If you’re a Southern California native, or happen to be visiting the area, and are looking for your next night out, look no further than Santa Monica, California. And not just anywhere in Santa Monica. Make your destination Father’s Office.
Unassuming in nature, this little hole-in-the-wall will be nothing short of memorable. The beer selection is top notch, there’s wine if that’s more your thing, and the food is to die for. One small caveat: if you’re someone who likes to make every menu item custom to your own preferences (“hold the onion, extra sauce please”), then just keep walking down Montana Avenue and find a different restaurant. Customizations are not welcomed at Father’s Office (and rightly so!).
First, make sure you arrive at an off-time.
This place gets jam packed to the point where it isn’t enjoyable. If you want to have the best experience possible, plan accordingly.
Next, check out the beer menu.
There’s lots of bottled beers, but the selection on tap is nothing short of impressive. We happened to head to Father’s Office the same day that Great American Beer Festival winners were announced, and we recognized some names from the winners list!
First up, Green Cheek Beer Company’s “West Coast IPA is Dead!”.
It’s a West Coast style IPA. I can hereby conclude that the style is not dead, and is instead very much alive and well. It’s a great beer! Makes sense that they won bronze in the American-Style IPA category at GABF this year. It’s not overly hoppy, well-rounded in flavor, definitely not malty, light in color, and gives you the opportunity to pick up on the nuances of the Simcoe and Citra hops. Order it if you see it!
Next, and perhaps the most awaited part of the evening: The Office Burger.
No substitutions, just the way it is meant to be. Dry-aged beef, caramelized onion, bacon, gruyere, maytag blue, arugula. Let us all just have a moment of silence for this holy burger of all burgers.
Seriously though, this burger has been featured on Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate”, is on the LA Weekly’s list of 99 Essential Restaurants, and is widely considered to be one of the best burgers in the country. Need I say more?
Oh yeah, the fries. Ah. May. Zing. They’re served with an aioli sent straight from the heavens.
Once the fantastic food has been washed down with a cold beer, it’s time for another round.
This time, it’s a unicorn of the beer world: Russian River’s Pliny The Elder Double IPA. I’ve been hearing a lot about this beer, how hard it is to come by, and how worth-it it is to find it. To be honest, I was curious to see if the hype was worth it. I can assure you it was.
The beer has an aroma of citrus peel, primarily lemon. It is full-bodied in the lightest way possible. For a double IPA, I was surprised by this. I was expecting a harsh bite to the beer, typical of double IPAs with high alcohol content. Not so! Off the tap it is perfectly effervescent and goes down smoother than an IPA should…it’s almost addictive. The flavors grow the more you sip, and it becomes more enjoyable as you go. Another please!
For those who are into the details, Pliny is brewed with Amarillo, Centennial, CTZ, and Simcoe hops. There’s some malt to it, but the hops still shine. It’s no wonder it has become a flagship beer for Russian River. If you want to know the story behind the name, check out Russian River’s website…the story is a good one!
Now that we’ve consumed enough calories to last us til next week (or until the next brewery we stumble upon), we decide to walk it off along the bluffs of Santa Monica. If you time it right, you’ll be just in time to watch the sunset over Malibu. Soak in the ocean breeze and reminisce about the most iconic Santa Monica experience that you just took part in. Then, plan for your next trip back to the office…
Have you ever visited Father’s Office? If not, add it to your bucket list now!
Until next time, sippers!
Ok now I want to go! YUM! YUM! YUM!
Add it to your list!!