Comments (0) Best Pool Hall - 2006

Family Billiards

Despite its cuddly moniker, Family Billiards delivers its share of that neo-noir Minnesota Fats ambience you crave when you're in the mood to shoot a little stick. There's the long, low-slung room, hidden away in a subterranean grotto off Geary Boulevard; the pools of lamplit green felt flanked by shadowy figures with cuesticks; the retro stools and raised benches for kibitzers, talent scouts, and other random spectators. In many other ways, however, the joint's positively dapper. The 18 tables are Brunswick Gold Crowns. The eight beers on tap include Newcastle, Guinness, Bass, and Anchor Steam. There's free parking up on the roof as well as beautiful cues and cases on display and for sale. And ladies with escorts can play for free on Sunday. Family Billiards hosts tournaments weekly, and on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays you can enjoy the meditative click and plunk until 4 in the morning.