Exclusive San Francisco Private Event Venues for Intimate Celebrations

Something that you’ll have learned as an event planner is that every event has unique requirements and challenges. 

This is especially true of private events that call for a more intimate setting. Some venues simplify planning these events with private event spaces for smaller gatherings. But with a little forethought and careful planning, almost any venue can serve as a private venue. 

Do you want to know more? Here are our recommendations for San Francisco private event venues for intimate celebrations, with added insights and tips to make every private event a success.

Why Rent a Private Event Venue for Your Next Event?

Before we get to the best San Francisco private event venues, let’s consider why you may want to use private event venues.

• The first and most obvious reason is privacy. In a private event venue or a venue with a private event space, guests can be accommodated away from other crowds. This gives the event an exclusive feel.  
• A completely separate and private room offers relative peace, even in the busiest venues.  This is essential if the event is planned for a busy time of day, such as dinner time, in a popular restaurant. 
• With a private venue, the focus is on the host and their guests, not what is going on around them. This is crucial when the event is a celebration of an important milestone birthday or other special occasion.  

Private events take careful planning, but with the perfect venue, the rest all becomes a little easier. For our expert insights into private event requirements, read our guide on what to look for in a private event space. 

8 Exclusive San Francisco Private Event Venues 

San Francisco has a wide selection of great venues, from event centers to restaurants, nightclubs, and bars. How can you know which are the best San Francisco private event venues for your upcoming events? Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered with these eight unique event spaces.

1. The Barrel Room

When you’re looking for San Francisco private event venues, we recommend checking out The Barrel Room. This restaurant venue on Sansome Street offers coursed menus, hot and cold appetizer platters, entrees, and mouth-watering desserts. Best of all, there are several private event spaces.

There’s something about wood floors, furnishings, and shelves lined with wine bottles that create a cozy and intimate atmosphere. It’s already the perfect canvas for creating a successful private event. And the Barrel Room has plenty of that. 

Besides the main dining room, there’s a wine cellar, wine room, and underground lounge for your private events in San Francisco. The wine cellar seats 14 people, but if your small event is not quite that small, choose the Wine Room with space for 25 seated or 40 standing guests.

What the Barrel Room Venue is Great For

This San Francisco venue is great for events that require private event spaces with cozy surroundings. The Underground Lounge is especially versatile, with its upholstered seating, chess table, and piano. It can be used for dinners, wine tastings, cocktail events, or happy hours, and it's only a few miles from the Golden Gate Bridge. 

2. Harborview Restaurant & Bar

Need a private event venue in the San Francisco Bay with great views and even better Asian food? You’ve got it at Harborview Restaurant & Bar. Here, guests enjoy authentic Cantonese-style Chinese cuisine in elegant surroundings, enjoying views of the San Francisco Ferry Building and the Bay Bridge.

Conveniently located at the Embarcadero Center, which houses many offices, it’s ideally situated for corporate events. But it’s just as suitable for private and social events, with 7 event spaces.

Does your client have their heart set on a private event outdoors? Book the Patio, with space for 180 seated or up to 250 standing guests. It’s the ideal choice for larger cocktail parties or corporate mixers. 

What the Harborview Restaurant & Bar Venue is Great For

It can be frustrating when your favorite San Francisco event venues are fully booked. It means that your event guests will miss out on their incredible cuisine. But that’s not an issue here because this venue also offers catering for your next event.

3. Amador Club

Our list of private event spaces in San Francisco continues with the Amador Club on Montgomery Street, less than a mile from Union Square. With 12 event spaces to choose from, you won’t have a problem finding a versatile event space at this venue. Whatever your event, you can be sure you’ll find a space that’s just right.

And that includes private events, big or small. A penthouse (11th floor) buyout offers room for up to 150 standing guests, and the Wine Cave has space for up to 65 standing. But for those smaller, more intimate affairs, the Cotton Room, Tweed Room, and Leather Room seat six, seven, and eight guests, respectively. 

