Meet the Cocktails: British-inspired drinks with San Francisco flair at The Coachman

The Coachman's bar program opened with huge shoes to fill. After Heaven's Dog closed down last year, we honestly figured that whatever became Heaven's Dog 2 wouldn't live up, and we'd come to peace with that. After tasting bar manager Johnny Codd's drinks and hanging out at the SOMA spot for awhile, I realized that The Coachman didn't try to fill Heaven's Dog's shoes at all. Instead, Johnny just did his own thing. Which happens to be a super creative and quite delicious bar program.

There's a lot to bring people to The Coachman, Charles Phan's new project modeled after a British steakhouse. First, the vibe is fantastic. The architectural redesign made the space more open and lively. The back wall has been knocked down to make the dining room more spacious, and the wall separating the former lounge from the dinner bar has been removed as well and turned into an elegant dining room.



Second, everyone is incredibly nice and hospitable. You can roll into The Coachman and expect solid, warm service.

Third, the food is not what you'd expect from a British themed restaurant. The crudité is light and elegant, as is the watercress soup. If you want something heavier, the prime rib is incredible (and a good deal) and is incredible with a side of mash. For dessert, the sticky toffee pudding will bring you to religion.



Most importantly (for this blog), the drinks are mind-blowing. Historic cocktails have become a cornerstone of bar programs these days, but while many programs have looked to Prohibition and pre-Prohibition cocktails—now a well-worn concept—Johnny has chosen to inspire himself with early 19th-century British cocktails. More often than not, he executes these drinks with creative flair, respecting the original drink but often bringing touches that are unique to the bar industry.

Every time I go to the Coachman, which is now often, Johnny is working on something new and interesting. After you try the cocktail within a cocktail (Wall-E-Bear), the ever-changing ice-wine cocktail (Cardinal), and the stirred citrus drink (Clarified Flight), ask Johnny what he's working on now. Pro-tip: Ask for the best cocktail in the world (Johnny's loving nickname for his recent creation, a blended negroni). You will not be disappointed (though, by the time you read this, Johnny might have come up with an ever better one that the cocktail I'm referencing).

OK, let's get down to brass tacks: the drinks.

Pineapple Julep: Bols Genever, roasted spiced pineapple, maraschino. I love a mint julep, but for some reason, most of the variations I've tried have sucked—either too dry, too sweet, or too weak. This one makes the short list. The roasted pineapple keeps the drink both rich and sweet like a mint julep, but adds pleasant tartness and citrus. Beware: The drink is easy to drink dangerously fast—a good and a bad thing.





Wall-E-Bear: Rum, sherry, yellow Chartreuse, Negroni reduction. This is a cocktail inside a cocktail. How the hell has no one thought of this before? The kitchen takes a classic negroni—gin, vermouth, and campari—and simmers it down until it is a syrup. On paper, it looks overly rich and too complicated. But when you taste it, all the ingredients come together to make a cohesive whole. It's luscious, bitter, spicy, and nutty all at once. I love the heck out of this drink.




California Milk Punch: Brandy, rum, Batavia Arrack, clarified milk, spiced syrup. Like the Wall-E-Bear, the California Milk Punch points to the creativity of this bar program. Though milk punch it technically a very old drink, it takes quite a bit of talent and guts to put it on a menu. Loyal barman Erik Ellestad, who has been at The Coachman since the early Heavens Dog days, put in epic work to perfect the recipe. It's worth a trip to The Coachman just to taste this drink, if you haven't had clarified milk before. It's got the creaminess and sweetness of milk without the, well, milkiness. It may sound weird, but it tastes delicious.



Heidelberg Cup No. 9: Diep 9 Belgium Genever, Lemon, Nahe Riesling. A great way to enjoy a legit Genever, the Heidelberg Cup No. 9 is light, refreshing, and dangerously drinkable. It's not at all sweet, which you might expect from the Riesling. The maltiness from the Genever mixes with the funk of the wine nicely.




Lass O'Gowrie: Hakushu 12 year whisky, honey, Punt e Mes, Peychaud's. A drink to put hair on your chest, the Lass O'Gowrie is a smoky, bitter, slow-sipping cocktail over a large, crystal clear ice cube—perfect for an evening of conversation. Scotch lovers will enjoy this one.




