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| Top of the Mark | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Interior, showing view | |
  Location within San Francisco Show map of San Francisco Top of the Mark (California) Show map of California Top of the Mark (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Established | May 11, 1939 (1939-05-11) |
| Owner | InterContintental Hotels Corporation |
| Location | 999 California Street, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, 94108, United States |
| Coordinates | 37°47′30″N122°24′37″W / 37.791558°N 122.410364°W /37.791558; -122.410364 |
| Website | www |
TheTop of the Mark is a penthouse levelbar located on the nineteenth floor of theMark Hopkins Hotel onNob Hill atCalifornia and Mason Streets inSan Francisco,California. Located at the highest point of downtown San Francisco, on fog-free days the Top of the Mark has views of the financial district,Chinatown,North Beach, TheSan Francisco Bay, and ofGrace Cathedral andHuntington Park.
The Mark Hopkins Hotel was built by George D. Smith[1] on the site of the oldMark Hopkins mansion, which had burned down following the1906 San Francisco earthquake. The hotel was dedicated in 1926, and the penthouse suite was rented exclusively toDaniel C. Jackling, reputedly atUS$1,250 (equivalent to $22,000 in 2024) per month,[2] until he moved to hishouse in Woodside in 1936.[3] In 1939, shortly after emerging from a 1933 bankruptcy, George Smith convinced the trustees of the Mark to spendUS$110,000 (equivalent to $2,493,000 in 2024) to convert the 11-room penthouse on the hotel's 19th floor into a glass-walled cocktail lounge,[3] which became known as the Top of The Mark.[4]
Marjorie Trumbull won fame in the 1940s for her radio interviews of celebrities broadcast onKSFO and conducted from the Top of the Mark.[5][6]
DuringWorld War II, when San Francisco was a major transit point for troops going to thePacific Theater, servicemen traditionally had a farewell drink before shipping out while watching the sun set over theGolden Gate Bridge.[7][8] The northwest corner was known as "Weeper's Corner" after the wives and girlfriends who would gather there for their final look at departing ships.[9]
A new tradition was established during the Korean War, when squadron members would sponsor a "squadron bottle" to be kept available at the bar. Each member would sign and date the label after claiming a free drink, and the man who took the last drink would keep the signed bottle and purchase a new bottle. By the end of the Korean War, thirty-two squadron bottles were in use.[3][10]
The Top of the Mark features over 100 variations on themartini.[11][12] The bar remains popular today, featuring dancing and live music most days of the week. During the December holiday season, the Top of the Mark offers an afternoon tea service.[13]
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THE CITY AT TWILIGHT stretches romantically westward over the low mountains. This is the view from the "Top O' the Mark," the glassed-in floor atop the famed Mark Hopkins Hotel.