Yeah, sure, OK. It's been covered. But really, the only time you're going to see Sang Yoon's new Father's Office this empty is if you arrive right when the doors open. From day one---and we know---the place has been packed, there's almost always a line at the door, and with that patio, there's very little turn-and-burn. Without the hordes of beer (and burger) geeks, you can really see the details: The woodwork, the shiny cement floor with the word "beer" inlaid at the doorways, the leather chairs. The base for the bar? The same wood used for the top was used as a cement mold first, so all the grain matches. The picnic tables? All custom designed. You've heard it all before, but it bears repeating: 72 taps, 36 beers, plus boutiqe wines, cocktails made with select artisanal spirits, mixers on the side, no vodka; still no modifications on the menu, no ketchup, and the burger and fries in the little cart are as crave-worthy as ever, but so are the curry lemongrass mussels. Order at the bar, grab a number, commence eagle-eye stalking. Sit with a stranger if you must. We've been, Jonathan Gold's been, and it's been a blogger frenzy. Full coverage here.
Father's Office 2.0 Table strategies, no ketchup
3229 Helms Ave, Culver City-adj.; 310.736.2224 Mon-Thu 5pm-1am; Fri-Sat 12pm-2am; Sun 12pm-12am
Jonathan Gold takes a bite out of Father's Office 2.0 at the Helms Bakery complex in Culver City-adjacent, and the review (the food isn't quite there yet, but there are some interesting and delicious bites, and of course, the burger and beer are tops) is chock-full of classic Goldisms. To wit:
"With Father’s Office, which inspires the extremes of behavior often described by scientists studying overcrowded animal cages, there is no middle ground."
"Yoon could probably get away with serving his goat-cheese gratinée in telephone booths if he felt like it."
"...a table should be at least as easy to command as a parking space at the Grove the day after Thanksgiving — if you maintain the necessary levels of attention and aggression."
"I have heard from several sources that when Yoon visited Osteria Mozza and asked whether he could order the pasta tasting for just two people instead of for the entire table, as was printed on the menu, Nancy Silverton said: 'Only if you let me order a hamburger without cheese the next time I’m at your restaurant.'"
He's softened on the FO experience, maybe because finding a seat in the bigger, splashier location, though still difficult, isn't as bad as the SM original. From Gold's 2004 review: "Father's Office is a perfect analogue to Bush-era America, a closed, mean, inward-looking place where tyranny masquerades as freedom, cronyism is taken for granted, and the powers that be talk a lot about hamburgers but ultimately deliver pâté." Ouchers.
· All Hopped Up at The New Father's Office [LAW]
· Fight Club [LAW]
· Eater Inside: Father's Office 2.0 Debut [~ELA~]
Time to revisit Adventures in Shilling, in which we fight shilling the best way we can, by shaming tasteless, unscrupulous shills into submission. Well, that's the plan, at least. Fight shills yourself by dropping offensive links here.
To some beer aficianados, comparing Father's Office I or II to the Yard House is like comparing apples to elephants---loud, raucous chain vs. intimate, independently owned bar; notable burger vs. chain food; classic rock vs. anything but classic rock; every beer under the sun on tap vs. well-rounded selection; beepers for tables vs. scrambling for tables. But here a Hound of few words, unless those words start with a Y and H, thinks the FO hype is for losers:
Went there [Father's Office] for the first time ever based on the postings here, the $11 Blue Cheese and only burger on the menu was ehh, the beer selection was no better than going to the Yard House, & more expensive for their IPA's. It's a busy place but.....for the price I just don't get it. Went with a friend, 2 IPA's (India Pale Ale, Stronger type beer served in goblets), 2 burgers, basket of sweet potato tasteless fries, and what I thought was actually very good were the tapas of olives w/ almonds in their special marinade...$55 bucks.
For that same amount I could have had more beer & food @ the Yard House...aka "Beer Lovers' Paradise" Never been disappointed with any food item I've ordered @ the Yard House. IMHO F.O. just doesn't live up to the hype! You hounds mislead & disappointed me on this recommendation!