Dat ice:



Athol Brose: Whisky, honey, milk, oats, (a dash of) coffee. This drink tastes nothing like what you'd expect. It tastes like a malted coffee milkshake without the heaviness or sweetness. Or maybe a malty latte without the richness. Although this drink is a classic, it's so different from what you'd normally get that it's worth a trip to try it.





Antique Sour: Carpano Antica sweet vermouth, beer schnapps, lemon, egg white. This popular drink came over from Wo Hing, where Johnny first put the drink on the menu when he was bar manager there. And it's easy to see why he did this. The cocktail is accessible but interesting, with bright citrus, richness from the vermouth and beer schnapps, and a dose of spice from the nutmeg garnish. You could drink about 50 of these and still not get tired of it. It's tart, malty, hoppy, and refreshing. What's not to like?



Or, if Johnny is feeling crazy:



Gin Cocktail: Bols aged Genever, gum syrup, Curacao, orange bitters. Simple, straightforward, and delicious. Fans of classic drinks like Old Fashioneds and Martinis will find a slightly funky, but accessible, medium with this drink.



Robert Burns' Hunting Flask: Redbreast 12 year whisky infused with currents, ginger, lemon peel. If The Coachman were to have a signature drink on its menu, this would be it. Two words: hunting flask—a super cool and super theme appropriate way to serve the cocktail. The bartender will get you going with a small pour of the flask over a big, perfectly clear cube, and then you hang on to the flask to pour the rest at your leisure. Slowly pouring the rest of drink is not only fun. It also allows you to fully enjoy the thick drink (almost like a small meal) before the ice waters down the cocktail too much. There is no sugar added, but the infused fruits add a delicious, jammy sweetness to the cocktail. It's perfect for slow sipping.





Sherry Cobbler: Sherries, house made bergamot marmalade, lemon. If I could drink fifty Antique Sours, I could drink a hundred Sherry Cobblers because the sherry is so delicious. As with most cobblers, the drink is bright, fruity, and airy, served over ice. Unlike other cobblers, the sherry brings a savory richness to the drink. Sherry is technically a fortified wine, so the drink, like the Antique Sour, pairs perfectly with food and also works well as just something to sip on. Order this drink if you're in the mood to start light, to end light, or to take a break in the middle of the heavier cocktails.






Cider Cup: Cider, brandy, Pur pear, cucumber, pineapple, lemon. The ridiculously elaborate frozen cucumber garnish alone makes this drink worth ordering. The fact that it's fruity, refreshing, and palate cleansing doesn't hurt, either. It tastes like Fall in a cup.






Knickerbocker: Jamaican rum, strawberry, kina, lemon, sparkling wine. Bright, easy drinking, with a huge kick of strawberry that's light on the palate. The bubbles make all the flavors dance on your tongue. Despite all of this, the Jamaican rum brings some fun funk. This is your summer cocktail.





Cardinal: Barbancourt white rum, sherry, spiced wine ice, lime, cinnamon. Those shards of wine ice are delicious on their own. Weirdly enough, they remind us of tea eggs because both make use of Chinese five spice flavor. I love this drink because it changes with every drink as the ice melts. It starts citrusy and tart, and gradually the drink becomes spicier and funkier because of the spices and sherry. This drink really showcases Johnny's creativity.







Clarified Gin Flight: Come to The Coachman on a right night, and you may be lucky enough to find a flight—hopefully a Clarified Gin Flight.  These flights make use of the key ingredient is clarified juice—the result of a laborious and time intensive process of filtering out all of the impurities of citrus juice, leaving a clean, pure juice without too much acid. This allows them to use this juice to make stirred drinks that would traditionally have been served shaken. The first time you have a stirred Aviation, your world will be changed.





Seriously, don't forget to ask Johnny for the best cocktail in the world. Or, if you're not in the cocktail mood, try one of the cask conditioned ales. If you haven't had beer straight from the cask before, it's a real treat.

For more pictures, check out our full album on Flickr.

The Coachman
1148 Mission Street
415-813-1701
Hours: 5pm-11pm

Announcing a New Series — Three-Word Reviews! Beginning with Greenall's London Dry Gin

Things are getting a little crazy up in here, and we are excited to introduce a new videos series to mix things up: Three-Word Reviews!

That's because we love trying new ingredients and have been wanting to share our general impressions in a really simple, fast, fun way. It's actually a series we first thought of about a year ago, and now we're happy to finally test it out in the world. Go, young grasshopper, go.

