Bar Underdog, a cocktail bar on Palo Alto’s California Avenue, is not your typical watering hole. You go for the cocktails — but you stay for the equally impressive food. It was opened in September by chef Anthony Secviar and master sommelier Dennis Kelly, the duo behind Protégé — the city’s only Michelin-starred restaurant — which is located just across the street.
“It feels like your local pub, but behind the scenes, everything is meticulously conceptualized, crafted and executed,” Secviar said. “The same level of execution that we do [at Protégé] is 100% behind this bar. And we envisioned the same culture: Everyone’s working toward a common goal of creating a great experience for you — making it warm and approachable.”
The bar doesn’t open until 4 p.m., but prep begins in the morning at 10 a.m. Techniques such as clarifying, centrifuging, washing, infusions, acidifications, extractions, fermentations, filtering and fining all occur long before service.
Most patrons are likely unaware of the complexity of the dozen libations that general manager Dani Heinonen conceived for the house cocktails menu, which is absolutely fine with her. “Just enjoy it,” she said. “Come in and have a good time. That’s all I care about. Whether or not you understand what methylcellulose is, that isn’t important.” (It’s an egg white alternative.)…