PERSIAN PUB GRUB at ZARE at FLY TRAP – 6/3-5

www.zareflytrap.com

It is a joy when our city’s food/drink greats team up to form something unique. Such was Zare at Fly Trap’s three nights of Persian Pub Grub, as envisioned by Zare’s chef/owner, Hoss Zare, and Monk’s Kettle’s Sayre Piotrkowski and Ryan Corbett.

The exuberant, hospitable Hoss created a menu lovingly melding traditional elements of his home country of Iran with creative expressions. Though Hoss admits that “Pub Grub doesn’t really exist in Iran” (nor would the alcohol pairings), he dreams up a Persian dinner as it might look in a modern, hypothetical Iranian Gastropub. Each course was happily far from typical, and most were downright heartwarming. My two favorites ended up being Caspian Seafood Stew, a smoky, saffron-heavy broth (enhanced by black garlic aioli and sour, pickled grapes) loaded with plump calamari, octopus, mussels and smoked sturgeon with a dollop of caviar. The other? A brilliant take on traditional Ghormeh Sabzi, an Iranian herb stew and national dish, one Hoss says would win your sweetheart’s affection if you perfect in Iran. This Persian Chili was redolent of herbs, paprika, harissa, and a spicy, crumbled lamb sausage mixed with organic kidney beans. I could not get enough.

Certified Cicerone, Piotrkowski, and his equally passionate-about-beer co-worker, Corbett, paired a stellar list of beers with Hoss‘ food, facing off directly with wine pairings from Zare’s Wine Director, Mario Nocifera. At two convivial communal tables, we debated which paired best with any given course, and I can honestly say there no afterthoughts on either side. But the final score? In my book, it’s two for two. 

My two favorite wines were the impressively elegant, layered acidity of Niepoort Codega’s 2006 “Tiara” white from Branco, Portugal, and an earthy, dark berry/pepper, mineral, but balanced, 2008 Borsao Garnacha, “Tres Picos”, from Campo de Borja, Spain (quite a value at $14.99 a bottle at K&L ).

On the beer front, though I was delighted to see Hitachino’s “XH” and Midas Touch for dessert, I was blown away by grapefruit brightness in Stone Brewing Co.’s dark, bitter Sublimely Self-Righteous, and the Belgian-style, caramel-y but bone dry Goose Island “Pere Jacques”.

Hoss has hosted other special Persian dinners and I hope will throw plenty more. Bookmark their website’s event page to be prepared for the next one. Or go for dinner or lunch to sample Hoss‘ heartwarming cooking paired with Reza Esmali’s Middle Eastern-influenced cocktail menu (there’s a classic cocktail list, too) or Nocifera’s wine list. Monk’s Kettle is thankfully always ready to pour one of these fine or other equally exciting, and often, rare, beers.

Here is the Persian Pub Grub menu ($75 per person, including all pairings):

Sumac Couscous Salad with Dungeness Crab

Victory, “Prima” Pilsner, US| Yarden, Brut Traditional, Galilee Israel

Caspian Seafood Stew with Mussels, Cod, Sturgeon and Black Garlic aioli

Hitachino “XH” Ibaraki Japan | Niepoort Codega “Tiara”, Blanco, Portugal

Chicken Wings “Fessenjoon” with Pomegranate Walnut Sauce

Stone, “Sublimely self-righteous” Ale, US | Coroa Godello, Valdeorras, Spain

Persian Chili “Ghormeh Sabzi” with Spicy Lamb Sausage

Goose Island, “Pere Jacques” Belgian Style Ale, US | Borsao Garnacha “Tres Picos”, Campo de Borja, Spain

“Faloodeh” Lime Sorbet with Rice Noodles and Pistachios

Dog Fish Head, “Midas Touch” Ancient Ale, Milton US

SOCIAL KITCHEN & BREWERY, Inner Sunset

Social Kitchen & Brewery – This brand new brewery opened at the beginning of May in the Inner Sunset, adding a welcome member to the small but mighty collection of local brewers. The beers were created by Rich Higgins, President of the SF Brewers Guild and a certified cicerone.

Watch out: opening week alone brought out what felt like the entire Sunset (a strong sign that this kind of place is highly desired), with people piled out onto the sidewalk waiting for tables (no reservations). A raucous din engulfs the modern, cavernous space. I recommend a table upstairs situated next to the brewing tanks, where the noise is not as overwhelming, and there’s a front row view over the bar.

And then, the beers ($3-5 a glass, in small and large sizes): a light Social Kolsch sports a bright lemon tart, with grassy, white pepper notes. Upon first visit, I liked the Rapscallion best, a Belgian-style golden ale with ginger, fig, pepper notes, and a bitter finish that mellows, evolving with food. I enjoyed L’Enfant Terrible, Belgian-style dark ale, rich and redolent of chocolate, but dry and crisp, unusual for this style of beer.

