Gin, Sherry, and “Hand Paella” Are on the Menu at ABV’s Newest Upstairs Bar

Acclaimed 16th Street cocktail bar ABV is getting ready to swap out its upstairs bar-within-a-bar Over Proof once again, trading the Whiskey-focused Double Back for a gin and sherry bar called Este Oeste. The Double Back menu continues through the end of July, but is fully booked, and tickets to Este Oeste are now available through Resy for dates starting August 10.

To understand Over Proof, the quarterly-rotating bar-within-a-bar at ABV, it helps to first understand ABV owners Ryan Fitzgerald, Erik Reichborn-Kjennerud and Todd Smith. Those last two were early pioneers of the bar-within-a bar concept right across the street at Dalva, owned by Reichborn-Kjennerud, with back bar and upstairs space The Hideout, tended by Smith, a Bourbon & Branch founding bartender. After establishing ABV as a cocktail destination, the team closed off its small upstairs balcony space, converting it to Over Proof and ushering in a series of fixed price cocktail and food menus with five or more courses (Este Oeste is $75).

Like its two preceding bar concepts, Este Oeste’s food is inspired by the region from which its spirits originate. In this case, to complement gin and sherry, chef Collin Hilton’s has created the Spanish-influenced menu below. There are two seatings per night, one at 6:30 p.m. and one at 9 p.m., and Este Oeste wraps up after October 27.

Cocktail Menu

Don Karlos
oloroso / lemon / orange / orgeat / gin

Doña Demonic
rancio / tonic / grapefruit

Señor 'Txotx'
gin / sherry / honey / cider / spice

Señora Sol
summer gin / fino / americano

Piripi
gin / sfumato / pedro ximenez / absinthe / ice cream

Grid View

• Blistered pepper and melon gazpacho Wes Rowe
• Brown butter poached prawns Wes Rowe
• Hand paella Wes Rowe
• House cured sardines Wes Rowe

Este Oeste Menu

House Cured Sardines & Ham
grilled bread / chili infused olive oil / garden herbs

Blistered Pepper & Melon Gazpacho
espelette powder / wood sorrel / walla walla onion

Heirloom Tomato Toast
fermented jalapeño / yellow peach / nepitella

“Hand Paella”
bay shrimp / sweet chorizo / chanterelle aioli

Canary Island Salt Crusted Fingerlings
salsa gribiche / pipicha

Celery & Chilled Baby Octopus Salad
grilled potato / butter lettuce / crispy shallot

Brown Butter Poached Prawns
romesco verde / charred calçot onion / marcona almond

• ABV Adds Quarterly-Changing Tasting Menu Cocktail Bar Upstairs [ESF]