PROOF at The Hake Cocktail Bar Premieres in La Jolla

After revealing a remodel and expansion in October, The Hake Kitchen & Bar is turning its focus to its cocktail bar and lounge. Dubbed PROOF at The Hake, it will operate independently from the main dining room, opening daily at 5 p.m. and staying open an hour later than the restaurant with potential extension into late night hours this summer.

On Repeal Day, December 5, PROOF will be hosting a special launch party with live music, $5 Fernet shots, draft beers and house wines, with its bar staff dressed up in Prohibition-era duds. And everything on its craft cocktail menu will be offered at a special $8 price. The drink list, managed by beverage curator Joan Villanueva working with barmen Andrew Larson and Daniel Vargas, is arranged by base spirit and includes the Japanese Spell with Nikka Coffey Grain, Luxardo and green tea tincture and A Shot In The Dark with Cointreau, Crème de Cocoa, Ancho Reyes and Fernet Branca. The bar also features its own food menu, with a spirit-forward and citrus-forward cocktail pairing suggestion listed for each dish.

PROOF at The Hake by EaterSD on Scribd