The Tasting Panel magazine

WHAT'S BREWING? Owner-chef Moez Megji (left) and Brewmaster Roger "Dr. Hops" Bott at The LAB, their gastropub in Agoura Hills, CA. Beyond the Brewpub TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL IN LOS ANGELES The gastropub is the new place to be—a welcoming neighbor- hood tavern with adventuresome but unpretentious food and plenty of fresh-brewed beer to wash it down. We recently visited two brand new gastropubs in the Los Angeles area to see what's brewing. —David Gadd W ith a menu that's broken down into "Liquids," "Petri Dishes," "Sphericals," "Botanicals" and "R&D," among other categories, The LAB Brewing Co. is part stylish tavern, part ongoing experiment. The new gastropub in the Los Angeles suburb of Agoura Hills opened in November and has already garnered a loyal following. In the restaurant business for 30 years, Chef Moez Megji sprinkles touches of places he has connections with—India, East Africa, England, Canada and California—across his cuisine. The worldly menu is geared for exploration, holding treasures such as succulent bistro-style roasted bone mar- row, Mediterranean anchovy pizza, Cajun-influenced grilled escolar in langoustine butter and Thai-sauced P.E.I. mussels. Brewmaster Roger "Dr. Hops" Bott keeps the beer flowing from a 14-barrel system in a glassed-in room near the bar. Bott started homebrewing while still in high school and later apprenticed in Belgium. "When I was eight," he says, "my mom asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up. I said I wanted to open a restaurant." Now a partner with Megji, Bott plans to keep four types of beer available year-round, while rotating another two or three seasonally. His Cold Fusion Java is an aromatic porter infused with Kona coffee beans, while his Lab XPA and Big Ass Red deliver heady doses of hops that show how Bott got his nickname. Belgian specialties include the Take Her Home Triple and a deliciously slurpable witbier. All exhibit a soft, mouthfilling quality that seems to be The LAB's house style. Flights of four beers help clientele get acquainted with the offerings, while the bar has 26 taps in addition to house brews. There's a full complement of spirits and wines as well. Way across town in Pasadena, Haven Gastropub+Brewery is opening just off well-trod- den Colorado Boulevard in Old Town. In early December, the large, open- ceiling space is abuzz with construction crews prepar- ing for a soft opening that's just days away. Platoons of waitstaff and bartenders are being instructed by partners Will Dee and Ace Patel on tableside manners, correct use of the bar's 52 beer taps and other fine points of service. Brewmaster David Larsen is prepping the shiny 15-barrel tanks he'll be using Brewmaster David Larsen shows off some hops at Pasadena's new Haven Gastropub+Brewery. to create and store the house beers—four year-round offerings and smaller batches of seasonals. "If Chef gets something interesting in the kitchen, I'll be using it to create special beers," says Larsen. He'll be using a wall of ex-wine barrels to make oak-aged brews, and the house-designed clean-in-place system will keep beer lines as fresh as the latest tweet. Chef-partner Greg Daniels promises "modern American cuisine with European influences," which translates to nose-to-tail comfort foods such as roasted lamb neck, baby octopus pasta, rabbit liver and a daring porchetta di testa—a roulade of hog's head, cooked sous-vide. Clearly, this is more than your basic burger-and-brew bar. With lessons learned at the original edition of Haven in Orange County, the entire team seems bent on making the rambling Pasadena location a true haven for beer and food lovers. january/february 2012 / the tasting panel / 79

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