sacramento's sacramento's

54 Sacramento magazine April 2018

BEST

NEW

BARS

Sacramento

’

BEST

NEW

BARS

Sacramento

’

By Marybeth Bizjak Photography by Kevin Fiscus

he craft-cocktail revolution that

swept through Sacramento a few

years back brought the city a slew of faux

speakeasies and hip watering holes. Now

comes the second wave: a new batch of

bars that put a premium on elevating

the cocktail experience.

These places put a shine on the classic craft cocktail.

April 2018 Sacramento magazi n e 55

Canon

56 Sacramento magazine April 2018

OPENED

October 2017

VIBE

Industrial crossed with

modern farmhouse

DEMOGRAPHIC

Hip East Sac’ers and

midtowners looking

for the next new thing

TOP TIPPLE

The Banker

BEST BAR BITE

Chicken drumsticks

Jack Winks

Canon

hen this East Sac restaurant opened

last October, it instantly found both

its footing and an appreciative

audience. People fell in love with the

concept: a casual place with a farm-

house-y vibe and a menu of intriguing

small plates from Michelin-starred

chef Brad Cecchi. Given that one of Canon’s owners

is Clay Nutting of LowBrau and Block Butcher Bar

fame, it’s no surprise to ﬁnd a heavy emphasis here

on beverages. Jack Winks, a genial Brit who spent

ﬁve years working in Paris as a bartender, oversees

the bar and came up with many of the craft cocktails.

Winks sings from Sacramento’s seasonal-and-

local hymnbook, changing up the menu with the

seasons and making his own bitters, syrups and

liqueurs from produce grown in planter boxes just

outside the restaurant doors. For a classic Bee’s

Knees, he’ll use lemon thyme plucked from the gar-

den, and you may ﬁnd an edible ﬂower grown

on-site

as a garnish in your drink.

Winks is known for his weird ﬂavor combinations,

like scotch and bananas, which share billing in a

cocktail called The Golden Age. And he enjoys play-

ing around with format, oering a house Ne-

groni in a cute little single-serve bottle that

arrives at the table, along with a glass, a large

cube of ice and an orange twist. It’s strictly

PYO (pour your own)—and fun to boot.

There’s a fair bit of cross-pollination between

kitchen and bar. When Winks crafted

his own tonic syrup from lemon grass

and other ingredients, Cecchi grabbed

some to make pickled cucumbers. When

he was done, he returned the pickling

liquid to Winks, who mixed it with gin,

put it in a keg, added carbonation and

served it out of the tap as a Pickled Gin

and Tonic. (He hopes to do something

similar this summer to produce a twist

on Britain’s famed Pimm’s Cup.)

While Canon doesn’t oer cocktail-

and-food pairings, Winks is happy to

oer his opinion on what drink goes

with what dish. Tots with mole sauce?

Get the tequila-forward Vista Clara,

whose sharpness and acidity cut through the fatti-

ness of the tots. St. Louis ribs with espresso tama-

rind sauce? Order a classic Old-Fashioned or

Manhattan. Chicken drumsticks with Urfa chili

sauce and Greek yogurt? Have a beer. (The bar has

a stellar lineup, including rarities like Sante Adair-

ius’ Full Hands In, a wild ale aged in French oak.)

The restaurant’s large patio promises to be a

popular spot once the weather warms up. Winks is

looking forward to a patio cocktail program with

spritzers, punches, tropical drinks, maybe even

some blended cocktails. 1719 34th St.; (916) 469-2433;

canoneastsac.com

April 2018 Sacramento magazi n e 57

Revival

Add Revival to the big-city amenities on

Sacramento’s growing brag list. Located

on the third ﬂoor of The Sawyer, a bou-

tique hotel from SF’s Kimpton group, this

swanky lounge oers a number of lures

for bar hoppers hungry for something new

and dierent.

irst is the rooftop patio overlooking

Golden 1 Center. Amazingly, this is the only

bar in town with airy views of downtown

Sacramento—a niche that was just scream-

ing to be ﬁlled. The sprawling patio has

sofas, potted trees, ﬁre pits, heaters and—

mostly thrillingly

—

a large, sparkling-blue

pool. Only hotel guests and residents of the

condos on the hotel’s top ﬁve ﬂoors are al-

lowed to swim, but that doesn’t stop regu-

lar folk from sitting around the pool and

soaking up the scene. Groups of six or more

can frolic like ballers by reserving one of

the shaded patio cabanas.

Second is the star power. Just a short

stroll from the downtown arena, Revival

is an unocial

clubhouse for

visiting athletes

and musicians.

