Hook & Ladder Manufacturing Company

1630 S Street – Sacramento

In 2003 Kimio Bazett and Jon Modrow bought the Golden Bear, settled in Sacramento and committed to making this town a better place. Now they’ve embarked upon a new enterprise: Hook and Ladder Manufacturing Company, a restaurant and bar focused on highly refined eats and attentively detailed drinks, occupying the arched tin hull of what used to be Hangar 17. Yet, while the exterior might be the same, the interior is anything but.

What used to be a dark-ceilinged, neon blue clash of grays and polished, metallic tables, has become a warm, light, playful take on the current repurposed industrial loft aesthetic. The entrance strikes one with votive candles placed neatly around a detailed yet happenstance slat wood wall display behind the host stand. The bar is stocked to the ceiling with liquor, and at its center sits the yeti draft, an upside down tap system that cools the brewed beverages as they travel down the line, gathering a layer of condensed ice on the exterior of the mount.

Bar manager Chris Tucker took a few minutes to explain a few of the finer points of their intriguing bar setup, which includes the yeti system, the keg wine pressurized with nitrogen and the cocktails on tap. Wait, what?

Yes.

Draft wine and cocktails.

Tucker, who cut his teeth in this industry at America Live back in the day, detailed how they craft these specialty cocktails, mix them in huge batches, have them pressurized and then pour them over ice to quickly chill before they’re served to thirsty customers. It’s an intriguing process that we had to try. The four options included a Jameson Stinger, a Negroni with a nice anise finish, a Norse by Northwest with Aquavit from Portland and a Jerry Thomas Manhattan.

Of the four, the first and the last impressed us the most. Like much of the décor of Hook and Ladder, these cocktails are both old and new. The Jameson Stinger is a play on a classic libation with a nice balance of mint and Jameson that came off both refreshingly simple and flavorful in texture. The Jerry Thomas Manhattan differs from the traditional Manhattan. It’s crafted with Rye whiskey and Luxardo, an Italian maraschino cherry liquor, vermouth and bitters, garnished with a lemon peel that has the Hook and Ladder logo branded upon it. I also really enjoyed the Templeton rye and house made ginger beer, which had a sweet, light kick.

Oh yeah, and there are eats.

We had two meals at Hook and Ladder: one lunch, one dinner. Between the two meals we sampled multiple starters, a salad, a pizza, a sandwich, a cheese plate and an entrée. The starters were impressive by themselves, revealing an attention to quality ingredients and presentation. The three-cheese plate consisted of an Italian Tallegio, a brie-like texture that spread smoothly on the toasted bread it was served with; a Dutch Beemster with mustard seeds; and a Californian Carmody. Each paired well with the almonds, olives, persimmons and house dried fruit plated alongside it. The smoked eggplant baba ganoush topped with goat cheese had a rich texture that complimented the garlic-roasted flatbread. The seasoning of this pairing had a peppery kick that made me come back for more. The trio of sausages, which included a spicy chicken chorizo and a lamb link, served with mustard and two different chutneys, surprised with their quality. The sausages are all made in house, ground and stuffed, and then they’re cooked in beer before being oven-finished for service.

However, despite all these smaller plates, the highlights of our lunch experience were the two large plates: the sweet potato pappardelle with mixed mushroom ragù, shaved sheep’s milk cheese; and the barbecue chicken sandwich served with potato chips inside–Liz Lemon style–and a side of fries or salad. We opted for the fries and were happy about the decision. We split the sandwich and it disappeared immediately. The house barbecue and slaw were nicely chosen for this dish. The barbecue sauce had a sweet taste that was aided by the salty potato chips and the moist fried breast and thigh meat. The Bella Bru steak roll finished the entire piece.

All of Hook and Ladder’s pastas are made in house, and the sweet potato pappardelle did not disappoint. There are two types of pasta noodle dishes that I tend to find within our local cuisine. The first is a noodle type dish with a light oil toss and varied seasonal flavors, and the second focuses on the pasta as a base for a rich, hearty sauce with a depth of taste. The sweet potato papparadelle walked a nice line between the two. The mushroom ragù and sheep’s milk cheese brought a soft and thick baseline, but each bite felt light on the tongue. Over the course of our meal, as I sampled other items, this was the dish I kept repeatedly coming back to.

During lunch the clientele was relaxed, small groups, with others grabbing a quick bite at the bar. But dinner seemed like a livelier group. Larger parties laughed aloud in the warm yellow light, and the room felt like it was alive with the murmur of multiple conversations. It was, after all, Friday night, and Hook and Ladder was apparently doing well; we had to sit outside because by 6 p.m. table service inside was booked up for the night.

