First Neyah White is on the move, and now today we hear that another local bar star, Reza Esmaili, is leaving Smuggler’s Cove shortly to become the operating partner at Long Bar & Bistro (Fillmore and Clay). As the Scoop is reporting, this is great news for upper Fillmoreans, given that Reza’s got the taste and wherewithal to give this place a much needed makeover. The place will remain mostly as is for now, with some immediate improvements to the bar program, and some tweaks to the menu from consulting chef Chris Pastena of Oakland’s Chop Bar.
But by late summer, Reza plans to shutter Long Bar and totally overhaul it, with a new name, concept, and chef, reopening in October. All he’s saying about the concept so far is “American style” with items like a Cobb salad, burger, and chicken pot pie.
The bar program will veer to the “traditional” end of things too, and likely won’t be quite as fancy as some of the stuff Reza was used to making at his former digs at Conduit. (It should be noted Reza is the president of the U.S. Bartenders Guild.) But regardless, this won’t be no Red-Bull-and-vodka sort of joint as long as he’s around.
So all all in all: a good year for cocktails! As Camper English pointed out earlier, this marks the seventh notable new cocktail program of 2010, following on Comstock Saloon, the Burritt Room, Wayfare Tavern, Scott Beattie’s Spoonbar, Brooke Arthur’s as-yet-under-wraps list at Prospect, and the Bon Vivants list for the forthcoming Jones in the Gaylord Suites.
A Bar Star takes on Fillmore [Scoop]
Earlier: Local Mixologists Debate the Dos and Don’ts of Cocktail Pairing [Grub Street]
