Spec's can be easily overlooked, so look for 250 Columbus, and knock on the yellow door to your left. Nearby landmarks include City Lights Bookstore and Vesuvio's Cafe across the street, and Tosca's next door.

Of course how can you ever break the stereotype of this place that was once a Beat bastion and now has become more of a ritzy kind of hang out on the weekends, a change that reflects how the neighborhood has changed over the years. Spec's still atracts young bohemians and curious site-seers who retrace the great Beat writer's footsteps. Spec's also harkens back to the Beat Generation favoring walls adorned with Jack London photos and dead animals.

So, in short if you've never been to Spec's, go! Better yet, take a bar hopping trip through North Beach history.