Where to drink: South at SF Jazz

I absolutely love South at SF Jazz, and (my secret shame!) I've never actually attended a show there. I only go there for the cocktails. They're just oh so good, and if you sneak in after the show starts, you'll have the place all to yourself. But don't start going there––I like it when it's quiet. The cocktail menu is solid, below is a good chunk of it:

Vieux Carre––Rittenhouse 100 rye, Germain-Robin brandy, Cocchi vermouth di Torino, Benedictine, Peychaud’s and Angostura bitters on a hand cut ice cube. A classic Vieux Carre, nothing fancy, just a well done drink.

State Street Cocktail––Beefeaters gin, fresh pressed pineapple, pineapple gum, dolin blanc vermouth, celery bitters, soda. A refreshing cocktail that has more depth than many citrus-driven drinks thanks to the vermouth.

Derby Cocktail––Weller 107 bourbon, lemon, honey, cinnamon, Angostura bitters. Simple and classic. The honey is mind-blowing in this drink, mixing perfectly with the Weller 107 and bringing out some of its carmel notes.

Horse Thief Cocktail––Hayman’s Old Tom gin, Cocchi vermouth di Torino, absinth. The absinth and the Old Tom go so well together; each is spicy in a different way, activating different parts of your palate.

There are ample snacks and full entrees, if you're hungry. The cheesy grits were a perfect complement to the Horse Thief and the Vieux Carre.

The space itself is incredible, thanks to the huge windows:

South at SF Jazz

201 Franklin St.

5:30pm-10pm

Please Don't Tell's Jim Meeham was at 5th Floor! [photos]

This past week, Jim Meehan of New York's infamous speakeasy Please Don't Tell was in San Francisco. For one night, San Francisco's Fifth Floor (a bar in the Hotel Palomar) turned into PDT, and it was awesome. Here are some photos from the event:

It was packed and dark, so it was hard to get good pictures but we tried our best:







This bartender was a champ. There were so many people at his table, and he didn't even break a sweat.



This East India Negroni (Banks 5 Rum, Campari, Lustau East India Sherry) was from Meehan's own hand. I loved this drink. Switching the gin out for rum is brilliant, and subbing sherry for vermouth is sheer genius. Such an interesting flavor profile.



Smoked Potato Tots to fuel the tanks.



The man himself, Jim Meehan.



I love this image of him because while everyone around him is in motion and his hands are everywhere, his face is perfectly concentrated.



If you want to visit the normal Fifth Floor, it's at:

Fifth Floor
12 4th St
San Francisco, CA 94105

(in Hotel Palomar)

Where to Drink: St. Regis Hotel

I've been within two blocks of the St. Regis more times than I can count, but I never went inside. It's not that hotel bars are taboo in San Francisco, they're just not on the radar. It took an exceptionally cold night and a dearth of cabs to get me to visit the St. Regis, but boy am I glad that I did.

The first thing that struck me was that the St. Regis space is really pretty.



The interior is comfortable.



Huge art that doesn't annoy me like other hotel bars. I actually kind of like it.



Fireplace? Yes please.



The cocktail menu is good, too.


The Da Kine cocktail is a lot of fun. Da Kine is a Hawaiian pidgin phrase with a variety of meanings, most often "like that." The rim is li hing mui, a sweet and sour powder common in Hawaii. Funnily enough, a handful of people at the St. Regis have strong ties to Hawaii, having either been born there or lived there for a number of years.





Smoked Manhattan––Ironically, this is a cocktail that came by way of a bartender in Hawaii named Christian Self, from 39 Hotel in Honolulu Chinatown. Talk about a taste of home!



That's a vanilla bean smoking in the snifter. The vanilla smoke helped bring out some of the richer notes in the rye.







What struck me most was the service at the St. Regis. As soon as I walked down I had water and bar snacks, which never happens at SF bars. The bartenders were incredibly serviceable and made me feel right at home. I had such a relaxing time at the St. Regis that I'd recommend everyone go there at least once, if only just to hang out.

St. Regis Hotel
125 San Francisco, CA 94103
(Across from MoMA)