New Year's at the Link

Here at the Linkery we’ve been getting a lot of calls from folks wanting to come in for New Year’s, which is great. Many folks asked about our no-reservations, walk-in style, wondering if they won’t get a table. In the past, we’ve had a lot of fun on New Year’s, but we’ve never been overflowing or been on a long wait. We expect the same this year, and were looking forward to it.

So come on in, don’t sweat it. 30th Street should be a blast — all the restaurants are staying open late, and we expect a great community celebration.

Oh, and Max told me he’s doing a special chile verde with the absolute last of Curtis’ pastured chicken for the season. No more pastured chicken till late Spring!

Enjoy this New Year's Eve With No Reservations

Here at the Ritual, we know that you shouldn't have to go broke ringing in the new year. We'll honor the end of 2009 by tapping into a cask of one the best ales in San Diego: Alpine Beer Company's Nelson Rye-P.A. We'll also be serving fresh shucked oysters and mussels form Carlsbad Aqua Farms, and serving organic Prosecco by the glass (if you want bubbly). Our full dinner menu will be available for your enjoyment.

Reservations not required or accepted.
no cover charge, no dress code, no stress

Happy Hour 5:30 to 7:30pm Tues - Sat
3:30-9:30pm Sun
$3.50 most taps & $1 off select glasses of wine

Holiday Cheer at Sea Rocket

Just wanted to let everyone know that we have some great craft beers to celebrate the holidays, including a cask of Stone Smoked Porter withVanilla Beans that I just tapped; Lost Abbey Gift of the Magi, a seasonal release, a Gold Ale brewed with Frankincense and Myrh; and AleSmith YuleSmith Holiday Ale, an amber hued winter warmer with generous amounts of both hops and malt. I also accidentally broke our local beer only rule by bringing in the second annual batch of the Stone/ Jolly Pumpkin/ Nogne-O Collaborative Holiday Ale, brewed with chestnuts, white sage, caraway and juniper berries. Turns out that this batch was not brewed at Stone like last year's, but at Nogne-O in Norway. In the spirit of Christmas, I'm going to forgive myself and enjoy this delicious beer anyway. Happy holidays to all!
Chris

Cask and Oyster Night Keeps Getting Better



Each and Every Thursday at the Ritual you can count on a freshly tapped cask of locally craft brewed ale & fresh shucked Carlsbad Aqua Farm mussels. This week, December 17th we'll be serving Lighting Brewery's Amber Ale. "... an American version of classic UK Premium Bitters. Using literally buckets of hops from homegrown hop plants in the backyard and a well stocked homebrew shop, the resulting beer was big, malty, hoppy and enjoyable. You might even say like a “bitters” but bigger and better. We have taken this beer one step further at the brewery by adapting the original recipe to make optimum use of our brewing and fermenting equipment. We include selected British malts in our recipe to bring out the beers’ hoppy character and carbonate naturally to smooth out any possible rough edges."*

And to top it all off. . . this Thursday is the 3rd one in the month. . . and there's shuttle service

*Lightning Brewery Website
Citizen Video is joining forces with some awesome local peeps this holiday to help support the Lindsay Community School's pregnant and parenting teens and their children. Stop by Citizen Video and drop off a gift for the gift drive and get $5 off any of our newly printed tshirts. Moms need new or lightly used clothing or toiletries. Moms are age 12 to 18. Children need baby essentials - diapers, clothes, blankets, bottles, etc. Children are ages 4 weeks to 3 years. We'll finish up our gift drive with our EVE BEFORE THE EVE PARTY at the Whistle Stop on December 23rd. One dollar from every drink will go to benefit the Lindsay Community School. Need an excuse to have a drink during the madness of the holidays. Well now you have a great one.

Is 30th Street in North Park or the North Pole?



It's been so cold outside lately, we're not quite sure ourselves. The Ritual Tavern is the perfect spot to warm your bones and fill your belly this December. Why not come in tonight, have a hot bowl of Shepherd's Pie (or French Onion Soup), a pint of winter ale, and do your holiday shopping at the same time? Ritual Gift Certificates, T-shirts and Hoodies are perfect for most everyone on your list :-)

Happy Hour nightly 5:30-7:30pm
All Day Sunday (3:30-9:30pm)
$3.50 draught beers & $1 off select glass wines

Here on Cask

It seems appropriate to note in this space, that Green Flash 30th Street Pale Ale is on cask at the Linkery right now. Along with several other delicious beers. Oops, it sold out before I got around to blogging it. Never mind.

30th and NYT

North Park -- and in particular the area around 30th and University -- are nicely featured in this Sunday's New York Times. Caffe Calabria, Bar Pink, and us at the Linkery represent the food and drink side, while Planet Rooth, Soul Ryde, and Rubber Rose hold down the retail.

They could have picked from dozens of other businesses in the area and also had a great story, too. That's what I love about this 'hood.

Here's South Park Walkabout Guide



South Park Holiday Walkabout
This Saturday, Dec. 5th - 6 to 10pm

Click here for a shop-by-shop guide that you may print and use.
Free trolley runs 6-10pm, with stops at Grant's Marketplace (Beech St.),
South Bark Dogwash (30th St.) and The Grove on Juniper (Juniper St.).

Bring the family!

Holiday Ritual

Its chilly and dark early, we’ll understand if you need to drop in to the Ritual for some hot soup, cask conditioned ale, music, or holiday ale.

Daniele Spadavecchia on guitar, Stone Levitation on Cask, Oysters on the Half Shell start it all off tonight.

The decorations are up and the Winter beers are rolling in. We have Alesmith YuleSmith on tap. In bottles are Big Sky Powder Hound Winter Amber Ale Shipyard Prelude, Black Diamond Winter Dubbel Ale from Walnut City, and Vintage 2008 Lost Abbey Gift of the Magi.

We have a great cold weather soup, Londoner Sausage (by Knight Salumi) and Shitake Mushroom topped with crème fraiche and fried leeks. Beginning on Friday night we will offer a hearty new entrée; Niman Ranch Lamb Skewer with Souzie’s Organic Turkish Eggplant over Basmati Pilaf with red bell pepper sauce.

This weekend the neighborhood will offer seasonal attractions, including the North Park Toyland Parade on Saturday at 11:00 am and December Nights this Friday and Saturday in Balboa Park.

Top your Saturday off with our Winter Beer Flight featuring the new Winter Powder Hound, Prelude and Dubbel Ale bottles just in and mentioned above for just $5.

Keep the festivities going with our all day Sunday happy hour special featuring a Niman Pulled Pork slider and Onion Rings with selected draught beer for only $8.00.

Cheers!

Celebrate Prohibition Repeal Anniversary w/Alchemy

We often toast to friends, happiness and health. But on Dec.6, South Park restaurant Alchemy encourages raising those glasses to celebrate what we are allowed to fill them with – alcohol.

In celebration of the 76th anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition, Alchemy will be hosting a “Silent Sunday” prohibition cocktail party starting at 8 p.m. Resident mixologist Frankie Thaheld and guest bartender Nate Stanton of El Dorado Cocktail Lounge will be on hand to dish out delicious drinks throughout the evening. As with a traditional “Silent Sunday” at Alchemy, a silent film from Citizen Video will be projected. Local crooner Melly Frances will perform her unique blend of blues and jazz inspired tunes with an accompanying bassist.


SD Tweed Ride, Saturday December 12

A bike ride celebrating style, camaraderie, transportation, and fun. It starts on the 30th Street corridor, natch.