In past weeks, we’ve covered the most important whiskey bars, gin joints, and rum watering holes. Today, we’re looking at the most important tequila-centric bars in the US. These are the best bars to grab a tequila or mezcal cocktail or imbibe either of the spirits neat. As we’ve mentioned in previous articles, the rise of craft cocktailing has made way for niche bars that specialize in a specific spirit or cocktail type (see: tiki). Tequila is one of the most fun, often showing up in restaurants and bars that also serve a pretty delicious meal.
Lots of bars serve tequila, but to be one of the best, most important tequila bars in America requires that a bar has something extra than just a lot of tequila and some ready to go salt and limes. These are the establishments that thoughtfully curate the most extensive, interesting lists, have bartenders and chefs who truly know their tequila (so you can educate yourself on the good stuff), and cocktails that go beyond the standard Margarita or Tequila Sunrise (not that we don’t love a good version of either). Since the whole thing can get a little confusing (there are a lot of contenders out there), we looked to an expert to wade through thousands of bars to pick the very best, most iconic places in the U.S.
Aaron Polsky, bartender at Harvard & Stone in Los Angeles knows a thing or two about agave. That’s why he was tasked with giving us a list of the best bars, pubs, watering holes, and speakeasies that are bringing tequila and mezcal to a different level. These bars aren’t treating these Mexican spirits as shooters, but as the centerpiece to a great cocktail. Check them all out below.
Tommy’s (San Francisco)
This is the OG spot. Tell Julio what you don’t know about tequila and he’ll give you a comprehensive tasting of it. Old Lightning, Los Angeles – Pablo has the collection of a madman. Everything from the whiskey to the tequila runs far back into history, with some bottles hailing from the beginning of the 20th century. They also choose which spirit category to feature in their display case every few months, and it’s a sight to behold.
This bar makes your agave experience what you want it to be, from tasting and enjoying an education in the spirit to enjoying it as a margarita–where they use a mix of key limes and Persian limes and really exercise care in production. Bobby Heugel, the owner, is also very vocal with issues that affect the agave spirits industry and lobbies for responsibility and sustainability.
Alex Stupak’s taco restaurant is one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in New York—he’s a tremendously talented chef who goes to great lengths to achieve perfection in his dishes—in this case, it’s tortillas where he nixtamalizes his own corn, and delicious meats and braises. They sell their mezcal and tequila (the selection is pleasantly broad and in some cases obscure for a restaurant) in 1oz pours, so you can have a shot of Tobala for 9 bucks with your $3-4 tacos.
Another of Pablo Moix and Steve Livigny’s spots—this cocktail bar on the Westside is cozy and broad, but has an amazing mezcal and tequila selection. If you’re with drinkers who prefer cocktails or other spirits, they have plenty to choose from.
There are countless bars in San Diego with great agave spirits selections, but this one happens to be really pretty and airy and a great way to spend an afternoon.
This Oaxacan staple has a broad, well-executed menu that’s rooted in authenticity, and several pages of mezcal and tequila to sip on with your mole colorado. It’s definitely one of the best selections at a restaurant in Los Angeles.
Ryan Fitzgerald was a longtime ambassador with Del Maguey, and it’s evident in the agave selection at his San Francisco bar. In addition to featuring their full line, he and his team have chosen a few great tequilas and mezcals and make some of the best cocktails in town.
Sweet Liberty is a party bar, but a party bar with an amazing back bar. The staff is committed to hosting a great time every night (there’s even a table behind the bar), and the tequila and mezcal selection is pretty incredible. Definitely a first and last stop in Miami.
Ever so slowly, Lionsgate has been revealing details of John Wick 3‘s ongoing production. The threequel will see Keanu Reeves’ antihero fight his way out of Manhattan, where it seems (at least from the end of the second film) that he’s surrounded by shadowy assassins who want the $14 million bounty placed upon his head through an “Excommunicado” order.
On Monday, several names dropped as cast members, beginning with Halle Berry, who sent Wick a special message on stationery from the Continental Hotel. She promises to see Wick on the film’s release date, May 17, 2019.
