True Laurel — Restaurant in San Francisco

I have been to True Laurel multiple times, half of which were regular visits and the other half during popups featuring bars from other cities. Unfortunately, True Laurel and has consistently delivered an underwhelming experience during all visits.

To start with the positive - TL's drinks are generally good - not amazing but good. A lot of people visit because of TL's ranking on the NA 50 Best Bars List - to be honest I've had better tasting drinks from 'lower ranked' bars, but I think in general their drinks are solid.

The neutral - almost, if not all, of their cocktails are pre-batched. I can understand the importance in pre-batching certain drinks to save time and improve efficiency during service, but I also believe that some of your own cocktails can and should be made to order. Pre-batching all drinks takes away from the experience from cocktail bars.

The negatives - the drinks are consistently small even by craft cocktail standards. They 'compensate' for this by using smaller/shorter/skinnier glassware so they appear full. Many of my friends agree with me that it makes them feel stingy and cheap, especially considering my previous point that drinks are pre-batched.

Finally, I want to touch on the service. TL charges a 20% mandatory service fee, but over my visits to TL unfortunately I feel like this fee is not justified for the level of service they provide.

Incident no. 1 - during a popular popup event, a staff's girlfriend (and her friends) arrived to a long line of patrons waiting outside. She threw a tantrum in front of everyone and demanded her boyfriend (the staff) to use his position to let them skip the line. Said staff member later sneaked them in by asking multiple standing parties to squeeze in an already tight and crowded space, skipping the 30-40 other patrons in the line who arrived before them.

Incident no. 2 - During a different popup event, I was in line by myself. The maitre d lady (who is already generally not super friendly) asked the party in front and behind me how many there were, and let both parties in. She straight up ignored me despite my multiple attempts to make my presence known. I had to stand up for myself by walking inside and politely telling her that she skipped me for absolutely no reason. Her first reaction is to question me whether I was even in the line. When I told her I was right in front of her and attempted multiple times to get her attention, she simply said 'I don't think so but there is an opening for one at the bar'. She did not acknowledge nor took responsibility for her mistake.

Incident no 3 - during a visit they imposed a 1-hour limit on their seats. We were one of the first parties to sit down and were ignored for a good 20 minutes while other patrons that arrived after us had their orders taken. When we finally ordered and the drinks arrive, at the 35 minutes mark since we were seated we were told that it's last call for our seats.

There are a couple more incidents for which it would make this review too long to read (it already is, sorry). I believe that mistakes can happen, but when they consistently happen over multiple visits in the span of months, I must assume that there is some sort of systematic issue that the management has failed to address. The service True Laurel provides is unbecoming of their establishment. I leave this negative review here not to complain, but to bring this to the management's attention in the hopes that they would improve...

Resting on their Laurels was certainly never the plan of Nicholas and David from Lazy Bear, and they have delivered a space to further showcase their excellence in the food and beverage industry!

I got here just before last call for food on their second night, and ended up getting a few dishes. I started with the bar nuts which were well seasoned and had some dried kale mixed in. It'd be easy to eat a bowl of them and not think twice before needing a second round.

I also devoured the crispy hen of the wood mushrooms, which came with an awesome sort of sour cream and onion dip! You can tell that they have been able to successfully mix the ideas of comfort items but with an extraordinarily level of elevation in execution!

I finished with the bone broth soup, which should become a stable for a long time to come. Lotsa of tasty greens, great ramen noodles, country ham, and some mean bone broth to bring it all together.

The quality of the drinks are without a doubt on a level reachable by only the most passionate, intelligent, and committed bar men. While at Lazy Bear, the drinks were more of an accompaniment to the amazing tasting menu; here, they shine and rival the brilliance of their Top 50 Bar in the World neighbor Trick Dog. The Golden Child is a brilliant mix between mezcal and beets as the main components with a touch of gentian vermouth and black lime bitters.

The Bae Breez is an amazing play on an old Standard Bay Breeze, but raises the bar by adding true levels of nuance. The gin is brightened by the pineapple and lemon, and the bay laurel really adds an amazing aroma which will inspire you to take extra long sniffs in between sips. The drink also has a touch of Cabernet floated in which allows the drink to develop in complexity from first to last sip.

This place will continue to merit rave reviews especially as they progress the concept. I especially can't wait to see what they bring to the table for brunch. Well done to the staff and ownership of a San...

I've had True Laurel on my radar for awhile. It is owned by Lazy Bear, the nearby 2 Star Michelin restaurant and was recently named #30 on the list of 2024 Top 50 Cocktail Bars in North America. They have a weekend brunch so I gathered a bunch of my friends to meet up at True Laurel before going to MoMa to catch the last two weeks of the "Art of Noise" exhibit.

I tried the Melons Triple Lindy and Mai o Mai, which I felt had a nicer presentation with more complexity, seamless blending of balanced flavors than the signature Vodka y Soda and Green Mango Martini that I tried at the mega hyped Superbueno in NYC, #2 on the 2024 Top 50 bar list. The Mai o Mai looks virtually clear but somehow has a milkiness to it.

The brunch menu crafted by the Lazy Bear team is excellent. I ordered the Chicken Liver Mousse, which is served with rhubarb preserves with slivers of green strawberries and a few slices of perfectly toasted sourdough bread. My friends ordered the TL Patty Melt, which looked picture perfect - the toast was golden atop a square egg and dry aged beef patty. I got to try a bite which was a sudden burst of special flavor...I know what I'll be ordering next time.

The service was straight and to the point. Courteous but not overly friendly. The interior is industrial and modern but not inherently upscale. It's in a safe part of town so you have the option to sit outside at the wooden picnic tables.

If you're looking for world class cocktails and brunch food with a Michelin pedigree, look no further than True Laurel, which exceeded my expectations. I'm excited to try more of their excellent cocktails and dishes. Until...