To mark our very first Three-Word Review, we made two versions (a long version and a short version), and we'd love to hear from you guys which one you like better. We're still shaping this series and want your input.

Long:



Short:



A Note on Greenall's

Greenall's Gin is something we picked up at our favorite spirits store at the recommendation of one of the trusty employees. As the name suggests, it is a London-style gin, meaning that it tends to be bold (at least 70% alcohol and often higher) and "dry" (a mere smidgen of sugar allowed after the distillation process allowed, in order for it to qualify as London). This puts the pot-distilled spirit in the same category as the very popular Beefeater, Tanqueray, and Bombay Sapphire gins.

The spirit itself is defined predominately by high notes, more aromatic than flavorful. Lovers of bold gins like Beefeater might think this spirit thin, lacking the rich botanicals of many others on the market. Because the flavor is so dry, those who prefer the shy profile of vodka in their martinis might find Greenall's a bridgeable option for their cocktails. At around $25 a bottle, Greenall's is affordable—though it's easy to find a gin with more character at that same price point.

Don't forget to tell us which video you like better please! Cheers!

New Spirit: Barsol Perfecto Amor

Earlier this year, Anchor Distilling Company brought a new product to the U.S. market, Barsol Perfecto Amor, a Peruvian aperitif.

Josh and I were both excited to try it. Funnily, Josh kept referring to it That Pisco, and I kept referring to it as That Wine, and when we both tried it, we found that we were both terribly right and terribly wrong!

Barsol Perfecto Amor is a fun blend of both pisco and aperitif—pisco is added to the fermenting grapes. Sweet like a dessert wine and savory like a sherry, the aperitif wine pleasantly balanced the two.

According to the distributor, the spirit has some old ties. It's produced in Peru's Ica Valley, where pisco is famously made, and distilled in Peru, Bodega San Isidro, an old spot that dates back to the 1800s.

With sherry on the rise, we felt that Barsol Perfecto Amor offers a very accessible option for drinkers still getting used to fortified wines. At 17% alcohol, it's stronger than the majority of wines, but much gentler than a spirit or liqueur. It's bright like raisins but still a little nutty and not too sweet or syrupy. Every note is soft and round. It's easy to drink on its own or as part of a cocktail.

At many places you can find a bottle for under $20, too—which makes it really affordable, more so than most good sherries. It's a fun bottle to keep in the fridge as a sip for guests or a small glass before or after dinner.

Recent Opening: The Square

It's so inspiring to see spaces reinvented.

New restaurant, The Square, is a great example of it. Formerly inhabited by Bottle Cap, the North Beach spot has been retouched and reopened by Teague Moriarty and Matt McNamara, the team behind the Michelin-starred Sons and Daughters and Sweet Woodruff. Their goal: To bring a classy food experience to San Francisco that's still delicious but less complex than their sister restaurants.

What used to be a neon mishmash of neon wall paint, rich food, and strong, cask-aged cocktails has now been turned into a comfortably muted, refined, tavern-like interior.



The cocktail menu is still being matured with an expected rollout of a customized program in the coming months. In the meantime, guests are being treated to reliable classics, sometimes made by guest appearances by bartenders from neighboring bars like Tosca.

We did get a great taste of what some of the food will be like. Like Sons and Daughters, the team is brining some perfectly executed dishes with down-to-earth flavors—but with more straight-forward flourish.







Dry rub baby back ribs.



The Square415-525-3579
1707 Powell
Open every night 6pm-1am, food all night.

At TBD, A Warm Hearth and Low ABV Cocktails That Pack a Tasty Punch

One of my guilty home fantasies is to have a fireplace. A big, warm hearth to gather around when the San Francisco fog rolls in—and also so I can burn that perennial almond wood from Whole Foods that always looks so good. But as a city dweller, this is far fetched. Luckily, with the opening of TBD in SOMA, I think I might have found a dream come true.

TBD is the second restaurant project by the young, energetic, and enterprising team that opened the seasonally focused AQ restaurant—which incidentally is right next door to TBD in SOMA.

And if AQ is affordable fine dining, owner Matt Semmelhack and chef Mark Liberman have now opened an even more casual environment in TBD, a place where guests can find hearty seasonal meats and other grilled delicacies, a communal place to gather around an urban hearth, and easy, culinary-style cocktails. Yes, this is where I’m going to get my fireplace fix.



