MockTails of the City #1: The Alembic
I might be pregnant, I might be an alcoholic, I might have a medical condition, I might not like the taste of alcohol, I might be training for a marathon, I might be taking antibiotics, I might need a clear head tomorrow morning, I might be driving or I might have another good reason to not be drinking tonight. If I am treating myself to a night out, but I choose to avoid alcohol, it doesn't mean I want to avoid indulging in an interesting well-crafted drink, the likes of which I wouldn't usually serve up at home. To the contrary, I love to be surprised. And I have started a search for the most sympathetic bartenders and the best non-alcoholic drinks in all of San Francisco...
The Alembic: 725 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA 94117 (415) 666-0822
Visit: July 2009
Menu: No non-alcholic cocktails or drinks listed.
Bartender's reaction: Unsympathetic and unenthusiastic. Needed to be cojoled.
Drink: Initial disinterest eventually resulted in an absolutely fantastic mystery mocktail topped with a little baby cilantro. So delicious, I had a second.
Price: $3 at the bar, $4 at the dinner table, as far as we recall (thanks Fatemeh).
Local Resources
My previous Alembic visit couldn't have been more different.
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© 2009 Sam Breach MockTails of the City #1: The Alembic
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15 Comments:
At 16/7/09 20:31,
Fatemeh said…
Sam, I think it would be fair to share that the drink was priced VERY reasonably at $3 at the bar (and if I recall correctly, $4 at the dinner table)
But yes, while he was a bit taken aback (this is a bar on Haight Street, after all), he ultimately delivered a mocktail that I would have happily ordered, drinking or not.
At 16/7/09 20:39,
Sam said…
You are right - I was sitting here for a while actually straining to try & remember the prices but I couldn't so didn't mention it in case I was incorrect. But I should have just asked you - I think you are right. I thought it might have been $3 and $5 or $4 & $6 and lost confidence in my recollection so omitted the info.
Despite his initial reaction he did the Alembic really proud - that was a great mocktail, probably my best to date.
At 16/7/09 20:43,
Sam said…
PS My hope is that every bar tender worth their salt should be able to pull out a mocktail or an interesting no alcohol drink. It's my new campaign. I might as well try and ask for such things, so places realise there might be a market, I've got nothing to lose.
At 16/7/09 22:51,
Mona said…
I don't live in San Fransisco, but cool post anyway. It never occurred to me to try to order a non-alcoholic cocktail (I don't drink for religious reasons). I'll definitely have to see what I can find around here.
At 17/7/09 06:16,
Zoomie said…
This is such a great idea - to ask for a mocktail when I don't feel like drinking alcohol! Why didn't I think of that? I'm so tired of "Shirley Temples" - hope you can find lots of other great mocktail places as you continue your quest!
At 17/7/09 08:24,
drspam said…
hi sam! osha thai in glen park has a few pretty tasty mocktails. they're still waiting on their liquor license, so they decided to get creative. my "mojito" was so tasty i hope they keep it on the menu after they finally get their license. i wonder if other osha thai locations do this...
good idea for a post!
At 17/7/09 08:36,
Sam said…
Thanks for the tip, DrSpam. As time goes on, I think I'll be finding that the "Nohito" as it is often called will be the most ubiquitous mocktail of them all. I already had one at the Foreign Cnema and Oola in the last few weeks.
At 18/7/09 10:59,
Marc said…
Thanks for starting this series. When I ask for non-alcoholic options at fine restaurants, the offered choices are almost always boring. It would be great to see our talented bartenders and chefs turn a little bit of their creativity to mocktails. There are so many possibilities in the realms of fruit syrups, herbs, spices and other flavorings.
At 18/7/09 20:32,
Sam said…
Thanks Marc - I am behind your comment 100%. I am going to keep asking for interesting non-alcoholic drinks.
At 20/7/09 20:09,
Catherine said…
Millennium has some interesting non-alcohol combos. I feel strongly that any decent restaurant should have enticing non-alcoholic offerings.
At 28/7/09 12:02,
lyndaellen said…
I had a great mocktail at Beretta when I asked for ginger ale; the bartender created some lime-mint-ginger concoction that was one of the best drinks I've ever had.
At 28/7/09 12:03,
lyndaellen said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
At 28/7/09 13:01,
Sam said…
Hi LyndaEllen
I had a Hibiscus Cooler at Beretta which is one of the most memorable non alcoholic drinks I've had in the city, too.
At 29/7/09 07:03,
Erin said…
When I was pregnant I would order fancy cocktails from the menu and ask the bartender to replace the vodka (or whatever) with seltzer. It definitely scratched that "I want something I wouldn't make at home" itch better than yet another seltzer with lemon.
At 15/8/09 14:55,
Marc said…
The very long drink menu at Forbidden Island in Alameda has quite a few marked as "can be made non-alcoholic." I tried the "Monkeypod" -- which features tamarind, coconut and lime -- last weekend and thought it was tasty, if a bit on the sweet and heavy side.
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