…to post more. I seem to be fixated on cocktails and diving lately, so perhaps I need to focus on that. I have changed the blog title to include those two things – due to an informal poll taken at a supposed cocktail hour last night. There were no cocktails, and truth be told, I was dismayed. I went with Guns, and man, needed a cocktail. Well, I wanted one. But the only thing to be had there was Asahi and Function drinks – which are way too sweet.
My friend Dr. Evil was here in town, for a conference, so I went to see her. I thought we would go to Craftbar, mostly because they had some cheap small plates, and it was near the Century Plaza Hyatt. On the way from Pico/Robertson I had the BRILLIANT idea to hit up the new Westside Tavern. I read about it on one of my new favorite blogs, and thought, “Hey, Dr. Evil’s in town, I want to try it, it’s like 5 minutes from her hotel… Let’s DO THIS!” So, yours truly got to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of servers and hostii on staff for opening night. It was great. Well, yeah, not so much. I have done the opening night thing, from the side of the host, and you are requested to be everywhere… so it’s overwhelming, and I just wanted to chill. The server was funny, she told the good Dr that the mussels were from Fanny Bay, and served on ice – when the menu clearly said “served with Spanish Chorizo.” She was referring to the oysters that were on the Fresh chalkboard. And, I kind of laughed. Anyway, the caesar salad was delicious and Dr. Evil’s hamburger was awesome. On to the cocktails…
I had the Grapefruit Rickey, after much deliberation, and wow, fantastic. I really enjoyed the drink, and would HIGHLY recommend it to others. Great taste of pink grapefruit, lime and a hint of vodka. The ice cubes were great, and lasted the entire way through the drink. And I didn’t even chug it! Dr. Evil had a Sazerac and she said it was very good, and that she was impressed. It has rye whiskey in it, and I cannot handle whiskey. AT ALL. I was at Vessel in SEA with a friend Rocky last week, and was encouraged to try a whiskey sour. I almost hurled, REALLY. So, I will let others do the whiskey, scotch, bourbon, etc. Just not in my cards. I’d like to do a tasting of Vodka again soon. I have several at home – maybe I should do that there!
All in all, I STILL wish there was a tavern-type bar in the South Bay that is in the same vein as Westside Tavern, Laurel Tavern, Father’s Office, you get the picture. So, South Bay entrepeneurs, MAKE IT HAPPEN.
As Sean’s LA Guru, I think I delivered on the newest place I could.
As my own LA drink-meister, I’ll still make the trek to the places I know are good, and will continue to try new places. Anytime you’d like to come, you’re welcome to!