Lil Jon has par-

tied here, and

Bobby and Vlade

have been spot-

ted as well. (LeBron James, in town for a

Cavs game, tried to get in on Christmas

Day, but the bar was closed.)

Revival’s interior has a sleek, understat-

ed appearance, with midcentury-

inspired furnishings, smoked-glass pen-

dants and brass accents. TVs are cleverly

imbedded within mirrors behind the bar,

so you can watch the game without feeling

like you’re in a sports bar. Overseeing the

beverage program is Ben Smith, who cut

his teeth in San Francisco’s craft-cocktail

scene, working at Betelnut, 14 Romolo,

Dellarosa and Beretta. He takes a classic,

back-to-the-basics approach to mixology.

Drinks with names like Banksy and Oax-

acapolitan are ris on classic cocktails such

as the margarita and the cosmo. Like any

bartenders worth their salt-rimmed glass,

he and his sta make everything from pine-

apple juice to ginger beer from scratch.

In addition to classic cocktails, Revival

oers traditional bottle service and DIY

“kits” that allow groups of people to mix

their own French 75 or Moscow Mule. A

tray comes to the table with mixing glass,

ice scoop, garnishes, mixers and a recipe

card. The server demonstrates how to

make the ﬁrst round, and then it’s up to

the cocktailers to mix their own drinks.

It’s fun and experiential.

The lounge is open evenings only from

Wednesday through Saturday. During

happy hour, it’s a quiet place to grab a

drink and chat with the bartender. But at

9 p.m., the barstools are removed to make

way for swarms of partiers heading over

from the arena. The bar-focused food

menu oers bites like lobster corn dogs,

tru ed popcorn and cotton-candied

bacon. 500 J St.; (916) 545-7111; revivalsacra

mento.com

OPENED

October 2017

VIBE

South Beach meets

Sacramento

DEMOGRAPHIC

Golden 1 season

ticketholders and the

occasional celeb

TOP TIPPLE

House Old-Fashioned

BEST BAR BITE

Maine lobster corn dog

Ben Smith

58 Sacramento magazine April 2018

REVIVAL

House Old-Fashioned

CANON

The Banker

KRU

Miso Tipsy

SHAKEN, NOT STIRRED

The problem with martinis and Manhattans is

they’re simply too strong for some people. For them, straight vodka tastes like jet fuel,

and bitters are, well, bitter. Punch Bowl Social—the new bar/restaurant/gaming palace

in downtown’s DOCO area—offers the perfect solution: the

adult milkshake. Served in a large Mason jar, these sweet,

boozy concoctions are made with soft-serve vanilla ice

cream and come in three flavors: B.B. Alexander (made with

banana-infused brandy), Milk-Xologist #2 (made with coffee

and mint liqueurs) and Malted Maple Royale (made with Jim

Beam maple whiskey). The drinks are shaken in a diner-

style milkshake machine and topped with a thick blanket of

whipped cream. How many calories are in each one? Said one

Punch Bowl bartender, “You don’t want to know.” 500 J St.;

(916) 925-5610; punchbowlsocial.com

Hawks Public House

If Hawks Restaurant in Granite Bay is the

digniﬁed, rule-following older sister, then

Hawks Public House on Alhambra Bou-

levard is her mischievous, rule-bending

little brother. When it comes to cocktails,

the ﬁrst is all about the buttoned-up clas-

sics, while the second is about boundary-

pushing experimentation.

Zeph Horn oversees the bar programs

at both places. In his black shirt and tie,

he looks the part of an old-school bar-

tender. He’s been in the business for 20

years, working in dive bars and upscale

craft-cocktail lounges. As a kid, he loved

TOPTIPPLES

HAWKS PUBLIC HOUSE

Eastern Thai Crested Gimlet

TEN TEN ROOM

Grasshopper

THE FLAMINGO HOUSE

Raspberry Thyme Gin Rickey

April 2018 Sacramento magazi n e 59

literature and history. That scholarly bent

comes through at Hawks, where he is well

steeped in the lore and romance of classic

cocktails.

At Hawks Public House, owner Michael

Fagnoni gives Horn a lot of room to ex-

periment. Horn’s progressive approach

manifests itself in inventive ris on clas-

sic cocktails. Le Penicilina is a Mexican

take on the Penicillin, made with mezcal

and cilantro instead of scotch and lemon.

The Stockton Grion is a rye-forward

version of the venerable Hanky Panky,

which was invented in the early 20th cen-

tury at the American

Bar at The Savoy in

London. For aroma,

Horn sprays the inside of the glass with a

mist of chocolate bitters before he pours

the cocktail.

