Foggy fireworks, delicious food and so much sparkling wine — New Year’s Eve in the Bay Area cannot be beat. Here are our best picks for parties, drinks and family events in the city and North Bay, featuring some of our partners and other businesses. Whether you want to start 2024 with your fist pumping or with a culinary escapade, you’ve got plenty of options. When planning your night, you might find that some restaurants offer two seating times for eaters: the first seating for diners with after-dinner plans and the second for guests staying until midnight. Plan accordingly so you won’t miss the ball drop!
Feature photo: Cedric Letsch/Unsplash
Dinners and More
The Fairmont’s holiday festivities don’t stop at Christmas. The hotel’s famous Tonga Room and Hurricane Bar, a tiki-themed lounge where thunderstorms sweep through the interior, is hosting two New Year’s Eve seatings this year. For $159 per adult for the 5:30 p.m. seating and $189 per adult for 9:30 p.m., you can start the new year with an umbrella in your drink.
Looking to start your year with a certain je ne sais quoi? Petite Left Bank in Tiburon welcomes you for both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. With brunch, happy hour and a $110 prix fixe menu on December 31, you can finish 2023 with your choice of delicious French meal. Then, you can bask in the glow of the New Year with brunch and the all day menu between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on January 1.
Begin 2024 with mouthwatering ceviche and other Peruvian dishes with La Mar’s five-course prix fixe menu. With the first seating at $199 per guest and second at $259 per guest, La Mar’s menu, entertainment, photo booth and midnight champagne toast will make an unforgettable New Year’s Eve. Fireworks watchers on the Embarcadero can also partake, as La Mar will set up an empanada and cocoa stand for passersby.
Feeling like steak? How about seafood? EPIC Steak and next-door Waterbar are hosting their own New Years bashes. With two seatings — $135 for the first and $235 for the second — EPIC offers a multi-course menu with tartare, risotto, filet mignon, fish and much more. Waterbar hosts just one $295 prix-fixe menu with a delicious selection of seafood and more. Another bonus: the fireworks show should be visible from the outdoor seawall.
Reserve your table for a Sonoma-style celebration from Chef Michael Mina’s award-winning Wit and Wisdom. A special New Year’s menu will feature dishes topped with truffle and caviar in addition to signature menu items like Neapolitan pizza. Start the new year with a taste of Wine Country excellence at Wit and Wisdom.
San Anselmo’s renowned Mediterranean restaurant Insalata’s is pairing a New Year’s prix fixe menu with the melodic guitar stylings of Tommy Odetto. Insalata’s cuisine has received Michelin’s Bib Gourmand ten years in a row, so you won’t want to miss this menu, available at $80 per adult and $32 per child 12 and under.
Tour Napa’s vineyards from the seat of a legacy train before counting down to midnight in Paris (a sensible 3 p.m. California time). The train ride includes a three-course gourmet meal, party at the Grgich Hills Estate and a glass of sparkling wine to greet you. Start off your 2024 with a taste of luxury and great wine.
New Year’s Parties
Attention wine lovers: From the makers of Butter Chardonnay, this Downtown Napa party will have you sipping your way into 2024. In JaM Cellars’ Wine and Music Studio, you’ll hear music from DJ MikeAwesome and enjoy a splash of Butter Bubbles upon arrival (and a celebratory Toast Sparkling at midnight!). Tickets have sold out, but there’s still time to join the waitlist.
Close the chapter on 2023 in glamorous style at Carneros Resort and Spa! Dance the night away in a beautiful garden-inspired tent as the clock counts down to midnight. The New Year’s Eve Celebration include chef stations prepared by Executive Chef Jeffrey Jake — including signature desserts by Pastry Chef Ethan Howard — an open bar with G.H. Mumm & Mumm Napa Valley, wine, beer, and custom cocktails and a Mumm Napa Valley toast at midnight.
Countdown to 2024 at The Lodge’s end-of-year bash! Live music, a balloon drop and sparkling wine make this party the perfect way to celebrate new beginnings with old friends. The party is $60 a ticket, but packages are also available to combine the festivities with a stay at The Lodge’s luxury accommodations.
Dance into the new year to the sound of horns and conga drums at Cigar Bar’s Fiesta Año Nuevo. Starting at $29.97 a ticket, this celebration comes with party favors, a photo wall for the most Instagrammable memories and a live performance by the dynamic salsa band Orquesta N’Rumba Pa’gozar. True to the name, Cigar Bar also has a smoking patio and selection of cigars for purchase.
Family-Focused Events
For those among us who can’t make it to midnight, Sausalito’s Bay Area Discovery Museum provides the perfect afternoon celebration with its annual Noon Year’s Eve. Count down to 12 p.m., dance to a live DJ and usher in the New Year — all before lunchtime! While you’re there, be sure to check out the museum’s many interactive exhibits for kids.
Thrive City, the Mission Bay retail and community space surrounding the Chase Center, is holding a multicultural Kwanzaa and New Year’s celebration this December 31. From 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., families can party with kids Afrobeat music, crafts stations and a ball drop at noon. Stop by 1 Warrior Way for this family celebration.
