June Meeting- Sambar

Seattle has so many great cocktail bars as the ladies of LUPEC are finding out. Many of them are small, intimate places best enjoyed with a few friends- Sambar is such a place. Situated next to Le Gourmand, the fantastic French restaurant owned by chefs Bruce and Sara Naftaly, Sambar seats just a handful inside and if the weather is nice another handful outside in their charming garden.

June's meeting was a homework assignment to check out Sambar and report back. Here's what you said!

Cameo McRoberts:  I had the pleasure of going to Sambar twice this month. The Lucky Luke is the only drink I have had on the new menu, it's so good I can't bring myself to order anything else! luckily I have friends who like to share sips. Last week I had the pleasure of snacking on tons of delicious frites with @lindsey Johnson @heather Jones @Kathy Casey. (Wendy: edited to remove BOYS names! LOL!!!)

Erin Boudreau: So Daynah Burnett and I went to Sambar for the June "homework" meeting. I was supposed to give you notes. But I can't for the life of me remember what the hell went down. See you Wednesday! (W: I'm assuming Erin & Daynah had a great time based on these detailed notes!)

Kiki Braverman of pür spirits: Michael at Sambar made us great pür drinks on Thursday. We went back for more last night!

on the right: pear+ vermouth on the left: framboise+ gin...and secret ingredients. (W: thanks for this great picture Kiki!)

Lorraine Goldberg: My cocktails: Celestine-  Cachaa, Aquavit, Rhubarb, Lime and some candied fennel.- On the lighter side, a bit sweet but not too fruity. A refreshing complexity of flavors, this is a drink I could certainly drink several on a warm summer evening.

Arabesque- Anejo rum, east india sherry, Seville orange and sage.- Absolutely loved this drink- beautiful rum flavor, the sherry added a nice sweetness combined with the Seville orange.

Both cocktails were well crafted, each highlighting specific flavors in the drink.  SamBar is one of my favorite bars in the Seattle area. Small space, with one of the best outdoor spaces in the city. I love the modern look of the space.

Tucked away in the Ballard neighborhood, it reminds me of what an old fashion speakeasy would be like. Stylish and masterful mixology, you really can’t go wrong with any of the cocktails on the menu. Oh and the French fries are amazing!

Anne Magoon: Fond memories with you and Anu. I believe I told Michael that if his Van der Valk Cocktail was a man I would throw him on the bar and do him!! So balanced and delish. Perfect for clean cocktail for summer. (W: great time with you and Anu also!! I think we kept Michael on his toes)

Wendy Miller: My drinks that evening were the Lucky Luke which I loved with it's balance of Old Tom Gin, Amaro Nonino, Sassafras & Sarsaparilla and the Gitane du Nord, I'm a big fan of the aquavit! 

 

Eden Rain: We stopped in at Sambar last night & while I may have failed in that none of my drinks were “endangered” they were of course excellent.

I started with the Corcovada which is comprised of cachaca, spiced coconut water, lime & orange peel.  Just lovely and very light handed for something that sounds very tiki inspired.

Next I let Jay “make me something” which turned out to be a schizandra berry daiquiri.  Fruity and peppery and girly pink!

Last up was the Pincoya: Pisco, lavender, red velvet apricot and lemon.  This was a perfectly balanced cocktail -  all the ingredients blended to create a new flavor rather than it tasting of any individual ingredient. 

As always Jay rocked it, and of course the frites & croque monsieur to soak up the alcohol were a tasty addition. (W: thanks Eden, great notes!)

