Bar review: Bourbon & Branch

May 29, 6:12 PMBartender ExaminerKathleen Neves

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Bourbon & Branch is unlike any other bar in San Francisco. It’s unlike any other bar on the west coast. In true 1920’s speakeasy form, there are no signs marking the bar on the outside of the building. Patrons can’t walk in off of the street without knowing the secret password (hint: look it up on their website). Bourbon & Branch is modeled after a 1920’s speakeasy that would have existed during the Prohibition era, when it was illegal to buy or consume alcohol. Bourbon & Branch does have house rules (just like a speakeasy back in the 1920’s would have had). The house rules are as follows:

1. Speak easy
2. No cell phone use
3. No standing at the bar
4. Don’t even think of asking for a “cosmo”
5. Smokers, use back door
6. No photography
7. Please be patient. Our drinks are labor intensive
8. Please exit Bourbon & Branch quietly

The bartenders at Boubon & Branch combine the fine art and science of cocktail making. Most of the cocktails made here are labor intensive (meaning you have to wait a little bit longer than usual), in the $11 to $12 price range and are well worth the wait. All of the ingredients used behind the bar are fresh and created in-house. Each of the individual spirits are carefully hand selected and stocked on the shelves by the knowledgeable staff.

The name Bourbon & Branch comes from the drink name “Bourbon and Branch”, meaning bourbon and water. Branch water is a term that was first used in the 1800’s as a reference to pure, clean water that came from a tiny stream, which was called a “branch”.

On my recent trip to Bourbon & Branch, I tried two of the cocktails off of the seasonal menu: Prelude To A Kiss and Favela. Prelude To A Kiss was made with strawberry infused gin (infused in-house), basil infused dry vermouth (also infused in-house), fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, whiskey barrel aged bitters and soda, served up in a chilled martini glass. The Favela consisted of Cachaca (a Brazillian rum distilled from sugarcane juice), mint, Arabica syrup (which gave the drink a slight hint of coffee taste) and orange bitters, served on the rocks. Both of my drinks were equally delicious. Fresh ingredients always make a better cocktail.

The drink menu at Bourbon & Branch is organized in sections such as the Seasonal Menu, Champagne Cocktails, Classic Drinks, From Here and Around the World, Bourbon & Branch Favorites, Flights, Beer and Wine and by individual spirit such as whiskey, Scotch whiskey, Irish whiskey, rum, tequila, gin, vodka, cognac and absinthe. The menu even goes into detail about information on what the individual spirits are, where they come from and what they are made with. The drink menu at Bourbon & Branch is quite educational for both novice and not so novice drinkers.

Reservations are recommended since there is no standing allowed at the bar. A reservation gives you and your party a certain amount of time to sit at one of the tables while a cocktail server delivers your handcrafted drinks from the bar.

Bourbon & Branch makes drinking in San Francisco not only a fun event, but also educational. Who knew that one could experience what is was like to be drinking during America’s Prohibition era while escaping from today’s outside craziness world of the Tenderloin?

For more info: Bourbon & Branch is located at 51 Jones Street, in between O'Farrell and Geary.

Reservations are recommended. Please be sure to visit the Bourbon & Branch website for more details.