Is a small, private meeting on the cards? That’s not a problem either, with The Study, which seats 15 people. 

What the Amador Club Venue is Great For

Amador Club offers a wide selection of event spaces, each with a unique decor style and charm. A full club buyout option is also available. This is more than just a spacious restaurant and bar. It’s a multifunctional event space and every event planner’s dream. 

4. The Patio

The best San Francisco private event venues offer both indoor and outdoor seating. The Patio, a restaurant and wine and cocktail bar on Scott Street, offers you even more. This venue is known for its international wine selection, American-style small plates, and handcrafted cocktails. 

But there’s so much more to this little wine lounge and kitchen venue. Six event space options are available, including a cozy firepit area accommodating 15 people. But the exclusive cellar room, with space for 8 seated or 12 standing guests, offers the perfect setting for a small, private event. 

What the Patio Venue is Great For

Whether you’re hosting a private party that needs a private event space or a more lively gathering that requires an outdoor setting, you’ll find it here. The firepit is a nice touch, adding a warm glow that rivals the stars above. 

5. Osha Thai Embarcadero

When your client wants to host a private party but demands the best in Thai cuisine, what do you do? You book a private event space at Osha Thai Embarcadero, of course. 

Osha Thai treats patrons to award-winning cuisine in elegant surroundings. Four event space options, including two private event spaces, are available. The Private Golden Room offers space for 70 seated or 100 standing guests. The Private Silver Room is perfect for dinner parties for up to 14 people. 

What the Osha Thai Embarcadero Venue is Great For

This venue in the Embarcadero Center, a bustling commercial complex, is conveniently located for corporate events. But it is also suitable for more private and intimate gatherings.

6. Lost & Found Cocktail Bar

Have you lost your confidence because you still haven’t found the perfect private event venue? You may have just found it, thanks to Lost & Found Cocktail Bar on Taraval Street. 

So, what sets this venue in the Sunset district apart from other San Francisco private event venues? Lost & Found offers four event space options, including two private event spaces, food and cocktail pickup and delivery, and even a karaoke service. 

The upstairs private room and lower private room can each accommodate 25 guests, seated or standing.

What the Lost & Found Cocktail Bar Venue is Great For

Two things make this venue stand out from other San Francisco private event venues.

The pickup-and-delivery service means your clients can enjoy comforting bar food and superb cocktails, even if they choose to host their events at home. The karaoke service is a great feature, too. Karaoke is making a big comeback, and it’s the ideal icebreaker for small, informal gatherings.

7. Cultivar

Need a private event space in the Marina District? You can cultivate the perfect private event at Cultivar on Chestnut Street. You can rent this restaurant’s back patio for your private events, but you can also rent it with the restaurant interior and the Chestnut Street deck. 

The Patio event space has a roaring fireplace and overhead heaters, so guests can enjoy dinner in the fresh air but still feel warm. It also has festive lighting, perfect for private parties. This event space seats 30 people.

What the Cultivar Venue is Great For

The Cultivar venue goes the extra mile to help event planners create the best private events. They can coordinate all of the details to your unique specifications, including balloons, other party decorations, and floral arrangements. Inquire about their rental equipment and entertainment options.

8. Ragazza

This neighborhood restaurant serves up delicious pastas, roasts, antipasti, seasonal salads, and wood-fired pizzas. But it’s not just the food that’s got people coming back to this venue for more. At Ragazza on Divisadero Street, even small, informal dinner parties get a whimsical touch. 

A cozy, heated gazebo seats up to 10 people for small, informal dinner parties. And you won’t have to worry too much about decorating the venue for your event. The lush garden setting provides all the ambiance that any small, intimate gathering needs.

What the Ragazza Venue is Great For

Ragazza offers delicious but unpretentious food in a unique and inviting private event space. The gazebo offers guests views of the surrounding greenery but also protects them from the elements. It’s an ideal choice for private events when your clients crave the outdoors, but the weather isn’t playing along. 

