Tag: Burbank

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1st Visit – Empire Tavern

Second day in a row that I went into Burbank for beer. This time to San Fernando Avenue and the soft opening of the Empire Tavern.

Here is the 1st Visit report…

Now this is a “just right” neighborhood place to have a beer. Twelve tap options to select from. Plenty of bar seating and plenty of table seating as well for a space that looks like it might be teeny-tiny on the inside. Best of all is the nice picture window out from that suffuses the room with light. Granted the view out onto this stretch of North San Fernando isn’t a Hawaiian sunset but a seat at that window with a view of the hills that backdrop the valley is not bad.

I can totally see wearied Christmas shoppers from either the nearby Empire Center or Burbank mall making a post Black Friday stop here to recuperate and if I was one of the neighbors from across the street, you know this would become a regular haunt.

If I have said it once, I have said it too many times. Every little part of the great Los Angeles area can do with a place with great beer choices that they can call “their neighborhood” bar. Empire Tavern will be that place.

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1st Visit – Lincoln Beer Co.

Two nights ago, Lincoln Beer Co. unveiled their new taproom digs as well as taps of their beer.

Here is the 1st Visit report…

This was one of the first taproom openings that had a literal line out the damn door! A combination of people not knowing what beers to order since many beers were new and also due to kinks being worked out for a first day of business led to long wait times and no place to sit.

But the room looks really nice. Fun lighting, bar seats and communal tables. TV’s that were tucked away from the bar. There was even a bit of greenery outside the restrooms. It reminded me of Boomtown. Maybe they took some visual cues from that DTLA space.

There was a good amount of beer on tap for the night including a nitro tap. The tap signage looked good and the beer names were nice and visible, but the box space allotted for the style name and ABV were in too fine a print. If you were feeling lucky, you could order up based on the name alone. Or wait for a less crowded time and take a closer look without worrying about the people behind you waiting.

I went with the Revenge IPA. I often choose an IPA because the hops should cover any flaws and also to see where the brewery measures in a popular and hard to break through category. This effort was so-so and the more I drank, the more I had wished that I had ordered the milk stout or Irish Red instead.

LBC will require a second visit where I can order a taster tray and sample a wider variety of the tap offerings. Look for that later.

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The Empire Center

A new independent craft beer bar is coming to North San Fernando Road in a weird spot near McCambridge Park.

The Empire Tavern
is run by Dave Ochoa, known in beer circles as a member of the Yeastside Brewers, that is good street cred.

The new spot is taking over from a tavern and should have the typical multiple rotating taps, hopefully highlighting the beer from Burbank and parts north in the San Fernando Valley.

The expected opening date is October/November but with all things beer that could change. Look for an interview in an upcoming Food GPS post.

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Zoo Beer Dinner


If you did not make it to the Brew at the Zoo this year, you can still check out the special beer made by the Brewery at Simmzy’s for that festival at Simmzy’s Zoo Brew Dinner which will feature Hasani’s Silverback Summer Ale.

To recap: “Head Brewer Brian Herbertson was invited by the Los Angeles Zoo to work with Hasani to create a beer based on ingredients sampled by the gorilla during a special tasting.”

On Wednesday, September 13th, Simmzy’s will present a four course dinner expertly paired by Head Brewer Brian Herbertson, and Advanced Cicerone Greg Bechtel. A percentage of profits form the event will benefit the Los Angeles Zoo.

Menu:
Morning Session Saison
Fresh melon and Peach salad with spring greens, goat cheese and herbed croutons

Tips Up IPA- (Citra, Mosaic, Amarillo Hops)
Fried Chicken with a creamy lemon, buttermilk sauce served with a fresh sweet corn

Hasani’s Silverback Summer Ale (Belgian Single with Blood orange)
Roasted pork tenderloin with a Blood orange sauce on a bed of wood-fire roasted green beans and crispy sweet potatoes

Simmzy’s Porter
Chocolate Mousse with fresh whipped cream and Salted caramel brittle

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1st Batch – Brewery at Simmzy’s

Earlier this month, I headed over to Simmzy’s Burbank location to try the first batch of beers from their brand spanking new operation that spans two floors of the restaurant.

Three beers were on tap out of the gate. A blonde, porter and IPA. I decided to try the first two on the first visit and save the IPA for a later trip. The really cool tall glasses show the beers off nicely. In the battle between the Beach Cruiser Blonde and the Porter, the blonde came out as my winner. It was bright with a restrained but noticeable touch of hops. Bringing it out of the boring realm that some blondes fall into. This is a really promising start for the beers and I expect that the other beers in the line-up will be up at his standard that has been set.

