AAPI Cocktail Week Pop-ups and Competitions

Pacific Cocktail Haven and SF AAPI Cocktail Week organizers are set to open the event on Sunday, May 24, with a five-day run of pop-ups, guest shifts, classes and parties across San Francisco. The 2026 edition is the fourth annual staging of the event, according to the festival’s website. Event pages list programming through Thursday, May 28, anchored by stops at Pacific Cocktail Haven, Kona’s and Splash. The week centers on Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander bartenders and bars, with visiting talent drawn from San Francisco, elsewhere in the United States and Asia, according to the organizers and event listings. 7x7 reported that co-founder Kevin Diedrich of Pacific Cocktail Haven said this year’s edition would be larger than past versions. ### Which event opens the week on Sunday night? (eventbrite.com) Sunday, May 24 begins with an opening party at Pacific Cocktail Haven featuring Bar Us and Penrose, two bars ranked on Asia’s 50 Best Bars list, according to the SF AAPI Cocktail Week event page. The organizers describe Bar Us as No. 4 and Penrose as No. 10 on that list. (7x7.com) Eventbrite’s listing for the festival says San Francisco AAPI Cocktail Week returns “for its 4th year” and describes the program as five days celebrating cocktails, AAPI bars, bartenders and community. 7x7 reported that Diedrich said the opening party would use two bars, part of a broader expansion this year. ### Where do the competitions and public events happen? (sfaapicocktailweek.com) Kona’s Street Market is scheduled to host the Mix Masters Competition, a public bartender contest billed by organizers as an “Iron Chef” style event to crown the festival’s Mix Master. The event page says the competition is presented by Bacardi, Beam Suntory and Campari. Monday, May 25 also includes a masterclass with Bar Us at Kona’s from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., according to the event listing. (eventbrite.com) Tuesday, May 26 features “Letters to a Young Bartender,” another daytime session listed on the festival schedule. ### Which pop-ups stand out in the middle of the week? The Double Pop-up at True Laurel and Trick Dog brings together a group of domestic and international bars for what organizers call a block takeover. (sfaapicocktailweek.com) The lineup includes Alice Cheongdam, 52 Remedies, Bar Leather Apron, Nickel City, Laowai and Thunderbolt, according to the event page. (sfaapicocktailweek.com) Pacific Cocktail Haven is also scheduled to host a Pandan Party, a one-night event focused on pandan, the Southeast Asian plant used in cooking and drinks. Organizers say the pop-up will bring together six domestic bars, including Tallboy, Abaca, Strata, Haberdasher and Tikehau. ### What is the biggest closing event later in the week? Thursday, May 28 is set to culminate in the Night Market at Splash in Mission Bay, which organizers call the week’s marquee event. (sfaapicocktailweek.com) The event page says participating brands will be paired with more than 25 Bay Area talents for drinks, food, music and performances. That same night, Pacific Cocktail Haven is scheduled to host a “Magnums Only Afterparty” from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., according to the festival schedule. (sfaapicocktailweek.com) ### Where can readers check the full schedule? The San Francisco Standard included SF AAPI Cocktail Week in its May 20 roundup of Memorial Day weekend events in San Francisco. The festival’s own website and Eventbrite pages carry the most detailed schedules, venue listings and ticket information for each stop. (sfaapicocktailweek.com) Thursday, May 28 is the last date currently listed on the 2026 SF AAPI Cocktail Week event pages, with Splash’s Night Market and Pacific Cocktail Haven’s afterparty closing out the published schedule. (sfaapicocktailweek.com) (sfaapicocktailweek.com) (sfstandard.com)