It's that marketing jargon like "Beer Lovers' Paradise" that disappoint us. Shill Probability: 99.8%.
· Father's Office: What's the Big Deal? [Chowhound]
Just because Father's Office 2.0 finally opened doesn't mean getting a table at the original will be any easier: "A 7 p.m. arrival and glance around the intimate space quickly confirmed the bar's reputation as a popular post-work destination: it took us a half-hour to stake out a table, though thankfully we weren't kept waiting outside. Once seated, there was ample enough room for comfortable dinner and conversation, and the dim lighting and sleek hardwood of the floor, tables and bar counter lend the Office a refined, romantic air." Sidenote: Yes, he said refined and romantic. [LAist]
From our picnic table perch on the patio, it looked like things went as expected for the Father's Office 2.0 debut: The place filled to capacity after the first hour, people got pissed that they couldn’t find a seat, the bold sat with strangers, beers flowed freely. To those who still whine that FO should add a waiting list and servers, we'll channel owner Sang Yoon for a moment---It's a bar, not a restaurant, and bars don't have wait lists for tables. And really, if he hasn't changed it yet, there's little chance he will. There was a moment when we thought FO wouldn't open at all, even with 40 people waiting outside, but the doors swung wide a little after 6pm. By 7pm, all the tables were full, people were waiting in the wings to pounce; the line that started at the door continued most of the night and finally fizzled after 9pm. Part of the problem was those patio picnic tables. Totally made for lingering, they're comfortable, with heat lamps when it's cool, no car exhaust from a crowded street, easy access to the bar and good sightlines to see who's walking in and out. Prime property. You think the tables at FO, the Original, were coveted? Oh no, friends, not even close.
Father's Office 2.0 Waits, beer, burger, no ketchup
3229 Helms Ave, Culver City-adjacent; 310.736.2224 Mon-Thu 5pm-1am; Fri-Sat 12pm-2am; Sun 12pm-12am
When there's an anticipated opening such as one for the new Father's Office at the Helms Bakery building, there's only one thing to do: Liveblog.
5:39pm: Arrival. Doors closed. About 10 people waiting outside. One guy in nicely pressed white button down shirt: "They were supposed to open at 4, but now they said 6." Overheard nearby: "Let's just go."
6:00pm: Number of people doubles outside. Doors still shut. Will it open? What if it was all a big tease? Across the street: Let's Be Frank hot dog cart noticably absent. Closed on Mondays. Bummer.
6:04pm: Blinds pulled up, everyone files in. No chairs around the tables yet, just banquette seating. Bar stools are the first to fill. Booths next. Heaters juicing up outside, lots of picnic table seating. Beers pouring. 44 people counted in first wave.
6:05pm: First drink served: Aviation martini.
6:15pm: Our first Liberty Ale in, patio starting to get crowded. Sang Yoon and the entire FO staff at the ready. Lots of headset action happening.
7:05: Partners in crime arrive, sweet potato fries in tow. Hot, crispy outside, soft inside, perfectly salted. Second Liberty. All tables full, small line at the bar.
7:26pm: Time for the burger---not easy to eat and blog---and battery life not what it used to be. People now waiting in wings for first table opening, line out front door. Two deep at ordering stations in the bar. We'll have a full report/recap and photo gallery tomorrow.