Horn has a way with egg whites—when

making a whiskey sour or Ramos Fizz, he

can shake them to a froth in little more

than a minute. (In certain circles, he’s

known as Foam Guy.) He uses aquafaba—

the braising liquid left over when the

kitchen cooks garbanzo beans—as a vegan

version of egg whites in a drink called The

Licorice Wren (Pimm’s and licorice rum).

Horn’s drinks look like works of art. For

one cocktail, he fans thin slices of Pink

Lady apple across the top of the drink,

uses tweezers to add a scorched orange

slice and tops it all with a painstaking

dusting of cinnamon. For another, a drink

called an Eastern Thai Crested Gimlet,

he nestles a partially open Thai chili inside

a Thai basil leaf, so that it looks like the

stamen of a ﬂower (or something a little

more ribald). (Check out his work on In-

stagram @zephhorn.)

But perhaps his most notorious concoc-

tion is his Blueberry Banh Mi Buteo, a

mojito made with blueberry ﬁsh sauce-

infused rum and banh mi herbs (cilantro,

basil and mint). It’s umami in a glass. 1525

Alhambra Blvd.; (916) 588-4440; hawks

publichouse.com

Zeph Horn

OPENED

Late 2016

VIBE

Upscale neighborhood bar

DEMOGRAPHIC

People who are serious

about their cocktails

TOP TIPPLE

Eastern Thai

Crested Gimlet

BEST BAR BITE

Harissa deviled eggs

60 Sacramento magazine April 2018

Kru

When Billy Ngo

moved his highly re-

arded midtown

sushi restaurant to a larger space in East

Sac, he not only gained a much bigger

dining room; he was also able to install a

roomy bar that combines Japanese mini-

malism with the ambience of a neighbor-

hood hangout. Separated from the dining

room by a wall, the bar is friendly and

casual, with a roster of bartenders scooped

up from some of Sacramento’s top craft-

cocktail purveyors.

Behind the long pine bar, those bartend-

ers conjure up elevated drinks with a dis-

tinct Japanese accent. Bar manager Nick

Amano-Dolan says their goal is to infuse

classic cocktails with “Kru ﬂavors” such

as shiso and sesame oil. A drink called

Open Sesame is a ri on the

White Linen, made with

Junipero gin, ginseng li-

queur and a house-made

cucumber-and-yuzu shrub.

(Because gin and cucumber

go together like ﬁsh and rice.) The Kru

Old-Fashioned features Japanese rice

whiskey, ginger syrup and chocolate al-

mond bitters, ﬁnished with a dehydrated

orange peel that’s meant to be eaten after

it’s soaked up the booze.

The talented chef Ngo serves as an in-

spiration for the bar. A cocktail called

Miso Tipsy (a variation on the fruity marg)

gets a blast of umami from the addition

of miso. And instead of a salted rim, the

drink is topped with sea salt foam and a

sprinkling of togarashi powder, the Japa-

nese seven-spice mixture that includes

ground red chili pepper.

Bartenders here are hands-on, using a

chainsaw to cut

3 0 0 - p o u n d

blocks of ice

i n t o l a r g e

cubes, and em-

ploying Wagy

fat trimmings

from the kitchen to fat-wash some rye

whiskey, giving it rich, butterscotch notes.

With waits of two to three hours to get

into the restaurant, diners often spill over

into the bar. If all the stools are taken,

you can sit and wait in comfort at a large

communal table in the nearby private

dining room.

The Kru bar recently started serving

late-night food-and-drink specials on

Fridays and Saturdays. Called Ngo Res-

ervations, it runs from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.,

with beers, shots and bar food like a

Wagyu burger and ramen. 3135 Folsom

Blvd.; (916) 551-1559; krurestaurant.com

Ten Ten Room

From the street, you might walk right

past Ten Ten Room. The only signage

is the name discreetly written on the

front window in gold letters, and the

storefront doesn’t give many hints

about what lies inside. But once you’re

in the door, it’s as if you’ve stepped

back 60 years to midcentury Amer-

ica, the era of the martini and the

Man in the Gray Flannel Suit.