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Back to the West

With L.A. pushing their brewery count higher, it can be hard to make return visits to check out how a brewery is progressing. Which is important, because brewing skill and recipes don’t always stand still.

With that in mind, I returned to Verdugo West to check out what was happening and lo and behold ran into brewer Chris Walowski and tasted a flight of recent beers and talked shop in Burbank.

The list was split between light and dark with the popular Gigli lager that uses that underused adjunct, rice. It pours really clear yello with a bit of a sweet aroma. Then there was Hoppy 30th a macro based beer with rice as well and then a Double IPA’s worth of hops. I hope this beer comes back for 31st at least.

On the dark side of the ledger was Kalon, a rare schwarzbier that had good roast and was solidly Germanic followed by the Q2 IPA which was a Black IPA. A style that has had a free fall out of favor. This erred too far on the roast side and could have used some extra hop push to it.

I will have to keep returning.

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1st Visit – Verdugo West

Verdugo West threw open their doors on the 11th for a soft opening and I was there to check out the new Burbank brewery tucked up against the 5 freeway.

My favorite beer from brewer Chris Walowski was the Jack Roller pale ale. Nice and crisp without being a heavy-handed hop bomb that some so-called pales can be.

The Wax Wing blonde was my second choice. Solid and clean with good carbonation. What Plane? was the third of the core beers on tap and it was a solid entry in the porter/stout category.

They also were pouring variants of those three. Dry Hopped pale, ginger Wax Wing and a coffee What Plane? None of which were markedly improved by the additions. All seemed a little out of balance. Sometimes adding to an existing beer without allowing for room for both to breath can be hard.

The thin space was crowded with people from Burbank who had been coming in a stream since the opening at 4pm. There are still some kinks to work out which is what a soft open is supposed to reveal. The menu board needs work. Only the core beers were up and could use more description in the manner that say, Chapman Crafted has done. Payment was a little slow and the limited space combined with that to make the bar area a bit traffic jammy. Again, once people learn the system, the people will be served quicker and be out of the way.

You can also order food from sister company Market City, which is a plus.

A solid start for the newest brewery in Burbank.

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Pre-Opening Visit – Lincoln Beer Co.

I had the opportunity last week to check out the space that Lincoln Beer Co. of Burbank calls home.

I spoke with Patrick Dunn, the head brewer about the brewery on an overcast day at their facility and taproom to come on Lima Street.

The space, as I have seen with the new set of breweries lately, has room for more tanks and fermenters which bodes well. A camper was parked in the warehouse space as well, the temporary home of brewery consultants who helped Dunn with the Pioneer brewing system (which was a struggle to get up and running correctly).

The brite tanks were, contrary to most breweries, tucked into the spacious cold box. A measure that has both pros and cons in my mind. Dunn and partner Ryan Lipson met in college and started home brewing and you know the story. All they needed was the funding to get started.

Now they await a CUP so that they can begin the taproom build out and get customers through the doors.

You will see a “homework” assignment and Beer of the Week over on Food GPS in the coming weeks.

Now onto the pair of beers tasted.

Honeysuckle session IPA was clean and crisp. A good option for those who want their hops and less ABV. It didn’t make me go wow, but for this early in the learning curve, it was done well.

Winter Fiesta is their Winter Warmer that combines the spice of habanero pepper with the soothing aroma and cooling of vanilla. I have a low pepper pain threshold but this mash-up, though hot, didn’t sear like other habanero beers that I have encountered.

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Next Month – Verdugo West

verdugo-west
I posted recently about a new brewery that I knew close to zero about except for three things. That its name would be Verdugo West, that Chris Walowski, formerly of Smog City, would be the brewer and that it would be in Burbank.

Now we have more information to pass along with the biggest news being that they open next month. The brewery is part of the MCC Hospitality Group helmed by partners, Chipper Pastron and Sal Casola Jr.

Verdugo West Brewing Co. is located at 156 W. Verdugo Ave. in Burbank in the usual for breweries industrial park with a 4,500-square-foot production brewery.

The 15 barrel brewhouse will be steam-powered which is the first time I have typed that on this blog.

MCC Hospitality Group’s has a large group of properties which, include Market City Caffe in Burbank, Morels French Steakhouse & Bistro at The Grove, JuiceFarm in Pasadena, Vanishing Point Winery in Napa, as well as several restaurants and juice bars in Las Vegas. That doesn’t scream confidence builder except for the winery asset. I generally prefer my breweries to not just be another notch in a corporate belt. But I will check the beer out first.

The Verdugo West taproom (once open) will be open Wednesday and Thursday 4-10 p.m., Friday and Saturday 12-10 p.m. and Sunday 12-8 p.m.