— John Wick: Chapter 3 (@JohnWickMovie) May 21, 2018
Considering that Wick’s no longer allowed on Continental grounds (since he killed someone, he can no longer find refuge upon its neutral territory), this message is, well, ice cold. However, the Hollywood Reporter notes that while Berry is cast “opposite” Reeves, her character will “not be the film’s villain,” although further details are being kept under wraps.
In addition, the production (which is currently shooting under the working title “Parabellum,” which is Latin for “prepare for war”) has revealed several more cast members — Asia Kate Dillon as The Adjudicator; Anjelica Huston as The Director; Mark Dacascos as Zero; and Jason Mantzoukas as Tick Tock Man. Especially where Huston and Mantzoukas are concerned, this news adds a few new levels of intrigue.
— John Wick: Chapter 3 (@JohnWickMovie) May 21, 2018
The third film is understood to pick up almost immediately after the events of its predecessor, which gave Wick an hour before he was fair game for assassination. Yet not even in the set photos revealed so far have we heard anything about John Wick’s shelter-rescue dog and whether he’s helping his owner kick some ass. That’s the news we really need.
Like it’s predecessor, it seems that Deadpool 2 is doing just about everything right. It got a high-profile surprise cameo, it’s decimating box office records, its marketing is on point, and they even got Celine Dion to sing a song on the soundtrack. The soundtrack features more original contributions since that of Dion, though, and one of them is now getting accused of perhaps not having the most original sound out there.
Diplo teamed up with French Montana, Lil Pump, and Zhavia for “Welcome To The Party,” a hip-hop track with an aggressive beat that is immediately and obviously reminiscent of TNGHT’s “R U Ready,” which non-TNGHT fans will recognize as the track Kanye West sampled in “Blood On The Leaves.” Just a few days ago, TNGHT tweeted, “@ US WHEN YOU HEAR FAKE TNGHTS” (the same day the Diplo track was released), and now fans are doing just that.
I was like, "where have I heard this new Diplo song before?" And then I was like, "Oh yeah, when TNGHT wrote it, and then when Kanye West sampled it." :P
The duo themselves seem to agree, but they’re not getting too heated about it. TNGHT’s Hudson Mohawke was asked on Twitter, “How does that new Diplo production for Deadpool 2 make you feel,” to which he responded, “Imitation is [the] sincerest form of flattery, [I’m] down with it.”
After the success of the original Star Wars, George Lucas commissioned noted science fiction writer Leigh Brackett to write its sequel, The Empire Strikes Back. That first draft was a long way from what Empire would eventually become, but unfortunately Brackett passed away before any more work could be done. Without a screenwriter, George Lucas did a heavy rewrite of the script himself (and this is where Vader became Luke’s father) before hiring a 29-year-old screenwriter named Lawrence Kasdan, who had just finished a script called Raiders of the Lost Ark, to write the final drafts. After the success of Empire and Raiders, Kasdan would go on to write Return of the Jedi and direct The Big Chill.
Then, after 30 plus years away from Star Wars, he returned to co-write The Force Awakens. Which brings us to now, where he and his son – screenwriter and director Jonathan Kasdan – have co-written a standalone film for the character that Lawrence Kasdan helped flesh out way back in The Empire Strikes Back … Han Solo.
It’s been, to say the least, an unusual production. With reports that Solo: A Star Wars Story was nearing completion, a shockwave was sent through the Force when the original directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, were dismissed and then quickly replaced by Ron Howard. Could the film recover from such a drastic situation? Reviews so far have been mostly positive and everyone involved seems to have a, “whew, can you believe we pulled this off?” attitude. But this was not an easy shoot, to say the least.
We will have more from the Kasdans as the week goes on (as we get into more spoilery subjects later), but we start with Lawrence and Jonathan Kasdan explaining why the change of directors happened and how Lord and Miller’s voices are still very much a part of the film. Also, they explain why they are very much in the “Han shot first” camp and why they want to make that extremely clear in Solo.
Lawrence Kasdan: Before we start, what does Uproxx mean?
So many people ask that. The easy answer is “I don’t know.”
Jonathan Kasdan: Okay, we were both curious.
