Food & Drink: 

Likeliness to Return: 

WHAT:  Craft beer and wine garden with a suprisingly creative modern American fare menu.

WHERE:  Main Street, Santa Monica, USA

WHEN:  Brunchy, Lunchy and that other meal of the day that’s not as relevant on the weekends.

WHAT TO ORDER:  We we’re more concerned about drinking than eating on this Halloween/SaturTAY (our good friend Tay Rob’s birthday, clearly), so we weren’t stealing bites from everyone around us, per usual.  Sawy bout’ it-  we had on belly shirts and tight, tight high waisted shorts; we’re not super-human.  The menu is broad and has something for both the more cultured eater and the basic bitch. The Grilled Achiote Rubbed Chopped Free-Range Chicken ($13) with added Avocado ($2) was delish and filling.  And the grilled turkey club with chips ($14) was not so bad either. While we lacked on the taste tests, we didn’t on hovering over everyone and snapping pics; so reference those and let us know below when you’ve tried something you liked OR didn’t…

WHAT TO SKIP:  While it was aight and purrrrrty, the Avocado & Roasted Tomato Toast ($10) was not enough to withstand a full day of drinking.  You can ask some of girlfriends how they were feeling after their first mimosa?

WHAT TO KNOW:  This is an order at the counter and take a seat where you can find one type-of-joint.  The place is small.  The “tap room” aka inside could probably only fit around 12 people comfortably (and most standing).  And the patio aka “garden”, while bigger, is set-up with only tables which doesn’t really encourage social interaction with others that aren’t in your party.  Not so much what you would expect or what you want from this type of place. Fine for a small sit down meal, not ideal for a parTAY.

WHAT WE LOVED:  Not having to split the check!  Nothing is more annoying and stressful than having to deal with a huge check with 25 people, after a few rounds of drinks.  You are always short and, more importantly, it wastes valuable party time.

WHAT WE DIDN’T LOVE, BUT HOW TO FIX IT:  Having to wait in one long line each time you need a refill.  Get a bottle or a pitcher to avoid this dilemma.  Not all problems are as easily solved as this one, so DO IT.  Also, Note to Self: they don’t serve lattes — like i get it at a wine bar, but at the same time, if you offer brunch, our feelings are that lattes should be included #justsaying.

THE REST OF THE DAY:  If you’re curious where the rest of the day took us OR you’re planning a crawl of your own, here is how it went down: Areal, Finn McCool’s, Brick + Mortar… and then bed by 10PM.  Successful day for crawlers not in college anymore!

EDDR LIFE LESSON:  You’re never too old to dress up, get a group of your bests together and pub crawl.  And if you disagree, well, you’re no fun.

A² FINAL THOUGHT:  For a low-key beer/wine garden, some of the food had some serious swag with ingredients and presentation that was unexpected.  This was a great spot to get in some grub and start the crawl. And they didn’t have a problem reserving half the garden patio for the Birthday Bitch, which is always an appreciated bonus.

Ashland Hill ↔ 2807 Main St, SM, CA 90405 ↔ 310-392-3300