Like the interior, the outside impressed. Repurposed tabletops fit together–with heat lamps for the winter months–under a high awning, and warehouse flats lined the previous fencing, supporting sheet-metal gutters with freshly planted succulents and ferns inside.

We started with the Yukon gold potato, crimini mushroom, rosemary and crescenza pizza, based on the waiter’s recommendation. Hook and Ladder’s head chef is Brian Mizner, who held down Hot Italian when it first opened, and this made sense when the pizza arrived. The dough is similar to Hot Italian’s, but the pizza’s ingredients make it unique to Hook and Ladder. The potatoes were seasoned and soft to go along with the light dusting of crescenza cheese. The mushrooms and rosemary rounded out the taste, and we were quite happy with two slices each as an appetizer of sorts and saving leftovers for the next day.

The pancetta and poached duck egg salad had a variety of texture and balance. The mix of frisée, radicchio and greens allowed a hint of bitter and woody to mix with the salty punch of the small pieces of pancetta. The duck egg and vinaigrette dressing gave more depth, and even a hint of sweetness, to this salad.

Lastly, we ordered the bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin medium rare to finish our meal. This entrée is served on a base of braised nettles, cut into medallions, and topped with Gorgonzola gnocchi. The tenderloin itself was moist and had a light flavor supplemented by the bacon. There was a bit of sweetness from a bit of sauté, and when followed with the Gorgonzola gnocchi, this plate was quite satisfying. The braised nettles provided a mild contrast to these rich flavors with a crunchy, slight bitter bite.

Ultimately, Hook and Ladder is a fine dining establishment that I’m sure will find success. While it’s only been open for seven weeks, it’s obvious that this restaurant and bar will only get better with time. During the summer, it’s going to be hard to find a seat most nights of the week. For those interested in just a drink or two, there’s ample seating at the long bar covering the west side of the building, a waiting area with tables made from old school board games such as Sorry where couples can enjoy a cocktail, perhaps before dinner.

It’s clear that Bazett and Modrow have put a lot of thought into this enterprise. They’re looking to make Sacramento a better place, and it is, after all, worthy. Anyone visiting the Golden Bear over the last nine years and watching it change should see the logic in Hook and Ladder. Bazett and Modrow want to move from bar-restaurant to restaurant-bar. For those ready to shift gears a bit from those late night Bear experiences to a quality meal and the nuance of a consistent bar, Bazett and Modrow have one option to add to Sacramento’s restaurant list: Hook and Ladder Manufacturing Company.

In a short time, Sacramento’s Cave Women have been churning out exciting new material

For Sacramento band Cave Women, things fell into place very quickly. Whereas some bands take years to find their voice and record, the five highly skilled musicians who make up the group hit it off almost instantly.

Is this the musical equivalent of love at first sight? Well, not entirely. But I thought I was pretty clever when I thought of that while interviewing Cave Women vocalist/bassist Casey Lipka.

“It’s really special to be able to play original music with everyone,” Lipka says of becoming fast musical friends with the other Cave Women, who have only been together as a band since 2011. In that time, they’ve already released a five song EP and a full-length, self-titled album, which was released Nov. 15, 2012.

“I think in a certain sense, that’s what we’ve all really been enjoying,” Lipka elaborates. “We’ve all participated in different music projects, but for it to be our own compositions and have them develop in this way and just be able to work on our music together, it’s been such a great opportunity.”

Lipka has been on quite a journey in order to make it to where she is today. A Venice, Calif., native, Lipka began studying music at Sonoma State before furthering her education in Montreal, Quebec. It was there that she began learning to play bass.

“I was hanging out with a lot of bass players by chance,” says Lipka, who lists voice as her first instrument. “They had this really big room for bass in that school. If you could imagine just walking into a room with 10 human size instruments, it was pretty intense.”

About three years ago, she moved to Sacramento, where she still lives and teaches voice and piano. While enrolled in a world music class at Sacramento State, she got turned on to the mbira, a small instrument with origins in Zimbabwe that consists of 21 to 28 metal keys that are plucked by hand. She has brought her love for the mbira to Cave Women.

“We’d go through all these different types of music from all over the world, and my teacher put on that kind of music,” she says. I don’t think I was concentrating in the class, but the moment she put on that music, I was like ‘What is that?’”

