SF bar owner arrested for allegedly hitting man with bat over parking spot

The fighting Irish indeed.

A prominent San Francisco pub owner known for his watering holes in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood has been booked into jail after allegedly attacking a neighboring business employee with a baseball bat in a dispute over a parking space.

Cyril Hackett, 63 — the longtime owner of Mad Dog in the Fog on Haight Street, as well as Kezar Pub on neighboring Stanyan Street and Murio’s Trophy Room also on Haight street — was arrested early Saturday on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm and second-degree robbery, according to jail records obtained by The San Francisco Standard.

The confrontation began Friday outside Further, a Grateful Dead-themed clothing store just doors down from Mad Dog in the Fog. Hackett allegedly got into a verbal argument with an employee over a parking spot in front of the shop.

Several hours later on Friday evening, Hackett allegedly returned to Further with a baseball bat after the store had closed for the day.

Surveillance footage captures a man resembling Hackett barging into the store, swinging the bat at something out of frame and swiping an item of clothing from a rack before being chased out by an employee.

Hackett was booked into jail hours later at approximately 1:17 a.m. Saturday morning.

“On September 25, 2026 at approximately 8:54 pm, SFPD officers were dispatched to a business located at the 1500 block of Haight Street regarding a person with a baseball bat,” the San Francisco Police Department told The California Post.

“While en route, officers learned that the suspect had assaulted another victim. Upon arrival, officers met with the victim and located the suspect at another business located at the 1500 block of Haight Street.

“Through the course of investigation, officers developed probable cause and arrested 63-year-old Cyril Hackett for robbery and assault with a deadly weapon,” SFPD added, noting that although an arrest had been made, it remains an open and active investigation.

Hackett is a well-known figure in the iconic San Francisco neighborhood’s bar scene. An Irish immigrant who arrived in the US more than 40 years ago in the early 1980s, he has owned Kezar Pub for more than 30 years and recently took over dive bar Murio’s.

Mad Dog in the Fog holds a special place in local music lore, having been one of the first San Francisco venues where the local band Train performed, and taking the name for its latest album from the pub. Train also performed outside Mad Dog in the Fox in August, with Mayor Daniel Lurie in attendance.

Anyone with information regarding the incident should contact the SFPD at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD.

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