.
A photograph of the old location of Pacific Cocktail Haven was on the wall of the new location in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
“We had looked at other spaces around the city, but they just didn’t speak to me personally,” Diedrich said. “So, it just happened to work out and we were very fortunate to stay on the block. Our main goal was to stay in this neighborhood.”
PCH’s return comes two years after San Francisco announced shelter-in-place orders on March 16, 2020, and in the aftermath of pandemic closures that shuttered dozens of San Francisco bars and restaurants within the last year alone.
When PCH opened in 2016, it was surrounded by neighboring businesses such as Hopwater, Summer Place, Hogwash and Liholiho Yacht Club. Each has experienced temporary or permanent closures.
Drinks line the shelves behind the bar behind the new location for Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
While there is some concern on Diedrich’s part regarding the empty storefronts nearby, he also said he believes the timing is right. If his other bar, Kona’s Street Market in SoMa, is any indicator, people are coming back.
“Business has been picking up the last week, so that’s definitely a good sign,” he said about Kona’s Street Market. “People are out and about and getting comfortable.”
Diedrich admits that, in many ways, reopening PCH feels like he’s debuting a different bar. That sentiment comes in part from the new space, but also due to a fresh set of bartenders and staff. During the pandemic, many of his veteran bartenders either shifted to different roles within hospitality or left the industry altogether. It resulted in 95% new talent at PCH, with the exception of bar manager Francis Stansky, who’s stayed on board since day one.
Owner Kevin Diedrich pours one of his signature Thrilla in Manila cocktails at Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
Stansky and Diedrich are leading the charge with intense training that focuses on teaching the staff how to fashion the bar’s famous drinks, among other aspects of running the business efficiently. For now, PCH plans to maintain its existing Rolodex of cocktails inspired by bold Asian flavors, so guests new and old can taste standbys like the miso old-fashioned, Thrilla in Manila and Kung Fu Pandan, among other classic bar staples. Eventually, PCH plans to add more creative libations down the road.
It’s been a roller coaster of a year for Diedrich who kept the momentum going with PCH pop-ups and road tours to Fresno and Las Vegas to keep the brand alive. With Wednesday’s reopening, Diedrich said he and his staff are ready for PCH 2.0.
The exterior sign for the new location for Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
“We opened PCH in 2016 with not a whole lot of money … so there’s definitely like a lot of memories of how hard we fought to get the bar open,” he said. “[But] I’ve never been a negative person, so we’re trying to find the positive, not dwell on things, and push forward. I’m surrounded by a lot of awesome people that keep you going… and we’ve built something awesome and special.”
Pacific Cocktail Haven opens March 16 and is now at 550 Sutter St. For now, the bar will operate from Wednesday to Saturday from 5 pm to 12 am
The interior of the new location for Pacific Cocktail Haven in San Francisco on Mar. 11, 2022. The bar is reopening in a new location after being closed for more than a year following a destructive fire in February 2021.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE