SF Chron article on Alberta Straub

[eje]

Fun article about Alberta Straub of the Orbit Room Cafe in the Style section of today's Chronicle.

'The Alice Waters of booze' brings humor, fresh concoctions and attitude to the job

[slkinsey]

It's usually best to add a short quote for posterity:

"Oh, you flatter me," she says wryly as she slices through an apple. She adds a few splashes of liquid to a couple of glasses: some whiskey, some Campari, a mysterious pinkish liquid and then a bit more whiskey. She slices some lemon rind. Then she crushes the mixtures with a wooden utensil and adds some more ingredients. Frank and Irene are mesmerized. Straub shakes the drink vigorously over her head and tries some with a spoon: "I pronounce it good!"

She pours the drinks into a Collins glass, garnishes it with mint, cucumber, curly lemon rind and a hibiscus flower, and places the colorful, fresh-smelling cocktails in front of the excited couple.

Here is a recipe from the article:

The Sharpie

1.5 oz : gin (Hendrick's is mentioned)

2-3 oz : fresh grapefruit juice

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1-2 Tb : superfine sugar or equivalent simple syrup*

0.5 oz : Green Chartreuse

Dashes of orange bitters and maraschino liquor to taste

* she infuses her simple syrup with grapefruit and lemon slices, cardamom and lavender

No instructions are given, but one assumes the ingredients are combined with cracked ice, shaken and strained into a chilled cocktail glass.

Also discussed is what she calls "bitter sugar" -- grapefruit peel, cardamom, bay leaf, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar, hibiscus flower and "her own secret ingredients" boiled way down and added to drinks a drop at a time. Sounds interesting. Like a sugar-infused bitters rather than the usual alcohol-infused kind.

The Orbit Room Cafe was featured in the SF Chron in 2003 for "best cocktails under $6."

At this unassuming bar on Upper Market, the bartenders are such dedicated mixologists that they infuse cucumber vodka in their spare time. You can order cocktails here that will get you blank looks at most other bars, like Aviations, Caiparinas, or even Pimms Cups. And unbelievably . . . the Orbit Room won't break your bank.

Anyone been to her place? Sounds cool.

[JAZ]

Alberta does make some wonderful cocktails, but calling her the best bartender in San Francisco is not terribly accurate. While I've always enjoyed the drinks she's made for me, she's not very quick or efficient in mixing, and it can be frustrating to wait a long time for your drinks when it's only moderately busy. When it's very busy, I'd give the Orbit Room a pass entirely.

I've enjoyed the Orbit Room the most when I've been there in the afternoon with few other customers in the place.

[comic4879]

I disagree. I think Alberta Straub and The Orbit Room are one of the best things to develop in the San Francisco bar scene.

It depends on what you are going to a bar for.

When I go to a bar I want an environment where I can relax and forget about my worries. Alberta always offers a warm, friendly, inviting atmosphere but even better... she will tailor any drink to your personal likes. So- if it does happen to take a minute or two longer it is only because she is always going that extra step to better service you and make your experience a pleasant one.

I have been a bartender and restaurant professional for several years- and I am amazingly suprised and overwhelmed by Alberta's creations and her ungoing high level of hospitality.

Here's a scenario for you:

When you go out would you rather say " i like a citrusy drink with gin, or i feel like a drink that would make me feel like im on an island somewhere" and get a hand crafted concotion that will put a smile on your face?

Or would you rather have a gin and tonic slung at you haphazardly with a half browning lime and several drops of your well gin spilling onto your beverage napkin and going unnoticed?

If thats the case then perhaps Orbit and Alberta is not the match for you- and you can nuzzle up to the bar at The Transfer or your local Applebee's and get a Cooper Camel or Tijuana Chuckle or some awful sugary factory made drink with an umbrella in under 30 seconds.

However for those who enjoy finer cocktails and a unique experience that no one else can dupicate, then you should undoubtely stop by.

[slkinsey]

Welcome to the eG Forums comic4879.

I'm not sure you've fairly or accurately interpreted Janet's remarks about Alberta Straub. Janet is a cocktail aficionado with not a small amount of knowledge and appreciation of this craft. So I think I can categorically say that she's not interested in the "awful sugary factory made drinks" they're slinging at the local Applebee's. If you read her comments, I think you'll see that she characterizes Alberta's cocktails as "wonderful" but has some issues with respect to her efficiency and speed. This is a legitimate criticism, although I gather that it is not an element of her craft that bothers you.

We'd love to hear more of what you have to say about Alberta Straub's craft and talent, but I don't think we need to imply that anyone who takes issue with her efficiency and speed is a philistine with pedestrian taste in cocktails.

[JAZ]

Comic, I really didn't mean to imply that Alberta is not a good bartender; she's great in many ways. As I mentioned, I've had some fabulous drinks with her, on many occasions.

She's good; she has a great sense of flavor combinations and takes a lot of time and care with her drinks. I like that; I like her, and I like the Orbit Room. My comments about her speed and efficiency were just my observations.

The article, though, calls her, at one point, "the best bartender in SF" and I do disagree with that. There are other places in the city that offer great cocktails from extremely talented bartenders, some of the best I know. And on a busy night, I'd rather be at those places than at the Orbit Room.

[LEdlund]

I live in Seattle but visit SF several times a year. Since I love a good cocktail, I am always in search of them in the city. I love visiting Alberta (although last time I was there, The Orbit Room was closed) and have found some good cocktails in the bar at Fifth Floor. Where do you recommend I go next time I am there? The last time I was there, my friends and I spent a frustrating evening shuttling from bars that were either packed (Red Room/Swill/Vesuvio) or closed (Orbit Room) until we ended up at The Redwood Room which was interesting beautiful and interesting to observe twenty-somethings in action but not a place we could settle in.

[JAZ]

Most of the really good, interesting cocktails to be had in SF can be found at restaurants, not dedicated bars (with the exception of the Orbit Room). Try Cortez, Enrico's, Absinthe and Pesce in the city; Nizza La Bella (Albany) or Cesar (Berkeley) if you're in the East Bay.

Of the hotel bars, the Starlight Room in the Sir Francis Drake hotel is better than most -- although their best bartender left, they at least have his cocktail menu to work from. I've had good, if not very imaginative, cocktails at the Pied Piper in the Palace Hotel as well. I've heard very good things about the bar at the Fifth Floor, but haven't made it there myself, so I don't have any personal experience.

[LEdlund]

Thanks Janet.

[eje]

From the Swells section of Sunday's Chronicle...

At the Centennial Cocktail Competition last week at restaurant Tres Agaves, Alberta Staub's "Lotta's Fountain" took top honors. With a cocktail composed of Junipero Gin, Fresh Ginger, and Cucumber Juice, Straub won in a field composed of, "The Big 4's Ty Saunders; Eartha Jordan of Sam Jordan's of California; the Orbit Room's Alberta Straub; the Balboa's Brendon Card; Gige Hughes of Scoma's; and Tres Agaves' own Jacques Bezuidenhout."

Surrealistically, the results were announced by former Secretary of State George Shultz. His wife, "Charlotte's sure it's a health drink, too. 'When you're finished, you can put the cucumbers on your eyes.'"

edit - typo

Edited April 23, 2006 by eje (log)