What Bars Do Navy Seals Go to in San Diego?

What Bars Do Navy Seals Go to in San Diego?

The short answer is Coronado, not the Gaslamp. Navy SEALs train at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, and the bar most associated with them is McP's Irish Pub on Orange Avenue, a short walk from the base gate. Other Coronado spots near the ferry landing and the Hotel del Coronado pick up the spillover, while downtown bars around the Embarcadero and Petco Park catch SEALs and off-duty sailors on weekend nights. The romantic image of SEALs drinking in some secret downtown hideout is mostly movie folklore. Real off-duty Naval Special Warfare personnel drink close to where they work, and where they work is Coronado. That single geographic fact explains almost everything about this question, and the rest of this page fills in the neighborhoods, the specific bars, and the etiquette of visiting them.

It helps to start with the geography. Naval Amphibious Base Coronado sits on the narrow strip of land between San Diego Bay and the ocean, at the northern end of the Coronado peninsula. The base is home to the West Coast Naval Special Warfare commands, and the SEAL training pipeline, including the famously brutal Basic Underwater Demolition orientation that runs on Coronado's beaches, happens right there. Orange Avenue, the main street that runs the length of the island, is the natural corridor between the base and the civilian town. So when people ask which bars SEALs go to, the honest answer starts with the bars on that corridor.

The second thing worth knowing is that SEALs are not a tourist attraction. They are working military personnel with demanding schedules, and most of what circulates online about "SEAL bars" comes from veteran memoirs, podcasts, and word of mouth rather than any official anything. Treat the specific names below as the places with the strongest and most persistent association, not a guaranteed roster of patrons on any given night.

Which Coronado Bars Do SEALs Actually Frequent?

McP's Irish Pub on Orange Avenue is the name that comes up again and again, and for good reason: it sits minutes from the Naval Amphibious Base gate, it was founded by a retired SEAL, and it has been a post-training watering hole for decades. Other Coronado spots, including the taverns and restaurants clustered along Orange Avenue and near the Hotel del Coronado, pick up plenty of off-duty military business simply because of where they are. McP's is the anchor, though. It is a two-story Irish pub with a rooftop deck, live music most weekends, and a menu that leans on burgers and fish and chips rather than anything fancy. The pub's own identity leans into its Naval Special Warfare roots, with memorabilia on the walls and a clientele that skews military, veteran, and military-adjacent.

Why does one pub own this reputation so completely? Proximity is most of it. After a long training day, nobody wants to drive across the bridge to downtown. A bar within walking distance of the base gate wins by default, and Orange Avenue is that corridor. McP's also has the founding story: it was opened by a retired SEAL, which gives it a legitimacy that no downtown bar can copy. Locals will tell you that you are more likely to run into active-duty Naval Special Warfare personnel there on a weeknight than anywhere else in the county.

The rest of Coronado's bar scene is quieter than you might expect. This is a small, affluent island town with a big Navy presence, so the drinking culture runs more toward hotel bars, golf course patios, and neighborhood taverns than nightclubs. If you want to build a whole evening around the theme, the honest way to do it is dinner and a drink on Orange Avenue, then a walk toward the Hotel del Coronado to see the property lit up at night. The island is flat, walkable, and safe, which makes bar-hopping easy even without a car.

One practical note: Coronado is not where you go for a big night out. Last calls come early relative to the Gaslamp, and the crowd thins on weeknights when training schedules dominate. If your goal is specifically to soak up military bar culture, go on a Friday or Saturday evening, sit at the bar rather than a table, and be content with conversation rather than spectacle.

Do SEALs Drink Downtown and in the Gaslamp?

Yes, but differently: downtown bars catch SEALs and other off-duty military on weekend nights, especially the spots along the Embarcadero, around Petco Park after ballgames, and at the edge of the Gaslamp Quarter, but no single downtown bar has a SEAL reputation the way McP's does. The relationship is geographic again, just in the other direction. Downtown is one bridge or one ferry ride from Coronado, so it is the natural destination when someone has a night off and wants more action than Orange Avenue offers.

The Gaslamp Quarter is the city's nightclub district, and its sixteen-block historic core fills up on weekends with a mix of tourists, locals, bachelorette parties, and yes, military. But SEALs who go downtown tend to gravitate toward the quieter edges: hotel bars, the restaurants along the waterfront, and the sports-adjacent venues around Petco Park rather than the loudest clubs on Fifth Avenue. The Embarcadero, with the USS Midway Museum as its anchor, is a natural draw for anyone in the Navy, and the bars along Harbor Drive do steady business with uniformed and recently-uniformed crowds.

If you want to see downtown's lit skyline without committing to a full Gaslamp night, the City Lights Night Trolley Tour is built exactly for that. It is a 90-minute narrated ride through downtown after dark, and it pairs well with a bar plan: ride first, then finish at whatever spot the route passed that looked good. Check availability if that sounds like your kind of evening.

It is also worth saying plainly: the famous bar scene from the fighter-jet era of San Diego folklore is not what downtown is now. People sometimes arrive expecting a Top Gun-style tavern full of aviators and SEALs, and the reality is a tourist nightlife district. The bar that movie mythology points to has its own story, and we cover it separately in our piece on the Top Gun filming bar. Downtown's military bar culture today is real but diffuse, spread across hotel lounges and harbor-side patios rather than concentrated in one legendary room.

What Is the Bar Etiquette Around Active-duty Military in San Diego?