On the food tip, what could have gone better with beer than beer-battered Sweet Potato Tempura ($4 – more like breaded fries), with apple malt vinegar? The vinegar’s tart enlivened comforting sweet potato. Classic Buffalo Chicken Wings ($6) with celery and Maytag blue cheese sauce also took on the beers with success. The refreshing Kolsch is ideal when the intense heat of the Buffalo sauce kicks in. Salads, like the piquant Beer Lover’s Salad ($7) – strawberry, jicama, apple, and greens, in a toasted malt, apple-Kolsch vinaigrette – are small but fresh.

Next time (and once it’s open all day for mellower mid-afternoon lunches), I want to try their burger and rock cod sandwich. But I didn’t need anything else after sharing entrees with friends (out of five on the menu, priced $14-17).

Braised Beef Short Rib ($15) is tender under a flaky puff pastry, but came off a bit dry without much jus voer the beef and veggies. Still, the overall effect is heartwarming.  Rocky Jr. Chicken Breast ($15) is juicy in a ‘cannot fail’ caramelized onion/raisin/Altbier sauce, though I could have used a lot more of the delicious Anson Mills cheese grits the chicken sat atop of.  My table’s favorite was Sonoma Liberty Duck Breast ($17): seared, pinkish, over sweet potato duck confit hash (they had me there), with kumquats and blackberries, in L’Enfant Terrible beer jus.

There are kinks to work out and being one who doesn’t believe in long waits and concert-like chaos to eat, I prefer to return during “off” hours… at least for now, while it’s the hottest thing to hit Inner Sunset.

4/7 La Chouffe Beer Dinner at Monk’s Kettle

The last beer dinner I attended at Monk’s Kettle was a media-only event showcasing Sam Adams’ Utopias (and then some), but this is a regular series at Monk’s: five course, beer-paired feasts paired with either the brewmaster or a rep from the featured distillery walking you through each beer. The next one is May 5th with none other than Allagash Brewing and its founder, Rob Tod. Make your reservations now as they’ll be gone quickly.

These dinners are pricey, $95 per person (usually for five courses and six beers), especially compared to other multi-course feasts around town, but they’re unique. Pairings are extremely thought out on the part of the experts at Monk’s, including Exec Chef, Kevin Kroger, while direct interaction with and stories from brewery founders is a rare treat.

I attended the Brassiere d’Achouffe Beer Dinner on April 7 with a Duvel rep (a Belgium native herself) walking us through mostly La Chouffe beers, plus a couple other Duvel products: an aperitif of Duvel Green and dessert finish of Ommegang’s Three Philosophers (Ommegang was bought by Duvel in 2005).

The tiny pub was packed with other beer aficionados and by the end of a nearly four hour dinner, was pleasantly rowdy. If I thought my stomach could handle another decadent meal like this (and even if it couldn’t), I’m tempted to join the Allagash dinner… get on their email list for news of surprise guest breweries at upcoming beer dinners.

Top Tastes in DRINK

I'm excited to return to Oakland's new Era Art Bar & Lounge (www.oaklandera.com) - a photo from my sneak peek pre-opening

Here’s two brand new openings I’d recommend for sipping a glass of vino:

• Brave 6th Street and duck into Passion Cafe, a spacious French bistro with rooftop garden and multi-room space so cool, it’s a pleasure to linger over a glass.

• I’ve been a big fan of Kitchenette’s fabulous food since they opened… so it’s an easy win to be able to get it in greater variety at the Mission’s new wine bar, Heart. A crisp, minimalist space and startling photography set the tone for the playfulness that awaits when French wines are served in Mason jars (with these kind of tasting descriptions: “Like licking a skeleton with a pineapple in your mouth.”)

WINE

• At the dream of a pig feast that is Oliveto’s Whole Hog Dinners, I couldn’t decide which wine I loved best with all that pig… each one cut the fat beautifully, never overpowered, but stood its ground. There’s the refreshing acidity of an ‘06 Garlider Sylvaner from Alto Adige. Two more Italian beauties on the red side: 2005 Grifalco Aglianico del Vulture (dark red cherry and herbal notes) or the subtle plum and earthiness of a ‘05 Valmaggione Nebbiolo d’Alba. I finished fine with a ‘07 Cuvee Classique Domaine Monpertuis Chateaneuf-du-Pape: 70% Grenache, layered with dark fruit, dried herbs, spice, even leather notes.

• Bagrationi Sparkling Brut is from Georgia… a tiny country situated on the edge of Eastern Europe and Western Asia (next to Albania). For a reasonable $13.99, it’s a good value, from hand-picked grapes, refreshing, with light citrus and honeydew notes.

