Elite Event: Celebrate The City & Prohibition Repeal Party!

Basic management skills 101 says, couch criticism in between positives. Here goes:
Awesome theme Jon and the rest of the Unilocal team! The repeal of our nation’s failed experiment is indeed, a reason to celebrate!
I love a theme party. You know what I love even more? The people who read the invitation and make an effort to participate in the theme. Hoodies, tee shirts, jeans, and sneakers guys? Really? Reaaaaallllly?
I agree with Kaje Y’s point about the music being great but a touch too loud. I really liked the crab cakes, but the sliders were served room temp.
The cocktails were expertly prepared, served lightening fast, and delicious.
Shout outs to my new friends: Eliza, Ashley, Priya, and Priya.
Keep it Elite y’all!

This was a pretty fun party. We entered through a dark alley to reach the back entrance. Got the party pass scanned and then made our way down four flights of stairs.
Not many people knew but at the bottom of the stairs, right before you enter the room, there was coat check.
The music was nice, but a bit loud. It was pretty hard to remain in conversation. The band was awesome though, I just think that if we were going for the music, it would be fine, but it was a Unilocal elite event trying to keep conversations going… you need lighter music.
The drinks were all very creative and very delicious. Well, there was one that was just straight whiskey with an orange peel, still good but not as creative. Loved the other three drinks a lot more.
Going to be honest now, the food was decent. I wouldn’t say exceptional though. The sliders were lacking a taste, the deviled eggs were also missing a flavour. They weren’t bad, just didn’t stand out. The crab cakes were good, and the fried risotto balls were super delicious. (it took the waiter about 3 tries to try to tell me, over the music, that they were essentially risotto balls)
Finally, I have to deduct one star for the racist comment made by the chef. He’s a nice guy and all, but that racist comment was extremely rude and unacceptable. Keep those comments to yourself please.
Overall, a great night, with great drinks, decent food, but just slightly tainted with a unthoughtful comment.

This was another awesome event put on by the SF Unilocal team. The food and drinks were delicious (the crab cakes were amaaazing), and the venue itself was so cool! Perfect for a prohibition repeal party! Had a great time meeting some new friends (shout out to Chloe) and seeing old ones. Nothing like a Unilocal elite event to break up the week :)
Can’t wait for the next one!

A most excellent evening and venue rife with class and lovely people. The location of Berlinetta couldn’t have been more appropriate to celebrate the happy occasion of the anniversary of the repeal of prohibition; it emulated speakeasy qualities with it’s tucked away location, dim yet romantic lighting, and of course its fine array of cocktails.
Let’s talk about those cocktails. They were some serious concoctions. They were complete with interesting ingredients, an outgoing amount of the good stuff, and artfully crafted by some talented bartenders. The star potion of the night had to have been the hot buttered rum. I am not usually one for sweet drinks, but the way it tasted like drinking a decorated Christmas tree won me over.
The food! Oh the food, it was completely wonderful. Did the chef sneak a peek into my «favorite food diary» the night before? I wouldn’t put it past him. I have a somewhat destructive addiction to deviled eggs, and those tasty little things followed me around all night. The sliders were delectable savory bombs, and those crab cakes were crispy little discs of perfection. I had one happy belly.
Although I wished more party goers heeded the costume encouragement, I loved the theme. I went as my favorite San Francisco icon, fog. (So conceptual, no?) This meant that I had a reason to wear that new blue-​grey über girly dress. Oh yes.
All these things came together and made for a truly excellent San Francisco Saturday.

SO much fun. Berlinetta is perfect for a prohibition repeal party because it is tucked away and actually looks like someone’s living room! The route we took to get there was super secretive (up the tunnel stairs, down an alley, follow the christmas lights, down four flights of stairs) and exciting. I was so shocked afterwards when I found out there was a direct door into Berlinetta from the hotel lobby we were originally in.
Drinks were fantastic — my favorite by far was the hot rum. Perfect for a chilly December night. The bartenders were really funny and we also enjoyed the live music! Crab cakes were delish, sliders were good and I didn’t get to try the fried round balls, but they looked good too! Loved everyone’s outfits!

Unilocal knows how to throw a basement prohibition-​style party, indeed! Our bartenders were bright, friendly, fast and fun! The space was charming and cozy with romantically dim lighting-​in fact, it was quite romantic for at least two party goers whom spent an hour against the wall making air babies. Ahhhh, young love.
It was a cold night, but inside the Berlinetta Lounge we were not cold at all. We had grubbed on extraordinary crab cakes made by Chef Luke, an appropriate and ideal comfort food for the evening. Plus, if there was a such thing as «comfort music», the band had it spot on.
The beer was good and as I typically prefer to cocktails, was a good switch. The Hazelnut rum hot chai drink was a great belly-​warmer. The Amer-​i-​can was painfully bitter and strange tasting. Both my plus one and I had to ditch it after a sip. And yes, we are deeply shamed by rejecting a complimentary drink. Please don’t hold it against us, we are still trying to sleep at night after this…
Hopefully next year there will be more costume commitment. The great thing about a costume is that it makes you more approachable and adds fun to the atmosphere. More costumes will offer structure and purpose to this event. Many Unilocalers did great work in scrounging up what they had and making the best of it! As for me, I’m going to find myself a wicked sassy flapper dress before the 81^st anniversary-​hope to see you get down with your bad selves next year, too!