I do have to say to you that The Empire Strikes Back was the first movie I saw in theaters when I was five years old…
Lawrence Kasdan: Oh my God.
And you scarred me for life. So thank you for that.
Solo got an unusual amount of media attention, even for a Star Wars movie.
Lawrence Kasdan: It was different. But, I’ve thought about it the way I’ve always thought about these things. Which is, the movie does all the work. And everything that’s said about it before people see the movie doesn’t really matter. And if people don’t like the movie, then they don’t like the movie. And if the movie works, everything is forgotten five minutes in. So, that’s really all I’m looking for. You can’t control any of that stuff anyway.
There’s a scene in this movie that very much feels like a statement on the whole “Han shot first” debate.
Jonathan Kasdan: It couldn’t have been more deliberate.
Lawrence Kasdan: Yeah. It was very important to me, like top of the list.
Jonathan Kasdan: To both of us. We are firmly in the camp. In the script, the description literally says, “There can be no doubt Han shot first.”
Before the director change, was there a specific scene you could point to and say, “This is not going the way we want this to go and something has to change”?
Lawrence Kasdan: You know, there was a parting of visions.
Jonathan Kasdan: It was a hard shoot. These movies are incredibly challenging to make and to keep moving along and keep getting everything you need. And along that road, it gets harder and harder. And when a difficult situation exists, it’s amplified by the pressures.
Lawrence Kasdan: When you come to work in the morning, there are not 200 people or 300 like in a big movie. With this there are a thousand people waiting for you. And everything you do affects what they do. And you have to be incredibly incisive and decisive. It’s not an easy job.
Jonathan Kasdan: What I will say also, I have enormous affection and love and respect for Chris and Phil. And they brought a tremendous amount to this movie. And it’s in the movie. It’s in the movie deeply: their sense of humor, their visual inventiveness, it’s all part of what happened. And it’s the last thing on Earth you’d ever want to happen. But the truth is, we’ve now had the benefits of three brilliant filmmakers putting their hands on this movie.
Jim Carrey’s latest movie, Dark Crimes, opened to little fanfare this weekend, not showing up in any of the box office round ups (which usually means the distributor isn’t releasing its numbers), and, as of this writing, remains 0% recommended on RottenTomatoes, pitching a full Bucky Larson.
Carrey himself is never out of the news cycle for long, though lately it seems to be more for things like being the subject of a Netflix documentary (Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond, which I’m convinced is about the incredible patience of Man On The Moon‘s film crew) and his George W. Bush-like second career as an anti-Trump artist. That seems to be going pretty well, actually. Pulitzer Prize-winning art critic Jerry Saltz recently reached out to Carrey to discuss his work, and he’s up to 17 million Twitter followers — surely due at least in part to his #resistance paintings.
The point in mentioning all of this though, is that lately we haven’t been seeing him do much acting. He’s been in just two movies since Dumb And Dumber To in 2014, Dark Crimes and The Bad Batch, both filmed at least two years ago. If you didn’t catch The Bad Batch at a festival, it’s getting a theatrical run next month. DarkCrimes, meanwhile, which had one of the funniest posters this year, came out this past weekend.
IMPA
Why did they only turn one of the Rs backwards? It’s almost too twisted…
The film was directed by Greek director Alexandros Avranas in his English-language debut and scripted by Jeremy Block, who won a BAFTA for co-writing Last King Of Scotland. And the story was based on a real-life murder case described in 2008 in a New Yorker article by David Grann (author of The Lost City Of Z and Killers of The Flower Moon), ‘True Crime, A Postmodern Murder Mystery.’ Which makes it all the more strange that the movie poster looks like it’s for a rejected Law and Order episode.
It should be noted that despite its 0% rating, Dark Crimes doesn’t sound like the most hated movie of the year. RottenTomatoes’ binary tracking system only records “fresh” or “rotten,” and Dark Crimes seems like less a case of intense hatred than of consistent mild dislike (I believe it was Machiavelli who once said, “If you can’t be loved, be consistently mildly disliked). Lots of critics said Carrey was the best part, or above the material, though plenty of others said he was no fun (probably because he wasn’t making his butt talk like he used to). A few pointed out that it was probably in poor taste to have Brett Ratner’s name precede a movie about sexual violence, considering all that’s been going on with him lately.