Though she has bounced around quite a bit in her life, Lipka seems to have found a home in Sacramento, which she calls a “small big city.”

“What I mean by that is that there’s enough going on that there’s quite a bit to do, but at the same time you can have a community of people here,” she explains.

Not long after moving to Sacramento, Lipka met up with Alicyn Yaffee, Cave Women’s vocalist/guitarist, and the two began performing as a duo, Lipka says. The duo was soon joined by Vanessa Cruz (drums/percussion), then Emily Messick (vocals/accordion) and finally Kim Davis (vocals/flute).

“I happened to get a free recording session at the Art Institute in San Francisco,” Lipka says. “And all of a sudden, we had this recording and we were somewhat of a band. It was like, ‘Wow, this works.’ It was definitely an evolution of instrumentation and sounds and addition and experimentation.”

Explosive growth would probably be more of an apt term. Of the five songs on the band’s first EP, only two of them appear on the self-titled full-length. On top of that, Lipka reports that she and the band are already working on new songs. Not bad for someone who says she’d hardly written her own compositions before starting Cave Women.

“Songwriting is very new to me,” she says. “Cave Women kind of kick started it for me.”

Cave Women’s songwriting maturity betrays the group’s youth as a band. These musicians have an almost magical connection with one another that’s easily apparent on their debut full-length (recorded by notable engineer Pat Olguin, who has worked with Papa Roach, E-40 and Black Eyed Peas), which incorporates world music and jazz influences into catchy pop song structures. This could be a byproduct of the band’s nurturing songwriting process that allows each member’s talents and instruments to shine.

“Someone will come to the group with a composition, at whatever stage it’s in, and everyone adds their own voice to it through their instrument,” Lipka says. “There isn’t necessarily a conversation like, ‘Oh, there’s a lot going on. You should add less here.’ It’s more of a natural process of adding in the different voices.”

One of the more striking songs on the album, “Hunger” practically swoons through your speakers. Beautiful, dreamy harmonies mingle perfectly with the tune’s somber lyrics as the melody builds to a soft crescendo. Lipka says that “Hunger” is one of the songs that Yaffee first brought to the band, but the rest of Cave Women were quick to add their own personal touches to round out the track.

“[Alicyn] had her melody and guitar part, and the voice parts that we added on the end, everyone made up their own voice part,” Lipka says of “Hunger.” “That was really neat in the sense that…gradually every person added how they heard their own part mixing into the song.”

The video for “Hunger,” shot by photographer Nicholas Wray, shows a behind-the-scenes look at the band in the studio working on the full-length album. In it, you can see Lipka at work on bass and with her mbira, which she has fixed to the back of an acoustic guitar. She says that it amplified the mbira’s sound in a “richer way, because it had the guitar body for it to resonate in.” She goes on to say, though, that you won’t see her trying this trick on stage.

“It’s way too complicated. I don’t think I could hold a guitar and an mbira at the same time,” Lipka says through laughter.

Though the band just seems to click as if it was fate, Lipka does say there are some complications in playing in a band like Cave Women. The band employs so many instruments and sounds that it’s a challenge for the group to recreate their sound live.

“There are certain places that we just can’t play because we have so many instruments,” she says. “If we bring everything, we just can’t physically fit in certain places. There will be times when everyone will just bring one instrument.

“There have been shows where I’m like, ‘My mbira is over there. How am I going to get there?’”

Though the stage might be cluttered, Cave Women’s songwriting is anything but, and a bright, productive future seems pre-ordained.

Celebrate the release of Cave Women’s first full-length at Bows and Arrows in Sacramento on Dec. 19, 2012. Alto and David Alfred will also perform. The all-ages show is $6 and starts at 8 p.m. To listen to and order the album, go to http://cavewomen.bandcamp.com/.

By Daniel Block

Put on by Alison Kranz and local photographer Nicholas Wray (who frequently contributes to Submerge), 400×400 is a proximity based photo project where the organizers asked for community contributions that would capture the character of our city block-by-block. “The idea for 400×400 is to get people–even people who wouldn’t necessarily consider themselves photographers–out, walking around and observing the city surrounding them,” Kranz told Submerge.

“We heard about a couple projects doing something very similar and decided it was something Sacramento needed,” Wray added.