Thank goodness prohibition’s repealed because it was a cold ass night and warming libations were much in order — and thankfully abundant at last night’s YEE Celebrate the City and Prohibition Repeal Party.
Our hardworking bartenders were absolute stars of the night concocting libation after libation in pure holiday revelry. Thanks to the folks at Burrit Room too for hosting us and providing accompanying party nosh. Thanks Jon and everyone at Unilocal for making this party happen.
Berlinetta is a great space open just in time for the holiday party season and a wonderfully cozy venue for our party. Open to the public come January, be sure to pop by then. Happy holidays everyone.

Cheers to the 80^th anniversary to repeal of Prohibition! Let’s all drink to that… and that’s exactly what we all did at this great YEE! :D
The ambiance was lovely with its mysterious swanky interior & twinkling lights dazzling aglow.
Everyone was deep in conversations enjoying the the different cocktails & yummy bites. I tried the Hazlenut Rum one (pretty delish), Wild Turkey one (pretty strong; least fave), & Ceelo-​Evergreen (my fave; so refreshing!) The crabcake bites were my fave among all the apps. Yumm.
It was cool catching up with old friends & def a treat making new ones. :)
Thanks, Jon, for an awesome event!

My first Unilocal!elite event. Thanks, Unilocal!Such a great time.
I particularly liked the Ssnta-​Hattan with Wild Turkey Bourbon, pear liquor, Carpano Antica, Madeira, Peychaud bitters.

Celebrating The Repeal Of That Nasty Constitutional 18^th Amendment!
SITREP
Tonight is the 2^nd Annual Unilocal Celebration of the Repeal of the 18^th Amendment by the 21^st Amendment, which happens to be the 80^th Anniversary (and I know, sorry to include so many double-​digit numbers in this sentence since you are probably seeing double anyways because of your enebriation) ;)
THE SET-​UP
Tonight’s awesome celebration of Constitutional Correction was hosted by the Berlinetta Lounge («Belinetta» is Italiano for «Little Saloon») inside Burritt Room & Tavern on the Grand Lobby Floor of the wondrous Mystic Hotel near Union Square hood. And all for a great cause: to support the work & mission of the San Francisco Historical Society that provides much of the cultural framework that makes this beautiful city so sought after by millions of people worldwide.
To highlight our festivities, we outfitted ourselves as notable San Franciscan icons of yore, with a mix of 20s, 30s, Flapper gals, Dapper gents all in the spirit of prohibition-​bustin or of the Silient Film Noir-​era!
MOONSHINE!
There was booze aplenty because what else would you expect from a Prohibition-​busting celebration? The libations included cocktails by Gruppo Campari, such as Wild Turkey 101, Espolon Tequila, Appleton Rum & an array of Campari cocktails.
And besides an amazing assortment of various wine & beer, there was also cocktails concocted at the lounge by Bartenders Brian & Mo. These amazing creations included tonight drinks from the Prohibition Speakeasy times, such as:
(1) The Hot Hazel Nut Rum cocktail — Appleton Rum, Chai Tea, Nutella & Butter Compote;
(2) The Cee-​Lo-​Ever-​Green — Rosemary & Thyme INFUSED-​Tequila, with Lemon, Yellow Chartruese and Dolin Blanc;
(3) The Santa-​Hattan — Wild Turkey 101, Pear Liquor, Carpano Antiqua, Madiera and Peychaud Bitters;
(4) The Amer-​i-​can — Compari, Cocchi Rose, Crème De Cacao, and soda water; and,
(5) The Long Neck Lucky Draw — Sam Adams, Hard Ciders and other bottled goodness brews. ;)
SUNSHINE!
But thank god for the Bright Rays of Awesome Food provided by Chef Luke and his crew at the Tavern Kitchen, and by the Burritt Room for making delightful taste bites for us to enjoy to sop up all that alcohol we were imbibing in! Such delicacies included:
* Delicious baked Noveau-​fusion crab cakes;
* French Deviled Eggs;
* Savory Cheese Mushroom Risotto Balls; and,
* Angus Beef-​Cheese Sliders
THE DECOR
In a time of alcohol-​prohibition, it was the speakeasies, such as what the Berlinetta Lounge represents, that provided for the secret-​underground culture where people could come and enjoy a drink. This place features some amazing sexy booths and areas for quiet liaisons and meet-​ups.
BERLINETTA CREW
Props to Chef Luke, the dynamic bartender team of Mo & Brian, and exceptional servers Boa, Alfredo, and Devon for keeping us well-​supplied with Food & Libations!
KUDOS
A huge shout-​out to the visionary Jon A. & Jelena Z. and their amazing team of dappers & flappers who made us feel oh so welcome in this déjà vu moment of experiencing felonious naughtiness in a time when we could have had our asses thrown in jail for a rum & coke (and probably a REAL cocaine-​derivative at that time, or not long after!)
THE LOWDOWN
A wonderful time with amazing friends, celebrating the 21^st Amendment’s trashing of the 18^th Amendment, oh hell yeah!