Jennifer Burch: Lucky Luke (old tom gin, amaro Nonio, sassafras, sarsaparilla, lemon) - it was OK
Gitane du Norde ( Aquavit, melon, sherry, mint) - this drink I liked a LOT but the aquavit was really subtle. If I hadn't seen the ingredients, I might not have guessed aquavit was in there.
Old Fashioned - this was one of the best old fashioned I have ever had. Thoroughly enjoyed it. BUT it was also my third drink, so, grain of salt.
Toronto - Elisabeth got a Toronto and I think he entirely omitted the simple syrup which is surprising because Jay's drinks seem to run to the sweet side.
Also of mention, Nicole ordered the Basil Julep which I will be attempting to replicate at home.
Food wise we had pommes frites and the cheese plate. I would have picked up that cheese plate and licked the cheese residue if I had been at home. Yum!
Another bonus, weather was decent and we got to sit out in the courtyard, lovely. (edited by W for content and BOYS! :p)

Courtney Randall & Tracy Meeker: For our first round I had the Baie des Anges and Tracy had the Lantana. The Baie des Anges is made with reposado sotol (Hacienda de Chihuahua), fino sherry, angelica syrup, and yellow chartreuse, and it is served over ice with a beautiful garnish of lemon peel surrounding a sprig of angelica leaves. The most rich agave sweetness of the sotol was tempered with the dry nuttiness of the sherry, and the herbal notes of the angelica and chartreuse came through more on the swallow. The Lantana was made of rhum agricole, eucalyptus syrup, sour cherry (puree, I think) and Averna. A tiny eucalyptus leaf dotted the top of this reddish drink. You could smell the combination of the eucalyptus and the grassy agricole before each taste. The cocktail was perfectly balanced between the sweet/funky flavors of the agricole and the dry/tartness the sour cherry. These two flavors carried the drink along, though each sip ended with the menthol flavors of the eucalyptus and the herbalness of the amaro. 

To accompany our drinks we chose the frites, and they were very tasty.
For our second round, I had the Van der Valk and Tracy chose the Recoleta. The Van der Valk combines genever gin (Boomsma, I later found out), apricot eau de vie, blanco vermouth, and peach bitters. The garnish was a slice of apricot sitting in the clear liquid. The aroma was full of peaches and apricots, which almost overwhelmed the malty genever notes. To me this is what told me that the drink contained Boomsma genever, instead of the Bols, which has a much stronger scent and flavor profile. The genever was ever-present, but in a subtle manner. Some sips seemed dry and fruity, with the apricot and peach bitters. Others sips were a bit sweeter and maltier, ending with an herbal taste. The drink was simply wonderful.
Tracy was bold in her decision as the Recoleta's base spirit is Fernet Branca. The other ingredients are maté honey, grapefruit juice, grapefruit bitters, and a champagne top. The aroma is full of Fernet, which is understandable. The taste was surprising as the herbal bitter superpower was balanced by the combination of citrus and honey. A hint of grapefruit dotted each sip, but its presence was so important to create the complex flavors. The champagne kept everything sparkly, light and dry. We both agreed that this was an astoundingly good cocktail.

We also had dinner at Sambar. I had the broccoli soufflé with a lemon-thyme béchamel. Tracy had the homemade linguini tossed with morels and snow peas, and topped with a poached egg. There may have been more elements in the linguini dish but I can't remember them. Sorry. Both dishes were wonderful and expertly done.
After dinner, we were given a little cocktail that the Jay Kuehner made on the fly. It seems that my note-taking caught his attention and he referred to this after-dinner cocktail as our quiz. It has no name but was made of mezcal with some strawberry puree, a splash of Campari, a dash of syrup, and a dash of salt. The garnish was a tiny ripe strawberry. The mezcal was the del Maguey Minero, and it was so smoky it reminded me of some of the smokier Islay scotches. The dryness of the Campari kept the strawberry in check and the salt made the entire drink sing. (W- Welcome ladies, great to have you in the group!)

Looks like the Lucky Luke and the Van Der Valk were the popular drinks last month. Thanks to all of you for checking out Sambar and taking such detailed notes (ah hem Erin! LOL!) and photos and getting them back to me. Thanks to Michael and Jay for being such great hosts! Discussing cocktails and ingredients while (re)introducing  ladies to great drinks and bars around Seattle is exactly what I'd like our chapter to continue to be about. Bravo!!

Sambar:

425 N.W. Market Street | Seattle, WA 98107 | 206.781.4883

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - 5:30 p.m. to Midnight

Friday Saturday - 5:30 p.m. to 2 a.m.