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Meet Your Mixologist: Jennifer Dorland, Pres a Vi
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It’s not Mos Eisley Cantina, but ... Pres a Vi bartender and self-proclaimed “Star Wars” fan Jennifer Dorland makes a cucumber basil gimlet.
SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - In a saloon town such as San Francisco, the bartender plays a crucial role. Confessor, friend, sounding board — the man or woman behind the plank sees to it that our needs are met with elegance, grace and often wit. They see humanity at its best and most convivial, but also offer a nod and a welcome to the lonely. But what do they see when they look at us? What are the tricks of their trade? And what lessons have they learned along the way? In this Examiner weekly feature, we talk to some of our local bartenders to find out.
Pres a Vi
1 Letterman Drive, Building D Suite 150, San Francisco; (415) 409-3000; www.presavi.com
Tucked away in the meticulously landscaped Letterman Digital Arts Center, Pres a Vi certainly has an enviable location. Bartender Jennifer Dorland gets to enjoy the scenic surroundings daily. She also doesn’t mind being so close to George Lucas, who owns the special-effects campus, because she is a pretty big “Star Wars” fan. Back when she lived in Marin County, she says she lived on Lucas Valley Road and would drive — not stalk — the thoroughfare hoping to catch a glimpse of the producer. An aspiring event planner, Dorland is getting her feet wet by planning parties for Pres a Vi. Maybe she’ll catch her big break planning the next “Star Wars” shindig. Mr. Lucas, if you’re reading, give her a call.
How long have you been working here? Since January.
It certainly seems like a beautiful location. It is! It’s got a great view of the Palace of Fine Arts.
Where are you from originally? San Luis Obispo.
Two beautiful places. I have a knack for that. It’s like a prerequisite.
How’d you get into bartending? I graduated from college and was waitressing and thought, “I’d like to bartend instead.” I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I wanted to move around a little bit.
Where’d you go to school? UC Davis. I majored in biopsychology. It’s a biology major with a humanities background.
What kind of profession does one get with a biopsychology degree? I originally chose that because I wanted to go to med school. I talked to my counselor and she said, “Right now, everyone wants to do that.” So, to stand out, I chose to add the psychology. It’s interesting because you learn about how the brain interacts more intensely with the body. Then I decided I didn’t want to go to med school. Then I got into event planning.
Did a particular event inspire you to do that? It started with a group of friends. We were watching every movie that ever won [the Academy Award for] Best Picture, and we got to “Gone With the Wind.” So it went from a small affair of five friends to 25 friends. We planned all this food, and breaks, and I turned to my friend and said, “We should plan events. We should really do this.”
What would be a good cocktail to serve with a “Gone With the Wind” screening? We had Manhattans. That’s one of my favorite cocktails. It was actually winter when we did it, and for winter, a Manhattan is so perfect.
What would you serve if you were screening another Best Picture, say, “No Country for Old Men”? I’d go with beers.
What does “pres a vi” mean? It loosely translates to “captivated by wine” in Catalan.
Is the cuisine here Catalan? It started out as Mediterranean small plates, but our head chef is from the Philippines and lived in Hawaii for awhile, so he brings in Pacific Rim flavors as well.
If you could serve a drink to anyone, who would it be? Maya Angelou. I’d serve her a nice glass of red wine.
What’s the best tip you’ve ever gotten? Be yourself. It’s a hard one to do.
Featured drink: Cucumber Basil Gimlet
1 cucumber slice
2 small basil leaves
1 oz. lime juice
1 oz. simple syrup
2 oz. vodka
Muddle together cucumber and basil in a pint glass. Add fresh-squeezed lime, simple syrup and vodka. Add ice, shake and strain into a martini glass.
Comments from Examiner Readers
4:31 PM MST on Sun., Jul. 6, 2008 re: "Meet Your Mixologist: Robert Schramm, Slide"
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11:26 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 4, 2008
re: "Meet Your Mixologist: Janell Moore, Cantina"
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11:23 AM MST on Sat., Mar. 29, 2008
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E.B. said:
Yeah went to slide this last week - best bartender I've ever seen, the man is insane.
7 agree | 3 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Great article...great interview and interviewee. That's Oklahoma....not Texas. Hi...I'm a Bible. Janell's Mom
5 agree | 4 disagree
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jossy said:
Just to let you know. The proper spelling of the last drink you detailed ia PICON. It is the name of the person who developed the main part of the drink--Picon--a bitter aperitif. Picon has been around since the mid 1800's. While Herb Caen may have had the drink it was around for many, many years prior to Mr. Caen. It is a traditional drink of the Basque and the Italians. Unfortunately, the French no longer import Picon. If someone makes the drink now, it is made with a poor substitute or they bring the Picon over from France.
6 agree | 7 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
It's true that Robvell is not only the best bartender in SF, he's one of the world's nicest people. Best time to try his special cocktails, however is after 10 on Saturday night when the action at the bar is still hot but the tourist crowd in the restaurant has died down. Then he might even make a Chocolate Love for you (if you really deserve it!)
16 agree | 14 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
It is great to see Mr. Stookey get some props. Regarding comments above: There may be good women bartenders in the city, but nobody M,F,TG or whatever makes a drink mike he does. Most of the drinks are not $12 (okay maybe $10), but such is life in the city. That's not much more than a lousy drink elsewhere, 1/6th of a parking ticket, or 2 trips over a bridge. I'd rather nurse a fine drink for 30 minutes than pay $15 for a 'green' movie ticket at the Sundance Kabuki any day... Tim can turn cheap liquor into a fine drink, but fortunately he is well researched and knows how to find a good booze for the buck. He is thoroughly unpretentious & I find it a nice change to have a well-made, well-presented tasty drink from a serious professional than the slapped together *&^%$# that most of the 20-somethings try to pass off for a $10 cocktail in this city. After a day of crowds, jerks in line, and all the other indignities one suffers to live in this city, a drink from Tim is very civil
57 agree | 49 disagree
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Michelle Lester said:
why are all the bartenders featured in this column MEN? I know alot of great mixologists (myself included) that are female!
45 agree | 58 disagree
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Concerned Examiner Reader said:
Peskin in a bar? How shocking! Was he using his cell phone to berate anyone?
74 agree | 68 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
As a blue collar working class person I'm absolutely disgusted by people who think it's hip and chic to sip 12 dollar cocktails. Paying that amount of money for a cocktail is just sickening, decadent really. Especially in a city full of homeless people.
183 agree | 124 disagree
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