I know I’m not the only one missing Kate Bolton’s smiling face behind the bar at Maven as she makes you a killer cocktail (Portland, you are lucky to have her!). But there’s a second best solution happening right now at LORD GEORGE in South Park, and it’s her Alice in Wonderland-themed cocktail menu for owners Miles Palliser and Ezra Berman’s Mavericks series (their new seasonal guest bartender series). The cocktails are creative, delicious, and if you’re lucky, you’ll be sitting at Mike Zaengle’s station, who will fill you in on as much as you’d like on what you’re drinking and how your cocktail was made.
I recommend starting with the Through the Looking Glass (fino sherry, amontillado sherry, dry vermouth, blanc vermouth, with housemade lavender and orange bitters), a perfect pairing with their well-shucked oysters on the half shell. You can always pony up for the Lord’s Platter, which will make everyone around you say, “Oh my Lord!” You get a three-tiered platter styled with 24 oysters, 12 Gulf prawns, and a silky tuna tartare (which is more like a tasty poke), $119. Get a group together (or just a few of you) and do it up.
The White Rabbit is another beauty to start with (Lillet blanc, yellow Chartreuse, sherry, mint, lime, egg white), and I say pair it with chef Nick Adams’s foie gras torchon. The Dee & Dum is like a mojito, with dueling rums (overproof Jamaican and Guatemalan rums), velvet falernum, grilled strawberry syrup, shaken with basil, and lime, with a torched orange. You’ll chuckle when you see the Drink Me (a “wee” bottled serving of whiskey, cherry, absinthe, and bitters), and the cherry is a reference to the cherry tart mentioned in the movie.
It’s a really well-thought-out menu, and mighty tasty. There are 11 drinks in all, and the bar will donate 50 cents of every Maverick cocktail sold to the guest bartender’s charity of choice. Sweet! Kate’s menu runs through June 30th, so don’t be late, for a very important date! 555 2nd St. at South Park, 415-660-7633.