By Sara Cain

With our downtown/Midtown blocks being approximately 400 feet by 400 feet, the organizers want each installment of 400×400 to focus on just one block at a time around where the host venue is for the next showing. For September’s show, which will take place at Broadacre Coffee (1014 10th Street) starting on Saturday, Sept. 8, 2012, they asked local photographers of all levels, from camera phone junkies to pro camera toters, to focus on the block around Broadacre between 9th and 10th streets and J and K streets. “The clouds, the buildings, the sidewalks, the people, anything is fair game as long as it is within the perimeter of the block,” Kranz said.

If you’d like to take part in 400×400, “like” it at http://www.facebook.com/400×400 or visit 400×400.com to learn more about how to submit your photo(s) and to learn which block will be the next to be featured. Kranz and Wray hope to make it a recurring thing. “We would like to do every block in downtown/Midtown,” Wray said. “And then we’ll start over if people like doing it!”

By Jason Tarman

Bartender Andrew Calisterio on why Sacramento should be proud to be a “cow town”

Words by Anthony Giannotti

Sacramento has been labeled by many in larger metropolitan areas in California as a “cow town.” While this may or may not be true on many levels, the fact that we are surrounded by some of the best and richest farmland in the country is undeniable. Andrew Calisterio, bartender at Grange Restaurant and Bar, thinks we should embrace this “cow town” label.

“I grew up in rural Elk Grove before the whole tract home thing,” he says. “We had cows in my back yard. My family always had a garden and fresh food. Farm to table has always been a part of my life.” Growing up with a garden has definitely helped him know exactly what to do with the amazing produce we have around here. Calisterio continues, “We have tons of fresh ingredients. Look at all the citrus here. Don’t just put it on the side of the glass to make it look pretty, put booze in it and shake it up!”

Not only has Calisterio devoted his life to Sacramento and the fine local produce, but he is a big advocate of knowing what to do with it. He is one of the founding members of the Sacramento chapter of the U.S. Bartenders’ Guild–a national organization “of beverage service professionals dedicated to the continued refinement of [their] craft,” according to a mission statement on the USBG website. Calisterio makes no illusions of how important he thinks keeping up and furthering industry people’s knowledge is, “The education is what helps create and expand our creativity.”

It’s not just cocktails and shakers for Calisterio. He is also one of the key members in the resurrection of the Sacramento brewery Ruhstaller. “Ruhstaller was a brewery in Sacramento 130 years ago, started by Captain Frank Ruhstaller. I get to sell a really good beer to people in the industry, my friends.”

I got to catch up with the local advocate over a glass of whiskey, which of course he blended, to talk more about Sacramento and cocktails.

How did you start bartending?
I started this whole thing with coffee. I really enjoyed making things. I was 16 working at Starbucks. I liked making the things they had set for us, but I always wanted to make something different, something special. The guests wanted the same thing every single day, and to me that was just insane. I would try to work something in that was around what they liked, but pulling them toward something new or different. Eventually I got picked up by Java City, worked my way up the ladder there and came to a point where I could do anything I wanted with coffee. I really wanted to get into spirits. I’ve always been a fan of nice food and cocktails and experiencing flavors. I pride myself on having a good palate.

How did you start at Grange?
I went in applying for a bartending position, and they looked at me like I was crazy because I had no experience. So I asked what was available and they let me be a bus boy. There was no bar-back program there, so I would go behind the bar every chance I could to help, polish glassware, anything I could do to get in. I’d ask way too many questions and bother Ryan Seng, interrupt his conversations with guests to find out what he was doing and how he made that drink. I basically declared myself a bar-back position. One day a bartender didn’t show up. Since I knew how to make all the drinks–I even had two of my own drinks on the menu, and I was familiar with our wine list–I finally got to start bartending.

Grange is known for its affiliation with the slow food movement. Do you try to incorporate any of those principles into your cocktails?
Absolutely. I grew up in rural Elk Grove on four acres. I was in FFA [Future Farmers of America] as a kid, which ended up being beneficial for me when applying at Grange because I had this agricultural background. I knew the farmers that the food at Grange was coming from. When it came to building my cocktails, I wanted to represent the local Sacramento area.

You recently won a couple of cocktail contests. Can you tell us about that?
The big one was put on by Hangar One Vodka. It was a California-wide cocktail competition. I was already familiar with the brand because it is a farm to bottle spirit–right up my alley. A rep came in to ask me to join the competition but said they weren’t stopping in Sacramento. They were going to be in different major cities around California–Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose. I was a little offended that they weren’t going to be representing the capital city of California, where so much of California’s produce and agriculture comes from. So I came up with my cocktail and started networking, using social media to let my friends and peers know what I was working on and trying to represent Sacramento.

