Garbage Fire wins silver
San Diego's surprise showing at 2018 Literalympics
Walter Mencken 10 a.m., June 22
Drink Recipes
A warm greeting in a glass
Bartender Wetherbee "wanted to encapsulate the freshness of Thailand"
Say “Sawatdi!” to the Sawadee! “Sawatdi” is a common Thai greeting (like Hawaii’s “Aloha!”) and the Sawadee (same word respelled for the American palate) is one of the newest inspirations from Prohibition mix-master Heath Wetherbee. ...
A progressive agenda of flavors
Driftwood's Vanilla Old Fashioned
The bartender for Driftwood Craft Cocktails at Open House, Scarlett Hannon is an Old Fashioned kind of gal—but just because it’s her favorite drink doesn’t mean she has to play by all the rules to ...
Not Yo' Mama's gin and tonic
Ryan Jones makes lemon work with cucumber
Co-owner of Pillbox Tavern, Ryan Jones has something preposterous. He’s messed with that bit of perfection known as the gin and tonic. And what he’s come up with — well, it’s not your dad’s gin ...
A mojito with grassy flavor
Havana Club’s aged rum part of the secret
The Gaslamp’s newest Cuban eatery, Havana 1920, seeks to capture the heyday of America’s Playground and its pre-communist jazz-and-limelight nightlife. The restaurant’s beverage director Ryan Andrews says that its owners were inspired to open the ...
The ice melts slowly and the flavors peel off
Striders calls it the New Fashioned
As January draws near, Striders general manager Tony Martineau found a way to raise a glass for the old year rounding the last bend even as the new year comes galloping out of the gate. ...
More chef than mixologist
Some are getting the ginger, some the caramel
Reports are rolling in by the basketful: Washington, New York, Wisconsin, Michigan — all the big apple-producing states are enjoying a bumper crop this year. And San Diego can take a bite out of this ...
El Mezcalito — attempt to bring mescal into the fold
Agave-based avatar of San Diego’s cocktails
There are as many flavors to mescal as there are Ramirezes or Smiths in the San Diego County phone book — but only Del Maguey Vida Mescal is best suited for Puesto’s mescal cocktail, El ...
"It tastes like when I go surfing"
Seaweed Margarita at Open House Asian Kitchen
Located on the 101, within sniffing distance of the shore, Open House features practically every imaginable oceanic edible — including vegetables. So it was that this al fresco eatery’s general manager Matt Handy went deep ...
Guess who Impeachmint cocktail refers to
Peach, mint, bourbon at Madison on Park
Since everything from scoops of ice cream to the NFL has become politicized, it was only a matter of time before San Diego’s cocktail scene stepped into the arena. Thus, Madison on Parks’ Impeachmint. Bar ...
Mineral-driven tequila first, then ginger beer
Green Acre's Mexican Mule
Green Acre’s director of food and beverage Chris Simmons serves his Mexican Mule the same way as the Moscow Mule — in copper cups. While his variation on the vodka-cum-ginger-cum-lime original is served as cold ...
Sycamore Den's bartender apologizes profusely
Cringe-worthiness turns to buzz-worthiness
The Stalk Market is Sycamore Den’s newest cocktail, and according to Sycamore bartender Jesse Ross, this liquor-based commodity’s success stems from a portfolio of ingredients — including acid phosphate, the same ingredient soda jerks used ...
