As you well know by now, Father’s Office II — aka Father’s Office v2.0 or FO2 — in Los Angeles/Culver City opened last week and everyone’s super excited about the 70+ beers on tap, that Office burger and sweet potato fries, and the huuuge 80-foot-long bar — that’s all fabulous, but what about that cocktail list? It’s so smart of FO 2 to offer the hard stuff for those of us who need something stronger than beer or wine to make a bad day go away fast.

And, I love that they serve all the major hard stuff except for vodka. Sure, I appreciate the occasional vodka bar (read: Bar Lubitsch). But I also find that vodka seems to have turned into the lazy mixologist’s base liquor of choice, especially with all the different types of flavored vodkas coming out of the woodwork nowadays.

Anyway, FO 2 only serves the good stuff like armagnac / cognac, gin, whiskey / bourbon / scotch and tequila — spirits I can imagine the dad from Leave It to Beaver sipping quietly in his study while June keeps Wally and the Beav in line. Vodka seems to be more of the drink for Mommy Dearest.

Suffice it to say, Father’s Office II’s current cocktail list (apparently it will be a rotating list) reads like the top five libations of the post-Prohibition era. Classy! Three of the five current “F.O.rgotten Cocktails” are gin-based — the Aviation, the Negroni and, of course, the Office Martini. For the martini, you get to choose from three different gins. Naturally I gravitated to the two cocktails that weren’t made of gin — the Manhattan and the Sidecar.

The Manhattan is made of Michter’s Rye, Carpano Antica Vermouth and barrel-aged bitters. And it was the most drinkable Manhattan I think I’ve ever had, meaning that it didn’t make me wince and cough in that first sip. Rather it was soo smooth and sweet. Loved it. Definitely my cocktail of choice at FO 2.

The Sidecar, on the other hand, wasn’t as good to me. I found it too citrusy and tart. Might have been made with too much lemon juice.

I guess I was puckering too much or left it untouched for too long because Crazy Andy, my drinking companion for the night, kept telling me to return it. But for some reason I have a really hard time returning a drink unless it’s just completely undrinkable. But this, I could drink it, it just took me longer than usual. Five whole minutes! I kid, I kid.

FYI, in terms of the beer, my current favorite is Craftsman Cabernale, beer made from Cabernet grapes! It’s pure genius and great for the drinker who can’t make up their mind between beer and wine. Unfortunately, Mark Craftsman only made about two barrels for Father’s Office II’s opening and said that should last for about 10 days from opening day. That means you probably only have til May 1st if you’d like a taste of it. Hurry!

Father’s Office II
3229 Helms Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90034 (map)
(310) 736-2224