Yep, Southern California is kicking its way into a proverbial donkey show this week, as two new businesses open to pair the ass with the Angeles. First up, Urban Daddy spots The Blind Donkey swaying and braying its way into Old Town Pasadena. This new whiskey roost opens Wednesday from owner Ryan Sweeney, the creator of Verdugo Bar, who also expressed his zoophiliac streak at places like The Surly Goat and Little Bear. Here he’s teamed up with partners to offer locals on draft and plentiful U.S. labels of whiskey and Scotch. A menu of classic Yankee dishes should also be arriving in the new few weeks. The bar will open from 5:00 P.M. to 1:00 A.M. daily, with the eventual arrival of earlier hours.
And just as beer is hurdling over its frat boy reputation, a new brewery named Donkey Punch recently opened up in Redlands, joining the region’s esteemed Hangar 24. Complete with a logo of a donkey bearing the load of a beer mug and a black-eye, the brewery’s tasting room features bartenders with maximum levels of hair-gel and cleavage, serving such brews as the seasonal BaDonkey Donk, Orange Punch, Watermelon Wheat, Jackass IPA, and Lemon Caliente.
The Inland Empire brewery was opened by Tony Theodore, a former pool contractor inspired to get into brewing after success at home. The tasting room is currently open Wednesdays through Sundays, from 11:00 A.M. to and closes at 9:00 P.M.
The Blind Donkey, 54 E. Union St. Pasadena; 626-792-1833.
Donkey Punch Brewery, 2351 W. Lugonia Ave. Ste. G Redlands; 909-478-5005.