BEER

A few of my favorites from SF Beer Week’s Opening Gala at Yerba Buena:

• My love for spirits first and foremost clearly plays into my top taste from Beer Week: Abacus, a bourbon barrel-aged barleywine (13% ABV) that has aroma and tastes of bourbon (caramel, vanilla, oak). Thank you, Paso Robles’ Firestone Walker. They also deliver a bright Union Jack IPA, but it’s Abacus that wowed me. I’m not alone – demand for this barelywine has been such that they are purported to finally bottle it for the first time later this year.

•  Devil’s Canyon makes some fine beers, but its their awesome Root Beer I fell madly in love with. Small batch and organic, its touch of sweet comes from organic cane sugar, agave nectar and California honey. Rich, rooty, refreshing.

•  Linden Street Brewery’s owner, Adam Lamoreaux, is such a cool guy and one man show at Oakland’s newest brewery, making “Old California style” lagers like a roasty, dark Burning Oak Lager.

•  Schmaltz Brewing Company – I was quite impressed with the fine taste of Albino Python, a white lager brewed with orange peel, ginger, fennel. My other fave is Jewbelation Bar Mitzvah, their 13th anniversary ale brewed with 13 malts, hops and 13% alcohol. These guys are doing it right.

•  North Coast Brewing Co.’s Brother Thelonious Belgian-style abbey ale is robust and memorable (9.3% ABV). It doesn’t hurt that jazz genius Monk himself is the mascot.

SPIRITS

•  Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey- Far from a traditional whiskey, the unusual taste of Stranahan’s intrigued my palate with smooth wood and a range of tastes from caramel and spice to tobacco and leather. Here’s Malt Advocate’s publisher, John Hansell’s, great review.

• You’ll rarely see me go for flavored rums, vodkas (or vodka in general), etc… John Meisler, Don Q’s ambassador, gave quite the rum education and tasting on 2/2 at Yoshi’s for an industry event. Somewhere in the middle of side-by-side tastings of Don Q next to popular rums (of which I won’t name names) which lacked the flavor of Don Q (from Gold to a Grand Anejo), I kept burying my nose in a glass of Don Q CoCo, a rum flavored with natural coconut oils. I’d never order it but the fresh scent of coconut oil transported me immediately to some island beach, relaxed and tan, far from my seat on a Winter afternoon.

SAKE

• The Mission’s new izakaya extraordinaire, Nombe, has an admirable selection of sakes, including flights to further your education. Out of a $15 Akita flight, the two that stood out the most were an acidic but balanced Manabito Kimoto Junmai Ginjo and elegant, chilled Akitabare Koshiki Junzukuri.

This issue’s Top Tastes in DRINK

BEER

•  Attending a media-only Sam Adams Utopias dinner was a real treat at Monk’s Kettle on 11/19. Monk’s chef, Kevin Kroger, created a four course dinner of luxurious comfort food, each course paired (and some cooked) with a Sam Adams brew. I must digress to food for a moment: medium rare, ultra-tender Beef Tenderloin Tournedos in classic green peppercorn sauce, were nearly overshadowed by an unforgettable side: Sage Bread Pudding, crispy outside, moist and dense within. Some of us attendees are still emailing about it.

As for the beers, we were treated to seven, with commentary from Sam Adams brewer, Bert Boyce, direct from Boston, who mingled with us, talking beer and the coasts (East & West, that is) over dinner. I’ve had Coastal Wheat, Old Fezziwig Ale and classic Boston Lager before, but we also drank an intense, velvety Double Bock highlighting the purity of malted barley. Then, a rare, beauteous 1994 Triple Bock (17% ABV) with toffee, maple, oak notes, ending with the evening’s centerpiece: Utopias, the world’s strongest beer at 27% ABV. I’ll say, as many others already have, this tastes nothing like beer. It’s caramely, unique, rich – brewed like a beer, though not carbonated, more reminiscent of a fine sherry or port. Ruby black in color, at a few hundred bucks a bottle, it may not make it onto all our shelves, but I’d crave it after any dinner… or for dessert. Sam Adams founder and brewer, Jim Koch, says he wanted “to elevate people’s thinking about beer and to push the boundaries of traditional brewing in order to offer beer lovers an inspired drinking experience“. I would say he has…

COFFEE

•  I’ve been indulging more than once lately in Coffee Bar’s El Diablo.  The smooth mix of espresso, chipotle-infused milk, Guittard Chocolate, rocks my mornings with a subtle heat.

WINE

•  I move from food at the Inspirations of Tuscany dinner at Luce, to the wines… with Frescobaldi estates executive chef behind the stove, what better pairing than Frescobaldi wines? Each ranged from fine to superb, whether a bright, layered 2007 Benefizio or the subtle spice of Nipozzano Riserva Chianti Classico. Forced to choose, my favorites are a 2006 Attems Cicinis, a full-bodied white blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Bianco and Tocai Friulano grapes; and on the red side, a ‘99 Luce from Montalcino (I love that idyllic Tuscan village), velvety, tannin-heavy, and well integrated with 50% Merlot/50% Sangiovese.