Anyway, I wasn’t able to catch the film, but as we like to do, I thought we could recreate most of the plot using only exposition from the reviews. The way critics slip into exposition when reviewing a movie they don’t like is magical, I find.
— The Detective
The film gets off to an exploitive start with a series of scenes of nude women being dragged off to a dingy room to be raped. –SF Chronicle[sheesh, talk about a lede -Ed]
One shot shows a blonde woman, naked, her wrists bound by a black cord; that cord suspends her from the curved ceiling of a stone corridor; the woman is revolving slowly as she hangs. The next image is the credit “In Association with Ratpac Entertainment.” –RogerEbert.com
With hair cropped down to his scalp and a white beard, grappling with a strange Eastern European accent that sounds like Ace Ventura Pet Detective enrolled in a crash course at Berlitz, Carrey plays Tadek –Observer
…a haunted-looking man of few words who moves with an economy of precision. –LA Times
Tardek’s obsession with silence and OCD approach to grooming, and the way he re-arranges the eggs and bacon on his breakfast plate, the daily trimming of his beard. He has a wife and child, but they barely figure in any of this. –Movie Nation
Tadek has a squeaky-clean reputation and -Chicago Sun-Times
…was once a candidate for chief of police, but he has been relegated to cold-case desk duty after he botched a high-profile investigation. -Chicago Sun-Times
The Crime
Working in the non-digitized unsolved cases stacks of the one-time police state, -Movie Nation
…Tadek has been told to keep a low profile and make no waves — but he can’t let go of an unsolved case involving the murder of a well-known man named Daniel, -Chicago Sun-Times
… who was found trussed up, dumped in a river -Movie Nation
Daniel frequented this Euro-dungeon sex club -Movie Nation
…notorious for catering to the basest sexual desires of the rich and perverted. –Film Journal International
The rules: members who joined, by invitation only, could do anything they desired to the women, except murder them “because corpses did not look so good in makeup.” -Observer
The Suspect
Tadek is convinced Daniel’s killer is the famous author Kozlow -Chicago Sun-Times
…a writer who lived upstairs above The Cage and recorded intimate details of the atrocities that occurred there. -Observer
Kozlow is a caricature of a pretentious European artist, a hot-head who insults his own work, his readers, and fans before storming out of a Q&A—and to admiring applause. -Slant Magazine
He’s the sort of high-brow provocateur who, when asked in a TV interview whether the misogynistic violence in his novel is supposed to be symbolic, answers, “Maybe. Maybe not.” –AV Club
The Love Interest
Predictably and seemingly inevitably, since his wife (Agata Kulesza) is openly antagonistic, Tudek indulges in an indiscreet interlude with Kozlov’s sado-masochistic, drug-addicted girlfriend, Kasia (Charlotte Gainsbourg) –Susan Granger
…a single mother and recovering addict who has been physically and emotionally abused by men too numerous to count -Chicago Sun-Times
…who sleeps with everyone, including Tadek. -Observer
There are many more shots of Gainsbourg’s buttocks than the story would seem to require. -Slant Magazine
The Shock Value
The deeper he delves into the case, the more obsessed Tadek becomes, watching over and over again the tapes of what went on at The Cage -Observer
…a number of shock scenes in which women are brutalized and humiliated and demeaned… -Chicago Sun-Times
…lots of naked women hanging from the ceiling and engaging in orgies with each other while the customers applaud… -Observer
…scenes of naked women in bondage being debased by fully clothed males. -LA Times
Finally, his wife serves his fried eggs during images of women chained and crawling on all fours like animals and asks, “Do we have to listen to this over breakfast?” -Observer
Atmosphere
Set in the grimly realized Polish city of Kraków, with people who look as chipper as “Whistler’s Mother” –New York Post
…filmed on ugly, sterile sets that can best be described as “Mussolini modern” -Observer
…prologue undermines payoff as scenes are shot in exceedingly deliberate takes. –New York Times
Obsession with extreme close-ups, characters constantly entering rooms and closing doors… -LA Times
…dismal lighting that makes it look like the whole thing was shot in the basement of a late-period Jean-Pierre Melville film… -AV Club
Check out the dusty bust of Lenin in this scene, the moldy odor of retarded progress, decay, hanging over every day life. -Movie Nation
A buildup, a long stare and a pained expression to linger over; everything here feels a third longer than necessary. -New York Times
The sky is always overcast and the characters are all dressed like they’re on their way to a funeral. -AV Club
The Audiobook
A break comes from the novelist’s “last novel,” -Movie Nation
…never published but rendered into audio book form so that Tardek can listen to its vivid descriptions of sex club antics. -Movie Nation
He relishes both the book-on-tape readings of Kozlow’s dreary works — “A girl screaming was like shopping mall Muzak, the sound of buying and selling” –Consequence of Sound
…and damned if much of what turns up in the novel is straight out of the non-public portions of the case files of this one notorious, unsolved murder. -Movie Nation
“I think this book is your confession,” Tardek accuses.