It’s the perfect place for when you want to get a bit, well, lodge-y. The dominant feature in the narrow space is a dramatic open grill, where on open flames cooks grill nice slices of locally source filets and farmers-market-fresh vegetables.



Patrons have a choice of sitting at the bar in front of the open oven or at dining tables either on the ground floor on a loft level looking down into the open kitchen.



Tim Zohn, acclaimed bar director from sister restaurant AQ, takes up the cocktails at TBD. “The cocktails here shouldn’t compete with next door’s program,” he said. “I wanted to do something totally different.”



And to Tim, that meant putting a fresh spotlight on the ever more popular low-ABV cocktails, drinks that rely on wines, beers, and bitters instead of more traditional hard liquors.

Tim calls these drinks "Loopholes." Isn't that cute?

Tim first became interested in low-ABV cocktails when he was designing the bar menu at AQ, before it got its liquor license.

But, at TBD, the reason for Loopholes is not that the spot had trouble getting the highly coveted liquor license, says Zohn. Rather, TBD is the place to find a fresh look at how great tasting drinks can be made with these sometimes denigrated ingredients. Plus, they go pretty great with food.

Of note, this cocktail program is paired with a robust sherry selection, handpicked by AQ sommelier Kristen Capella—something Josh and I are particularly excited about. (Sherry’s time in the sun has been long overdue!)

I tried of few of these cocktails.

First, the Porter Old Fashioned



The cleverly named Nogroni (opposed to the Negroni because this one has no gin, swapping out the spirit for bitters). Like a Negroni, it's bright and rich, but a little more spicy.



Something not on the menu, but a drink I highly recommend if you catch Tim: a Beergarita! It's sparkling, bright, dry, a little savory (from the wheat), and refreshing!



In addition to the drinks, TBD boasts a delightful menu with small, medium, and large share plates focusing on grilled items. The menu is divided into several categories: raw, smoked, hearth and embers, grill, plancha, and sweet.

This dish of cured wild salmon, rye waffle, and dill was particularly delicious. The waffle was satisfyingly crunchy and a little chewy, perfectly sweet with the rich flakes of fish.



The bread, butter, and seaweed offers a really nice vegetarian small plate. The butter is bright and fresh and the seaweed is crunchy and briny.



I also ordered the aged beef sirloin, which was a dense, rich cut cooked perfectly pink.



Cooked on this beautiful grill, no doubt!



And finished with "smores"—satisfyingly smokey and with crunchy chicory!



And super moist dutch oven cake!



TBD in action:

 

See more pictures in our gallery here:



TBD
1077 Mission St.
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 431-1826

Posted by Noelle

Meet the Cocktails: Holy Water

Bernal Height's newest (only?) cocktail bar, Holy Water is meant to be a neighborhood bar, but after our visit last week, I think it's well worth a trip from across town. Here, we found some refreshingly simple, classic cocktails beautifully made, some serious tiki favorites, and carefully curated California beers in an enjoyable, casual atmosphere.



John Ottoman, below, owns Holy Water, along with a team that was is also involved with Bloodhound, Prize Fighter, and Brass Tacks.



John specifically designed this bar to fit into the neighborhood, Bernal Heights, which is known as a cozy community within San Francisco. As a result, the cocktails on the menu are all $9 classics, perfectly executed (no exaggeration––they're flawless). The beer selection is on par with Monk's Kettle in terms of quality. He tries to keep all of his beers local, and they rotate semi-regularly. If you're looking for rare or unusual beers, you'll find them here. (I had a great sour ale, for instance.) The specials also make Holy Water a great local spot or destination. If you can't read it, that sign says "Shot + Beer $7."

It's the perfect place for a chill night with tasty drinks! (Or maybe before or after one of our favorite restaurants ever, Ichi Sushi, which just opened a bigger space!)



Now meet some of the cocktails!

Turf Club: gin, french vermouth, maraschino, orange bitters. If I had to choose one drink to prove that John Ottoman is a master of his craft, I'd pick the Turf Club. A bit of a riff on the martini, it has that same clean, crisp character—with a bit more sweet flair from the maraschino.



Jungle Bird: black rum, pineapple, Campari, lime. I've always loved the Jungle Bird, but I've never had one quite like this. They use a brighter pineapple at Holy Water, which makes the drink taste brighter than usual. The brightness of the pineapple complements the Campari perfectly, leaving you with a semi-dry, pineappley finish. It's fantastic.