You are one of the co-founders of the Sacramento Bartenders’ Guild. What is that and what do you guys do?
As bartenders, we go visit other bars or bartenders that we respect and like to see what they are doing and learn from them. It started as this kind of informal gathering and eventually some of us decided to get together and make it formal and official. We wanted the education of bartending to be brought forward. It’s $100 a year, and if you go to just a couple meetings, you’ve already gotten your money back in products and education. We have tastings and training with brands that share their products but also teach us about spirits and what the differences are and help us learn how to use them to our best ability. We are using our connections to gather and share brands and ideas with our coworkers in town. Bar owners and workers get a chance to meet, so whether someone is looking for a job or needs a bartender, it’s just a great way to communicate. All of us are career bartenders, not just some guy who pours shots. We are trying to raise the bar around Sacramento. We have a great cocktail scene here; we just want to always see more out of it and let it shine.

So you think it’s important for bartenders to have extra education, to be able to do more than just give a shot or a beer?
Well even with that, there is a proper shot and a beer pairing, it has value. Sometimes you don’t want a cocktail. Sometimes you just want a shot or a beer. Dickel is a whiskey brand that has become really popular as a shot. Someone decided that that was a good shot to pair with a beer. And the beers aren’t Budweiser anymore. North Coast Company Blue Star is the inexpensive beer on tap now. So the bar is being raised even for just a shot and a beer. Having a vast knowledge of spirits and cocktail ingredients helps you to attract more guests and give them that experience they are looking for when they go out to eat or have a drink. I love when someone comes in and says “Make me something.” My next question is what do you usually like? And I will try to avoid that.

You’re not just a cocktail guy. You are also involved with Ruhstaller Beer…
I was brought on early with this company. I am honored to be able to help with the resurrection of the old Sacramento brand… They asked me to help build the brand because they know I am a social guy. I lug around kegs and talk to people and help with sales. I’m doing the same thing I do every day, but on the other side of the bar. I’m getting the bartenders to try this beer, telling them how good it is and then they buy it for their bars. The company has grown a lot and I help when I can, mostly with social networking or helping pour at events.

Do you ever try to combine your knowledge of beer and cocktails to make a beer cocktail?
For beer week, we had a beer pairing dinner at Grange with some big names from Sacramento. I put together a cocktail that was in the fashion of a shot and a beer, with a twist. I took [Ruhstaller] 1881 and made syrup out of it and made an Old Fashioned using Woodford Reserve. I even used local Sacramento oranges in it. I served it with a shot of beer on the side to help represent the beer. Darell Corti [gourmand and co-owner of Corti Brothers] said it was the best aperitif he’d had in Sacramento. I was so happy, I couldn’t stop smiling. It was a great boost.

What’s involved in a great cocktail?
Balance, first and foremost. I try to balance where the flavors hit on your palate. I generally start with a great spirit or an end result flavor. Or I try to pick out flavors that will work well in the cocktail and pair with the food. Sometimes it’s hard when I really like a certain spirit that has so much great flavor on its own because I’d rather just drink it neat.

Midtown Cocktail Week is coming up. What sort of blowout is Grange doing this year?
Blowout is a good word. Last year was such a success that it was too busy to accommodate everyone in the hall. So this year we will be using the dining room. Grange’s dinner service will come to a screeching halt and be replaced with amazing cocktails and appetizers. The band The Silent Comedy will play. The theme this year is Sacramento, so a little politically driven. At Grange, we are doing the anti-prohibition act. We want people to come out and vote for the cocktails. We are also going to have hometown hero Jayson Wilde come back and guest bartend the event.

Is there anything you’d like to see out of the Sacramento food and cocktail scene?
Sacramento has had a lot of successful people start here and make names for themselves, but they always end up leaving. It’s great when they come back around and visit, but Sacramento needs some talent to stick around. If Sacramento is going to grow or be more successful, we need these people to stay and be a part of this city. I would like to see some of the people from Sacramento that have been successful elsewhere be successful in Sacramento. I enjoy other cities and traveling, but this is my home. I have a lot of friends and inspiration here. We are the capital city in the largest state.

Midtown Cocktail Week will take place at various venues from Aug. 19 through 26, 2012. See what Andrew Calisterio comes up with at the “Repeal Prohibition – High Styled 1920’s Political Rally” event at Grange on Aug. 24, 2012. The event will run from 5 p.m. to midnight. To keep track of other Cocktail Week happenings, go to http://midtowncocktailweek.org/.

