Lavender Collins, O3

O3 Bistro and Lounge in the Civic Center neighborhood of San Francisco just opened in January. I love how they have updated the former California Pizza Kitchen restaurant to a sexy new bistro and lounge perfect for pre-theater, pre-symphony, pre-ballet dinner. The Signature Cocktail menu had several tequila cocktails that caught my eye. Unfortunately during my lunch there, the bartender had not arrived and only 3 cocktails were available. Given the limited number of choices, I decided to go with the Lavender Collins. You get to pick your poison whether Smirnoff Vodka(pictured above) or Tanqueray Gin(pictured below) to go with the fresh lime juice, housemade lavender simple syrup, muddled blueberries, topped with club soda.  I ordered one of each for my dining companion and I to share. Although my companion had to ask for an extra lime and a bit more vodka to cut the sweetness in her drink, my gin version was great. The spice from the gin made the difference. I'm looking forward to trying the tequila cocktails on another visit.

The Skinny

Lunch Monday-Friday, Dinner Monday-Saturday, Full Bar

http://o3restaurant.com/index.php

Lavender Collins, $11

Other pics from the visit:

Gin Lavender Collins

 Malbec Rose (love the stemware)

Grilled Salmon with Kimchi dirty rice Lunch Entree, $15

 Sauvignon Blanc, (wish the green hue was captured)