Ten Ten Room is the latest oering from Tyler and

Melissa Williams, the folks behind two of midtown’s most

popular watering holes: Tank House, a barbecue joint,

and The Jungle Bird, a tiki bar. The Williamses clearly

don’t believe in repeating themselves. Located next door

to The Citizen Hotel, Ten Ten pays homage to the classic

American bar, circa 1960. The high-ceilinged, narrow

interior is dim and intimate, with dark-green walls, a

tufted leather banquette and a single cozy booth. A library

ladder extends to the top shelf of the mirrored back bar,

OPENED

Late 2016

VIBE

Sleek and friendly

DEMOGRAPHIC

Industry folks, foodies

and Japanophiles

TOP TIPPLE

Miso Tipsy

BEST BAR BITE

Ika geso (fried squid legs

)

OPENED

September 2017

VIBE

1960s bar with a modern edge

DEMOGRAPHIC:

The Capitol crowd

TOP TIPPLE

Grasshopper

BEST BAR BITE

Garlic steak sandwich

Nick Amano-Dolan

April 2018 Sacramento magazi n e 61

where the good stu

(Pappy Van Winkle

bourbon, Louis XIII

cognac) is displayed.

Overhead, a couple of

sparkling crystal chan-

deliers give the space a

golden glow. The only

deviation from the for-

mat is the music: In-

stead of Sinatra, it’s

fun, current and

jammy, designed to keep the party going.

Is this a bar that serves food, or a restaurant that serves

cocktails? Actually, it’s both. The kitchen, overseen by

Hook & Ladder veteran Greg Pilapil, puts out approach-

able comfort food from the ’50s: things like meatballs in

grape jelly, and Scotch deviled eggs that are crunchy and

warm on the outside, cold and creamy inside. The garlic

steak sandwich is killer.

The drinks menu is divided equally between “classics”

and “originals.” From the classic side, nods to the past

include the Harvey Wallbanger and the Grasshopper, a

vivid-green blended cocktail served in a copper coupe.

Created by the sta, the originals have clever names like

Bring Me the Shrubbery (gin, sparkling wine and a tan-

gerine-and-elderﬂower shrub) and Wrongfully Accused

(whiskey, Lillet Blanc and Jägermeister).

There are other fun touches, such as slushy machines

that serve frosty White Linens and frozen rosé (known

here as a Fro-sé). Martinis and Manhattans are served

from a tiny cocktail shaker. A little bit of the drink is left

behind in the shaker for the customer to pour like a diner

milkshake. 1010 10th St.; (916) 272-2888; tentenroom.com

Ten Ten Room:

Jenna Zavislan

The Flamingo House

When you ﬁrst spy The Flamingo House,

a pink Victorian whose front yard is awash

with palm trees and pink ﬂamingo lawn

ornaments, you’re apt to think “Toto, we’re

not in Kansas anymore.” No, you’re not.

This midtown bar is the brainchild of

Bobby Falcon, Christian Tolen and Matt

Byrd, who met while working at The Park

Ultra Lounge. Spitballing ideas, they came

up with the concept for a “coastal leisure”

bar with a laid-back, vacation-y vibe.

Inside, it feels more like Key West than

K Street. The décor is a riotous mélange

of kitschy accessories and vintage furni-

ture that could have come from your

grandma’s house in Boca. In fact, most of

the furnishings were scrounged from

thrift stores and Craigslist. In the front

room, a life-size stued Afghan hound

(thankfully not real) sits next to a pink

velveteen sofa. Pink vinyl barstools, rat-

tan chairs and blue velvet sectional sofas

add to the playful visual cacophony.

Drinks here are light and fruit-forward,

designed to be eminently quaable. (No

ﬂavor bombs.) A grapefruit Paloma is

made with freshly squeezed ruby-red

grapefruit juice and Jarritos mandarin

soda in place of the traditional Squirt. In

summer, you’re likely to ﬁnd a roasted

Peach Mojito and a Watermelon Rasp-

berry Whiskey

Smash, along

w it h b o o z y

slushies and ice

cream drinks.

And listen up: Liquor.com recently named

Flamingo House’s Raspberry Thyme Gin

Rickey one of the 11 best cocktails in the

country.

The kitchen puts out small, sharable

plates—things like guac and chips, ceviche

and panini, all made in-house. But the

chef really brings the drama with a des-

sert called Flaming-o Cookie: a pink-vel-

vet cookie doused with rum syrup in a

cast-iron pan and set ablaze at the table.

Out in the backyard, a covered patio

with swinging benches does double duty

as a lounge and a dance ﬂoor. Starting at

9 p.m. on Sundays, dancers can rent head-

sets for $5 and dance along silently to one

of several dueling DJs. It’s both eerie and

fun. 2315 K St.; (916) 409-7500; flamingo

housesac.com

OPENED

July 2017

VIBE

Spring break in the city

DEMOGRAPHIC

A melting pot of

midtown types

TOP TIPPLE

Raspberry Thyme

Gin Rickey

BEST BAR BITE

Flaming-o Cookie

Chris Harvey