Choosing the Perfect Event Space For Your Private San Francisco Event

Planning private events can sometimes be challenging, especially for event planners new to the scene. But finding the perfect event space doesn’t have to be a struggle. These 5 tips will help you to choose the perfect event space for all your private events in San Francisco.

1. Look a Little Closer

San Francisco venues are often very versatile, and most have multiple event spaces. On closer inspection, venues that aren’t necessarily described as private event venues may still have event spaces that are suitable for private events. Even breweries and wineries can serve as private venues. 

So, always look a little closer at the facilities on offer. Does the venue have an upstairs room, roof garden, cellar room, or similar separate space? Many San Francisco venues do. These are ideal for private events and smaller, more intimate gatherings. 

2. Just a Few Tweaks

If the venue you prefer does not have a private event space, don’t give up just yet. Sometimes the best San Francisco private event venues are the ones you create yourself. A few little tweaks to a spacious venue’s layout may be all that’s needed to create a more private event space. 

Ask if you can erect one or two portable partitions/room dividers. Some venues already have these, but we recommend investing in some, yourself. They will be handy for future private events. Indeed, the most successful event planners offer extra services like these. 

3. The Timing is Everything

Venue managers are often happy to provide a more private event space when business is slow for them. By planning your private events in San Francisco for those off-peak times, you may have more options available to you.  

What if you are unable to schedule the private event for an off-peak time, and the venue doesn’t have a separate private event space? You could always do a full venue buyout. Many venues offer this option, and it is often the only way to ensure a quiet and exclusive environment for your private event.

But the time of day or day of the week isn’t the only consideration. San Francisco hosts many annual events, including the Chinese Lunar New Year festival. Events like these attract sizeable crowds and may affect availability at popular venues. 

4. Check the Services Offered

It’s not only the venues dedicated to private events that offer extra services. Restaurants and bars serving as San Francisco private event venues often include in-house catering and other services. This makes planning a private event a lot easier when you don’t have a team and you’re doing it all alone. 

Just remember, these services may only be available if you book well in advance. But some restaurant venues offer off-site catering services, too.

5. What About Corporate Events? 

You don’t always need to book a corporate meeting venue for corporate events. Most San Francisco private event venues are suitable for everything from a small birthday party to a small business’ end-of-year office party. Check out our guide to unique meeting venues for some more inspiration. 

Many venues, even when not specifically dedicated to corporate events, nonetheless have adequate private facilities for small business intimate gatherings and corporate mixers. However, bear in mind that family restaurants can get rather lively, and by that, we mean noisy. 

Choose wisely when it comes to private corporate events that require minimal extraneous noise.

FAQs about Small Party Venues in San Francisco, CA

What are the most popular San Francisco neighborhoods for party venues?

San Francisco has many exciting venues, particularly in the Mission District, Pacific Heights, and North Beach. However, there are unique party venues throughout the city. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box when choosing a venue, but consider factors like proximity to transport routes and safe parking.

How much does a small party venue in San Francisco cost?

Hiring San Francisco private event venues can cost anywhere from $200 per day to as much as $1000 per day. It really depends on where the venue is situated and what services they offer. However, high-end event centers will typically cost a lot more than booking a private event space in a restaurant.  

How far in advance should I book a party venue in San Francisco?

For more popular venues, you may have to book six weeks in advance or even more. San Francisco people love to have a good party, so the best venues are often fully booked. That’s why it’s so important to book an event space as soon as you have found the perfect venue. 

Find the Perfect San Francisco Private Event Venues

The Perfect Venue Marketplace is the ultimate San Francisco event-planning resource. Whether planning a quiet, intimate gathering or a small, lively party, you’ll find the private event venue you’re looking for. 

We’ve made it so easy to find the perfect San Francisco private dining and event venues, every time. Just enter some basic details — number of guests, location, etc — and you’ll see countless available venues ideal for your event. 

The Perfect Venue Marketplace also lists venues ideal for large-scale events for corporate teams, social events, and much more.

‍