Tuesday 22nd May 2012
Bob Thompson
When I visited this bar in the North Park district it had only been open for about nine months. However it had already got a reputation as having a good beer list and so it proved. It is basically a medium sized room with a bar on the left as you enter and a wood-fired oven at the far end with a lot of stools and standing space. There is no table service; all orders are dealt with at the bar. Beer you take from the bar, for food you are given a number and it is brought to your seat.
So here was what was on offer, excluding imports: Sierra Nevada (Chico, CA) Southern Hemisphere Harvest (6.7%), made with New Zealand hops; Sociète (San Diego, CA) Harlot (6.4%), Belgian-type ale with added lemon zest and their Apprentice IPA (8.4%); Firestone-Walker (Paso Robles, CA) Hefeweizen (4.5%), Bavarian-style wheat and their Wookey Jack (8.3%), a Black Rye IPA; Automatic (San Diego, CA) Insider (4.7%) a wheat beer with Tangerine and Kumquat added; New English (San Diego, CA) Why not Wheat? (4.6%), a hoppy beer with US and UK malts and Grand Teton (Victor, ID) Bitch Creek ESB (6.5%).
The selection continues with Dogfish Head (Milton, DE) Treason (6.0%), a Soghun beer with strawberries; Allagash (Portland, ME) White (5.0%), a Belgian-type wheat, and their Victor (9.0%), a strong ale in the Belgian style; Founder's (Grand Rapids, MI) Porter (6.5%) and their Centennial IPA (7.2%); New Belgian (Fort Collins, CO) Tart Lychee Ale (7.5%), a sour beer with Lychees and Cinnamon; Hanger 24 (Redlands, CA) Double IPA (8.7%); Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY) Hennepin (7.7%), a Saison and Victory (Downingtown, PA) Braumeister Pils (5.0%), made with 100% Saaz hops. There was also Julian (Julian, CA) Cider (7.7%), made with whole fruit.
One thing that is very noticeable is that there were many out-of-state beers. Whether that was just coincidence or not I don't know but, because of the sheer number of breweries in California, San Diego beer bars tend to concentrate on the home state yet still offer great variety. I was pleased to learn that they often have special events and happy hour type promotions on various days, sometimes involving cask beer. The food is mostly sandwiches and the oven was not intended for pizzas as I thought at first, but for toasting the sandwiches and finishing the meats; definitely unusual!
To summarise, I thought it was a great beer bar with interesting food. Well worth a visit.
Important Information:
Tiger! Tiger!, 3025 Cayon Boulevard, San Diego 92104. Tel: 01 619 487 0401
Open: Tuesday to Thursday 17.00-24.00; Friday and Saturday 11.30-01.00;
Sunday 11.30-24.00. Monday: Closed.
The pub is located by the intersection of El Cayon Boulevard and 30th Street. Bus 2 runs from Downtown south to north along 30th Street every 15 minutes Monday to Fridays; 20 minutes on Saturdays and 30 minutes on Sunday. Bus 15 also runs from Downtown but operates west to east along Cayon Boulevard at the same frequencies as the number 2. This is quicker as uses an Expressway for part of the journey. Bus 1 also runs along Cayon Boulevard but does not come from Downtown.