SPIRITS

•  The first annual Indy Spirits Expo was held at Mighty on 11/19 and though I had to miss the VIP hour due to a prior event (sigh), finding the place way too packed and party-like by the time I arrived, I’m pleased at a spirits event showcasing only small batch, high quality artisanal spirits.

A few were represented I’m already a fan of, like North Shore Distillery in Chicago, and nearby Hangar One and Germain-Robin. Unexpected discoveries came in the form of J. Witty Spirits’ organic Chamomile Liqueur, served by the gracious Jill Witty (founder) herself. It’s even better than it sounds, both straight and in a cocktail. Lightly sweet, aromas of allspice precede a balanced mix of apples, clove, honey, with floral, spiced notes. A number of our fine establishments around town sell or serve it (here’s a list).

I took to the complexity of Corrido’s Extra Anejo, a tequila triple-aged in three types of barrels for a minimum of three years. Vanilla, white pepper, even sour cherry notes, hit my tongue, and the layers keep unfolding.

BELGIAN ALE HOUSES

The Belgian craze hit hard last year with three Bay Area openings… its not new news. But it’s good news. Here’s my take after they have been open a few months:

La Trappe: My personal favorite for atmosphere alone, made perfect by the beer selection. When you walk down a dark wood, winding staircase to the brick walled, candlelit basement, you’re transported. For me, it’s reminiscent of atmospheric basement bars I visited in Berlin (minus flames shooting out of the walls). The glow of candles and classic jazz playing over the speakers creates a relaxed, intimate vibe.

Sadly, expect a differing degree of enjoyment depending on which bartender you get. They’re all quite knowledgeable about the overwhelming range of beers both by the bottle and in the ever-changing, impressive tap selection. Out of the 138 beers in the regular menu, 113 are Belgians, many served in different shaped glasses with each beer’s logo on it.

The staff offer many tastes of tap beers to help you choose just the right one. In early visits, the bartender chatted up my group and I like old friends, serving us mini-glasses of just about everything on tap. But on a recent visit, another bartender said he might “get in trouble” if he served us too many tastes. Really?

A more unfortunate recent note was being told we could not eat our Mussels and Frites anywhere other than at the bar (or a dining table), when we already had staked out a cozy spot on the leather couches. It felt like we were kids being relegated to the kitchen table for fear we’d spill – when I asked why the change, they mumbled something about not having the necessary staff to clean it up. An odd reason, since they’re already cleaning up beers.

These inconsistencies breed concern, marring the overall experience. But having met one of the owners weeks after they opened, I see what a quality person he is and what vision he and his partner have for the place. I hope for consistency and growth as they pass the year mark. La Trappe has a magical environment and beer selection unlike any around – well worth trekking across town for (I go on quieter weeknights).

Pair your beers with savory dishes like Rabbit Stew or traditional Belgian Mussels and Frites, served three ways (I loved the non-traditional option of Mussels in Coconut Curry with Jasmine Rice). Most importantly, the Beer/Ale selection is full of rich treasures that will keep you coming back again and again.

Monk's Kettle

Monk’s Kettle: The space is small and waits are long if you don’t go on an “off” hour. But thank you, Monk’s Kettle, for being open all day, every day, providing plenty of hours one can hit this Mission treasure for a quiet pint or hearty ‘pub grub’.

With 24 draft beers and over 100 bottles, they’ve arranged the well thought-out beer selection by taste profile so you can satisfy any given mood with the right ale. The food is no afterthought: from artisan Cheese and Charcuterie plates, to hearty favorites like Chili, Burgers (Niman Ranch, of course) and Pulled Pork. There’s also a Pot Pie of the Day, gourmet entrees in the $12-18 range such as pork chops, chicken breast or beef short ribs. I love the Pretzel with Stone Ground Mustard and Cheddar Ale Sauce (I have to ask for more of both!)

The small room (formerly beloved Kelly’s Burgers) doesn’t allow much leeway for even the imaginative. But dark wood booths are squeezed in as pleasing an arrangement as possible given the tiny space, and the atmosphere is more about the food, drink and company you’re with, not special on its own, like La Trappe. I find the service more even at Monk’s Kettle; certainly well informed, with waiters and bartenders who love the drink and food they serve.

The Trappist

The Trappist: The Trappist is a narrow, brick-walled bar in Downtown Oakland that doesn’t serve food and offers little opportunity to sit. But in the Bay Area’s Trappist/Belgian Ale scene, it’s well worth mentioning for it’s 15 rotating taps and over 140 bottles of excellent beers. With “no big corporate beer” as their website motto, you can be sure that the beer/ale connoisseurs among you will come away satiated.