The etiquette is simple: treat them as neighbors, not celebrities. Do not ask about their work in detail, do not ask "are you a SEAL," do not buy shots expecting war stories, and do not photograph anyone. Most off-duty personnel just want a normal night out, and the fastest way to make a Coronado bar uncomfortable is to treat it like a theme attraction. This is worth a section of its own because the question itself, "what bars do SEALs go to," can slide into something tacky if you let it.

A few practical points. Military bars in Coronado are regular neighborhood establishments that happen to sit near a base, and the regulars include civilians, retirees, and military families who have been coming for years. If you strike up a conversation, let it happen naturally the way you would at any pub. Buy a round if the moment is right, not as a transaction. And leave the "thank you for your service" for a natural exit, if at all; plenty of people appreciate it, but it lands better once than three times.

There is also a scheduling reality worth knowing. Training cycles on Coronado are punishing, and the nights when the bars are busiest with military crowds are typically Friday and Saturday evenings and the nights before holidays. Weekday afternoons and evenings skew quieter. And because Coronado is a small town, the bartenders know their regulars; being a polite newcomer gets you a lot further than being an enthusiast.

Where Else in San Diego Do Military Crowds Drink?

Beyond Coronado and downtown, the neighborhoods with steady military bar traffic are Point Loma and Ocean Beach near the Navy's bayside installations, Pacific Beach for younger enlisted crowds, and Little Italy and North Park for a more civilian-mixed night out. None of these have a specific SEAL association, but if your interest is broader military bar culture rather than one community, they round out the picture.

Point Loma's connection is geographic again: the Navy has a large footprint on the bay side of the peninsula, and the taverns along the main drags pick up that traffic. Ocean Beach, next door, adds a laid-back surf-town bar culture that pairs well with it. For a fuller picture of those neighborhoods, our Point Loma and Ocean Beach guides cover where to drink and what the vibe is like.

Little Italy and North Park are different: they are food-and-drink destinations first, and any military presence is incidental. North Park in particular is the city's craft beer heartland, and a brewery crawl there is a better night out for most travelers than chasing a military theme. Our San Diego breweries guide maps that scene in detail.

How Do You Plan a Night Around Coronado's Bar Scene?

Take the ferry or drive over the bridge in the late afternoon, walk Orange Avenue, have dinner and a first drink near McP's, and finish at a hotel bar or back on the Embarcadero. Coronado rewards a slow, walkable evening, and trying to combine it with a Gaslamp night in one outing usually means doing both badly. The logistics matter here because Coronado is genuinely separated from downtown by the bay, and the crossing shapes the whole plan.

You have a few ways across. The Coronado Bridge is the fast drive, roughly ten minutes from downtown with no traffic. The ferry from downtown is the scenic option and drops you near the ferry landing on the island's north end, which is itself a small cluster of restaurants and bars. Biking over is popular too, and the island is flat enough that a rented bike covers it easily. Coming back late at night, plan for a rideshare over the bridge, because the ferry schedule thins out in the evening.

The evening shape that works best: arrive before sunset, walk the commercial stretch of Orange Avenue, eat somewhere unfussy, then do a proper stop at the pub with the Naval Special Warfare roots. After that, either finish with a nightcap near the Hotel del or head back across for the downtown skyline. If you would rather see the lights from the water side, a dinner cruise on the bay gives you the Coronado and downtown views in one sitting, and it pairs with the harbor-side bar culture better than a nightclub would.

One last planning note: the whole premise of this question works best as a theme, not a mission. The bars associated with SEALs are pleasant, unpretentious places to drink, and the ones worth visiting are worth visiting whether or not anyone famous is at the next stool. Plan the night around Coronado's walkability and the bay views, treat the military connection as color rather than a goal, and you will have a better evening than anyone hunting for a war story.

Common Questions About SEAL Bars in San Diego

what bars do navy seals go to in san diego?

McP's Irish Pub on Coronado's Orange Avenue is the bar most associated with Navy SEALs, thanks to its proximity to Naval Amphibious Base Coronado and its founding by a retired SEAL. Other Coronado taverns and hotel bars share the same military clientele, while downtown spots near the Embarcadero and Petco Park catch weekend crowds.

Is McP's Irish Pub still the main SEAL bar?

McP's remains the strongest and most persistent association, and its location minutes from the base gate keeps it the default post-training stop. No downtown bar has anything like the same reputation, and the pub's Naval Special Warfare roots are part of its public identity.

Can tourists visit the bars where SEALs drink?

Yes, they are ordinary public bars, not private clubs. McP's and the other Coronado spots welcome anyone. The etiquette is to treat military patrons as neighbors rather than celebrities: no probing questions about their work, no photos, and no buying rounds in exchange for stories.

Do SEALs go out in the Gaslamp Quarter?

Some do on weekend nights, but the Gaslamp is a tourist nightlife district rather than a SEAL hangout. Off-duty military in downtown tend to prefer the quieter edges: hotel bars, the Embarcadero, and the sports-adjacent venues around Petco Park.

When is the best time to visit Coronado's military bars?

Friday and Saturday evenings, when training schedules ease and the weekend crowd fills Orange Avenue. Weeknights are quieter, and Coronado's whole bar scene winds down earlier than downtown's does.

How do I get to Coronado for a bar night?

Drive the bridge in about ten minutes from downtown, take the scenic ferry to the island's ferry landing, or bike across on the flat island roads. Coming back late, plan on a rideshare over the bridge since the ferry schedule thins out in the evening.

If you want to keep planning around the city's nightlife and neighborhoods, Things to Do in San Diego covers the bar scenes, the itineraries, and the tours that make an evening out easy to book.