“That’s what YOU say,” the author spits back.
“That’s what YOU say,” Tardek grins, pointing at the tape recorder with Kozlow’s own voice coming out of it.
“That’s what I WRITE.” -Movie Nation
In Too Deep
Kozlow works the system, charms the media and lies about being mistreated by Tadek while in custody. -Chicago Sun-Times
[Kozlow] says he will get satisfaction for the way his 30th Amendment rights have been violated. (Happily, the script does bother to get the constitution of Poland’s 30th Amendment right.) -RogerEbert.com [yes, that is an important consideration. -Ed.]
The bleakness extends to the cop’s home life, where he shares silent meals with his family (everyone keeping their head down while they chew), and his day job is mainly devoted to purposelessness to pass the time, remaining on the force in an administrative role. –BluRay.com
All the while, he immerses himself in his suspect’s work by listening to it on audiobook -AV Club
…chasing a cold case at the expense of his marriage to his exasperated wife, Marta. -Slant Magazine
In one scene, a friendly higher-up, Piotr (Vlad Ivanov), drops in on Tadek just to summarize the events of the last year or so. -Slant Magazine
Convinced Kozlow is going to get away with murder, Tadek goes off the rails, risking his marriage and committing a number of crimes in a desperate attempt to prove Kozlow’s guilt. -Chicago Sun-Times
Tadek gets a false confession from the wrong man, all of his witnesses disappear, his wife and daughter leave him, the identity of the killer is supposed to be shocking but has the impact of shredded wheat. The ending is as tragic and depressing as it is inexplicable. -Observer
Oh… uh… I guess that’s the ending. I have to imagine it felt less rushed in the theater. If you’re still curious, it’s currently available on iTunes and various other OnDemand platforms.
Barack Obama may have left the White House on January 20th, 2017, but he didn’t go far, although now that he’s not president, he’s got errands to run just like the rest of us. That said, he has picked his public appearances and what he does carefully, including a fascinating interview with David Letterman on Netflix’s My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. Now it appears that Netflix wants even more of Obama and Michelle.
The streaming service has announced a “storytelling partnership” with the Obamas and their production company, Higher Ground, with the potential for what Netflix calls a “mix” of scripted series, documentaries, unscripted series, and features. No specific projects were announced, but this quote from the press release hints at a specific direction:
“One of the simple joys of our time in public service was getting to meet so many fascinating people from all walks of life, and to help them share their experiences with a wider audience. That’s why Michelle and I are so excited to partner with Netflix – we hope to cultivate and curate the talented, inspiring, creative voices who are able to promote greater empathy and understanding between peoples, and help them share their stories with the entire world.”
It’s an interesting approach for both parties. The Obamas haven’t shown a particular interest in film production, possibly because Hollywood insists on trying to kill Barack with giant psychic gorillas, so it’s a bit of a question mark. Conversely, Netflix is likely aware hiring a guy who literally gets screamed at over his mustard choices is probably going to lead to a busy day for their PR department, so that they’re willing to put up with that where most companies avoid even the appearance of controversy is intriguing. We’ll just have to see what happens as the production deal yields fruit.