Mexican Firing Squad: tequila, grenadine, lime. This is another drink that left me floored. The three ingredients were so expertly mixed that the drink tasted better than the sum of its parts. The Mexican Firing Squad, like the other drinks, is bright and crisp. The tart grenadine and smoky mezcal leaves you smacking your lips and going back for more.



After the Gold Rush: bourbon, pineapple, apricot, lime. Following the flavor profile of the other drinks, the After the Gold Rush cocktail is bright and clean. The bourbon complicates it, though, adding a more richness to the cocktail. Absolutely delicious.



All in all, Holy Water is either the perfect neighborhood spot or a destination well worth the trip. It's vibe is casual, beer selection epic, and cocktails endlessly pleasing. Go to there as soon as you can.



Holy Water

309 Cortland Ave
San Francisco, CA 94110

Open Mon - Fri, 4 p.m. - 2 a.m.; Sat & Sun, 2 p.m. - 2 a.m.

holywatersf.com

Posted by Josh and Noelle

Heaven's Dog Re-Opens: A Small Peek at The Coachman

Anyone who has ever seen the TV show Cheers knows what it’s like to have A Place.

It doesn’t have to be a bar. It could be a coffee shop or a lunch place, a tea shop or maybe even a favorite stretch of beach. It’s a place where, well, yeah—everybody knows your name. You know the people there; they know you. You feel so comfortable there you could find the bathroom blind. And you already know what comes next in the Spotify/Pandora list.

Have you ever had a place like that? Well, for us, that was Heaven’s Dog.

Josh and I have shared countless memories at Heaven’s Dog. We first started going there in 2009—that first time we met Erik Adkins thinking he was a bouncer (and were stunned out of our minds when he ran behind the bar and made a Remember the Maine for me and a Bittered Sling for Josh; funnily, we switched cocktails. The Bittered Sling would instantly become one of my favorite cocktails).

And we’ve gone ever since. Since opening, the staff was stacked with an all-star team. And it soon became storied and cherished place among industry professionals, who would head down to the SOMA “hole in the wall” if they got cut early.

Then one cold day in November, we pulled up for a quick mid-week night cap, and the place was dark. There was a handwritten note on the door: “Closed tonight.” We would later find out that there was a flood in the building forcing the restaurant to temporarily close.

Days passed. Weeks passed. Months passed. A year passed.

And we soon learned that Charles Phan—owner of Heaven’s Dog and of the famous Slanted Door Group in San Francisco—had greater plans for the restaurant, renovating the whole space for a new concept: British pub.

This week Heaven’s Dog finally reopened as The Coachman.

As beverage director of the Slanted Door Group, Erik Adkins is steering the bar program with John Codd in the esteemed position of bar manager (formerly of 15 Romolo and former bar manager of now-closed Slanted Door sister restaurant Wo Hing). The food is expected to be English steakhouse style—with prime rib, pies, Yorkshire pudding, and modern twists on bangers and mash.

We haven’t seen the space fully operating yet, but here we offer a little sneak peek from the opening event.

There are some notable changes to the space.

The private glass dining room has been knocked down, as well as the office space behind it, creating a much longer and open dining room.

Mall-goers might recognize this handsome back wall, which used to be at the Out the Door restaurant in the Westfield.



The back bar has been changed up a bit, too. The long glass shelves have been replaced by modern looking boxes—either a similar design to the now-closed Wo Hing or maybe even taken from it.

The long, gorgeous bar—all one piece of wood—remains intact, looking good as ever.



Hand pumps have been installed for the cask ale program. This warmer style of beer service was something I grew fond of in London, and I’m excited to see it brought to The Coachman.

Three cocktails at the event were offered up as a hint of what’s to come (please note, different glassware and garnishes will be used during full service).

The Pineapple Julep, a bright, tasty and refreshing drink of Bols genever, spiced and roasted pineapple, maraschino liqueur, and crushed ice —a Jerry Thomas classic that tastes of tiki meets American old school.



Wall-E-Bear, a smooth rum drink with a little bit of funk. Made from Aniversario pampero rum, fino sherry, negroni reduction, and yellow chartreuse.



And Knickerbocker, another bright cocktail of Appleton A/X Jamaican Rum, Strawberry, Kina, lemon, and sparkling wine, easy to drink, especially with food.



We’ll tell you more as we get to know The Coachman better. But for now: Welcome to the world, The Coachman!

The Coachman
1148 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 831-1701

http://www.coachmansf.com/