Legendary Kezar Bar & Restaurant has been a Cole Valley staple since 1989, but even after revamps, couldn’t quite hang on. The good news is it’s staying neighborhood-owned with local Jim Angelus of nearby Bacon Bacon reopening it as Cole Valley Tavern (he became a partner in Kezar back in 2018). It’s packed every night since opening late April 2022, carrying on the tradition but with an upgrade: convivial, welcoming yet with heightened comfort food and cocktails.
I’ve shared of bacon-heavy delights from Angelus’ longtime truck turned brick-and-mortar in articles past — and in the Haight-Ashbury tour I wrote and created in 2014 for Avital Tours. Bacon Bacon is still going strong but Cole Valley Tavern (CVT) is the communal kind of everyday restaurant that offers a little something for everyone, while tributing Angelus’ mother, who ran a longtime restaurant. In fact, she was visiting one night we dined, while we were sat next to his wife and daughters another visit. CVT is truly a family affair, drawing in families the moment it opens, as it does couples and friends at the bar and in the back dining room under skylights and a mural of the neighborhood by Amos Goldbaum.
It’s heartwarming to see all ages in the space, adults spanning decades sipping cocktails and beer at the bar, with kids and families packed into tan booths, in a space Angelus’ wife helped design and remodel over nine months. Angelus’ years as former GM of E&O and Pacific Catch show in his gracious welcome at the door and around tables, while bar manager Maxwell Salvati has invested years into the neighborhood, working at Magnolia Haight under original ownership (and also at The Snug) under original ownership before a stint in his hometown of LA and back to SF.
I can’t stand TVs in bars and the two here are likewise distracting, but otherwise the light-filled bar room is my favorite place to dine, buzzing with locals and the neighborhood passing by outside. Wines by the glass are maybe the toughest part for me on the drink menu, being more straightforward, limited and lacking in unique or natural wines, sticking to the most common regions and varieties (pinot noir, sauvignon blanc). The exception is the likes of an affordable ($10 per glass) Alfaro Estate Gruner Veltliner from Monterey. Better to go with beers on draft, including rotating treats from local Fieldwork Brewing Co. or LA’s super hot cult classic, black-owned Crowns & Hops.
Salvati’s cocktails are thoughtful and interesting without feeling fussy, while his Long Exposure cocktail honors my dear, deceased friend Daniel Hyatt who opened the original Alembic (which is not even close to the same place now; I wrote a tribute to Hyatt and his contributions to the bar world in Trevor Felch’s book San Francisco Cocktails). Hyatt’s celery-gin-mint Southern Exposure was a game-changer a good 15 years ago. Salvati’s tribute features buddha’s hand vodka and Chareau aloe liqueur with celery, aromatic makrut lime, cucumber, mint, a touch of ginger and a splash of Topo Chico.
While the In Bloom martini runs a touch sweet, it’s an elegant soft pink with The Botanist gin, pink rosé vermouth, lavender and citrus bitters. The house Negroni variation, Umiki, offers you a choice of Japanese whiskey or gin, both smartly pine barrel aged for an herbaceous hit, mixed with floral vermouth, Brovo Amaro and a mist of citrus. Woman-owned Brovo Spirits shows up in numerous vermouth and amari choices on Salvati’s menu, including the rotating Ladymade cocktail, which features all female owned and/or made spirits, include an initial complex yet seamless drink of Yola mezcal, white vermouth, elderflower, cherry, apricot and a touch of crème de violette.
Chef Lacie Smith has been chef at Kezar since 2019, working as a line cook in years past at greats like Boulevard. She and Angelus have upped tavern classics, even if the house smashburger (with Impossible burger variation) is a little too puffed up to be a smashburger and the dry patty was cooked medium-well (I’m a medium-rare girl, sad about dry patties that aren’t oozing pink juiciness). Likewise, a meatloaf terrine is nicely tender but less meaty than at places like Blue Plate, more of a solid loaf, drizzled in red pepper ketchup over mashed potatoes with caramelized fennel (although cornichon salsa verde is a damn great idea, a playful note that elevates the meatloaf).
As one who has deeply studied her barbecue styles and sauces in numerous road trips across the South the past 15 years, from Texas to the Carolinas, Alabama white sauce is an under-the-radar sauce I never see enough of. With chef Smith’s Alabama roots, mayo-vinegar-mustard-horseradish white sauce informs her Alabama hot chicken sandwich, accompanied by slaw and dill pickles. It’s a savvy idea for a hot chicken variation, though I wished for more of the barely-there white sauce to add creamy vibrancy to the chili oil and nicely crispy-tender chicken.
I was also happy to see a longtime Southern favorite of mine — a solid rendition of fried green tomatoes — on the menu, while a charred broccolini Caesar salad gratifies. House fritto misto isn’t the melt-in-your-mouth, tempura-esque perfection of the best Italy-style fritto mistos. With thicker batter, it’s a pleasing mix of calamari, seasonal vegetables and the best part: flaky fish. Dipped in seaweed/nori aioli, it’s ideal bar food.
Ditto cheesy-oozing bay shrimp gratin dip, seasoned with Old bay and fines herbs, scooped up with crostinis. As one who long ago wearied of the deviled egg craze, Smith’s honey mustard and turmeric deviled eggs topped with creamy-crunchy pecan pretzel dukkah may just be the best bite on the menu.
A takeout window turning out soft-serve is another neighborhood win, including outside-the-UK rarity of 99 Flake with a Cadbury Flake inserted into an ice cream cone. Kitchen pop-ups take over Sundays, giving CVT’s regular staff a break, though the bar is open those nights. Oakland’s chef Seamus Gibney has been delighting the ‘hood on Sunday nights with his cheekily-named Cod Damn Fish & Chips. And, yes, brunch is coming soon.
What a win for Cole Valley and the Upper Haight. CVT is a casual neighborhood tavern that thankfully dares to step it up from the safe, predictable menu at many a tavern or pub, but keeps it comfy and approachable. The gracious spirit of Jim and his team make it already feel like a locals’ institution less than a month in.
// 900 Cole Street, https://colevalleytavern.com