La Bombe
3020 H Street – Sacramento

Words by Adam Saake | Photos by Nicholas Wray

Veteran restaurateur Jennifer Dare Sparks, of the long-time Sacramento Spanish food establishment Aioli Bodega Espanola that’s been around nearly 20 years now, as well as the now defunct Habanero Cava Latina, Port Rouge and Barbarosa, has opened a new ice cream parlor in the heart of East Sacramento. On May 19, 2012 Dare Sparks and partner Bruce Strickley Jr. welcomed customers inside La Bombe, a small and attractively painted storefront in the McKinley Square shopping complex on the corner of H and Alhambra. Serving over twenty flavors of Gunther’s Ice Cream, espresso drinks and sandwiches, their real specialty is a unique frozen confection called bombes, or if you’re not into brevity, les bombe glacés.

Like Dare Sparks’ previous endeavors, bombes are borrowed from the European culinary experience. The typically French dessert is spherical and can be layered with ice cream, cake, waffle cone, fruit preserves or syrups. Besides the fact that they’re delicious, Dare Sparks didn’t have to travel across the ocean to make them just as you don’t have to to enjoy one.

“I’m interested in starting something that is unique to the American market by utilizing materials that we have locally like Gunther’s Ice Cream, and combining them and composing them into unique European items,” says Dare Sparks.

And she’s done just that. Her influence and points of reference come from when she studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, Italy, in the early ‘80s and when she later married an Algerian chef (Aioli co-founder Reda Bellarbi), now her ex-husband and business partner. Dare Sparks spent time in Paris and Algiers and speaks four languages including French, Italian and Spanish. Her passion for European lifestyle and cuisine shows through on the specialty dessert menu that includes Affogatto, vanilla ice cream topped with espresso and candied orange peels or the Granitta di Café con Panna, an Italian iced coffee with sweetened espresso topped with whipped cream. But the dessert she says is most unique to the shop is the frozen hazelnut fudge in a cup and topped with whipped cream, Gianduia con Panna.

“I don’t know anybody, anywhere who’s doing that in the United States,” says Dare Sparks. “I’ve only had that in Italy.”

The bombes at first seem a little curious, but once you bite into one your sensory memory will remind you that it’s ice cream and other sweet goodies you’ve already had before and most likely already love. What is also attractive about these desserts is the portion size. It’s roughly equal to a scoop of ice cream and a cone, so you’re not trying to wolf down a giant dome of ice cream in once sitting. It’s just right. Some notable creations were The Colonial Bombe, a combination of coconut, chocolate and banana ice creams with chocolate cookie wafers, dusted with cocoa and topped with toasted coconut or The French Bomb, which has chocolate ice cream, black raspberry sorbet and vanilla ice cream layered with chocolate cookie wafers, raspberry jam with raspberry syrup. And as La Bombe gets all settled in, you can expect bombes du jour as well as rotating creations changing on the menu.

It’s July and it’s hot, and foot traffic and families spilling over from McKinley will surely keeping the ice cream scoops a-scoopin’, but La Bombe isn’t only serving up sweets. They’ve got a very focused sandwich menu that is killing with the cold cuts.

“I’m hoping to get the word out,” says Dare Sparks. “Between what the chefs are doing with the simplicity of adding herbs to mayonnaise and quick pickling the cucumber and then we have a great rep; Steve Campanelli at Tony’s Fine Foods.”

A great deli sandwich starts with two slices of quality bread, theirs being from Bella Bru. And then is closely followed by high quality meats; Tony’s Fine Foods has got it covered.

“I knew what I wanted. I wanted the purest flavors for our meats,” says Dare Sparks. “We’re trying to do something of a really high quality.”

Upon our visit we tried the Proscuiutto Cotto ham and Emmi Gruyere Swiss cheese sandwich on a baguette as well as the Deitz and Watson Rare London broil with white cheddar. Both were of exceptional quality–simple and delicious without being overcrowded or over complicated. It’s the perfect sandwich to pick up to go and hop across the street to watch the ducks in the park or pull up a chair at the bar that lines the bright front windows, perfect for people watching.

“We fell in love with this location and I said, ‘I’ve been working on this idea for five years.’ You know, when young people started saying, ‘It’s the bomb?’ And I like playing on words,” jokes Dare Sparks.

La Bombe is “the bomb” and it won’t take long before this place blows up.

Exquisite Corps hopes debut album will resonate with the band’s growing fan base