We'll, it's sort of official: FO 2.0 opens tonight. We say "sort of" because we haven't officially confirmed it, and someone wants to keep the exact time a secret. But if we were to venture a guess, we'd say 5pm is probably beer time. Remember, this really is a 2.0 launch: Bigger space, more beer on tap, deconstructed cocktails, booths, picnic tables, cool bathrooms, but all with that Sang Yoon attitude (still no ketchup, yes, there are nuts in the olives, and don't even think about ordering a Cosmo, or vodka for that matter). Above, a little reminder of what we saw at last week's opening party. See you there! (3229 Helms Ave, Culver City; 310.736.2224)
· Hangover Observations: Father's Office II Opener [~ELA~]
Rumor is Sang Yoon's Father's Office 2.0 is open "now." But the phone number goes to a fax machine, and whether "now" is noon today, when FOII is supposed to open on a regular basis, or 5pm, or at 4:30am when the email hit our inbox, all still unconfirmed. Full details soon. [Thrillist; previously]
Last night Sang Yoon threw the doors open, at least momentarily, at his new Father's Office at the Helms Bakery complex. Seeing as this is one highly anticipated not-a-restaurant-it's-a-bar debut, we expected a bigger crowd. It was really just right, though. The beer geeks were out in droves, some chef/celebrity spottings; no one got out of hand, but there was some bad party etiquette around the food tables. But that burger turns people. With that, a few hangover observations:
1) Drinks were in abundance, and not too difficult to get the bartenders' attention. All 72 taps, plus wine, which is surprisingly fresh (i.e. the Central Coast syrah we sipped), were flowing. Things that might get old: A bartender handed someone a small bottle of "real water from Scotland" and a dropper to add "as much in" as he wanted to his scotch. For gin and tonic, the spirit comes in a glass with ice, mixer on the side. It looked like barely a spit of gin with a small bottle of Fever-Tree tonic to add at will. We willed more gin into the glass.
2) Line for food filed from small back room practically to the patio. Burgers, beet salad, asparagus, baskets of fries. Excessively long at times because the burgers came out one plate at a time, and people were picking up three, four, five halves on one plate. Total party foul. Burger: Still rich, still delicious.
People are chomping at the bit to start chomping on burgers at the new Father's Office at the Helms Bakery building. We last heard Sang Yoon will throw the doors open mid-April, but he won't entirely confirm. He toys with us so. Word is there's an "opening party" week after next. Whether or not it will open the next day...or next week...is still anyone's guess. [~ELA~]
While we were off galavanting in Pebble Beach over the weekend, that sneaky Sang Yoon took the Plywood down from the new Father's Office in the Helms Bakery building. LAist gets a peek through the windows (with bonus Yoon sighting), and it looks like it's come along nicely since our tour inside. Plywood down doesn't mean it will open tomorrow: Expect a couple more weeks before the FO II debut, possibly mid-April.
· Plywood down at Father's Office [LAist]
· Father's Office II Update: Just a Few More Weeks [~ELA~]
Timing is everything in life, folks. We found ourselves in Culver City this weekend at exactly the moment the door to Sang Yoon's highly anticipated Father's Office II was open. And there's nothing we like more than an open door. To our surprise, Yoon was on premises and granted a tour. The gist: A 50-something-long bar (take that, Rush Street), 72 taps for 36 beers, a fancy new wine tap system, big booths, fixed tables and banquettes, custom-made picnic tables for the patio. The success of Father's Office is more than the burger, it's also Yoon's uncompromising confidence in it all. At FO II, it's all about the details: The walnut bar, recycled bottle bricks in the bathroom, the way the kitchen was built and with what materials, the cocktails---only four house specialties with an occasional seasonal one thrown in for good measure---the spirits, no vodka, the mixers. The menu is the same as the original, but with more space and new toys in the kitchen expect some experimentation. Still no hard date for an opening, but know it's only weeks out. Weeks, people. Start planning your table strategy now.
· Father's Office II Has Signage [~ELA~]
· Fall Tracking Report: Father's Office II [~ELA~]
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To some beer aficianados, comparing Father's Office I or II to the Yard House is like comparing apples to elephants---loud, raucous chain vs. intimate, independently owned bar; notable burger vs. chain food; classic rock vs. anything but classic rock; every beer under the sun on tap vs. well-rounded selection; beepers for tables vs. scrambling for tables. But here a Hound of few words, unless those words start with a Y and H, thinks the FO hype is for losers:
Timing is everything in life, folks. We found ourselves in Culver City this weekend at exactly the moment the door to Sang Yoon's highly anticipated Father's Office II was open. And there's nothing we like more than an open door. To our surprise, Yoon was on premises and granted a tour. The gist: A 50-something-long bar (
