Santa Monica, CA – After a fun day of surf and sun, when the tide begins to rise and the moon makes its nightly arch, The Moon Bar at Lunetta opens its doors and welcomes guests to partake in an evening of progressive, chef-driven elevated New Californian Cuisine and masterfully Handcrafted Cocktails. Presented by Chef Raphael Lunetta and the Lunetta Team, The Moon Bar is coquettishly tucked inside Lunetta Dining, capturing the atmospheric California coast quiescence with the approachability of an evening neighborhood cocktail bar that welcomes guests from all over Greater Los Angeles!
Photo credit – acuna-hansen
Helming The Moon Bar beverage program is Beverage Director & Sommelier Kristine Bocchino, who contributes her expertise in food and wine to quarterly publication EdibleLA, Westlake Magazine, and has most recently served as a judge in Italy for the Cocktail & Bartending Competition at the Florence Cocktail Week 2018. Describing her approach to the House Libations, Bocchino says, “The cocktails are heavily influenced by Chef Raphael Lunetta’s menu, particularly his incorporation of produce from the Farmers Market.” Fortuitously, there is no need to vacate the alluring ambience of The Moon Bar once guests begin feeling peckish as the full menu from Lunetta Dining is always available.
Vodka + Gin employs the use of clear spirits to bring guests three light and revivifying cocktails beginning with the cheekily named Spicy Like a Sleepover, undoubtedly the star cocktail of the menu, and prepared with St. George Green Chili vodka, Becherovka, coconut cream, lemongrass, ginger, and lime; the East Side to the West Side featuring Fords Gin, cucumber, mint, lime, orgeat, and Angostura Bitters, and the Honey Ryder made with London Dry Gin, pamplemousse, lemon and bubbles. Creamy with a hint of spice, the Spirits from South of the Border sizzle things up with Tequila + Mezcal based cocktails such as the Mariposa Calor comprised of Espadin mezcal, Amaro Nonino Aperol, lime, Firewater bitters, or get a little pep in your step with the Tired but Wired featuring blanco tequila, Rhum Agricole, housemade chamomile-turmeric syrup, coconut cream, Blackstrap Bitters, and lime. What restaurant by the beach would be complete without a couple of Rum libations, starting with a creative twist on a beachy classic, the Oaxacan Mai Tai, comprised Plantation Pineapple Rum, mezcal, lime, Dry Curacao, orgeat, and Angostura bitters. Hang ten and bottoms up to the Gnarly Surfer, a mixture of Rhum Agricole, pineapple gomme, lime, Blackstrap Bitters, and vegan egg white. Three liquid amber cocktails await Whiskey enthusiasts, starting with the Salted Butter, featuring Japanese whisky, Cocchi di Torino, Suze, Italicus, and grapefruit bitters, while Bocchino breathes new life into two quintessential mixed drinks, first with the Pimms Cup 2420, with Buffalo Trace, lemon, honey peach bitters, and Pimms, and lastly, make no mistake this is Not Your Nonna’s Negroni, comprised of rye, Mr. Black Cold Brew, Cappelletti, and Cocchi di Torino.
If Wine is your pleasure, there is no better place to enhance your meal than The Moon Bar with eclectic varietals offered by the glass and by the bottle. Offering a tickle of Sparkling effervescence is the French Aubry Brut Rosé, and Hébrart Brut Cuvee de Reserve, or the Italian Ferrari Brut Sparkling. Pert and pink, Rosé includes the 2017 Liquid Farm “Vogelzang” Happy Canyon from Santa Barbara, as well as a Grenache based Rosé straight from the Sierra Foothills of California: the 2017 The Wither’s El Dorado. Essential for California coastal living, the White varietals start with a wine that Bocchino boasts is, “ideally paired with shellfish as it provides superb acid,” the 2015 Picpoul Forlorn Hope Rorock Vineyard, from Calaveras County, followed by a 2015 Viognier Yves Cuilleron from Condrieu, France, and all of the way from Kamptal, Austria the 2016 Gruner Veltliner Weinschlossl. Bold and sumptuous, a Red is sure to compliment the meal, such as the Spanish 2015 Grenache Palacios, Les Terrasses, or a bold and refreshing blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Malbec, uniting to create the 2015 Alpha Omega II Rutherford from Napa Valley. With the final Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot blend, the 2010 Phélan Ségur Saint Estephe is sure to please every Bordeaux lover. For the true connoisseur, the Cellar Selections provide unique vintages such as the Bordeaux-Style blend from Napa Valley, the 2001 Joseph Phelps Insignia, or a wine born from the Nebbiolo grape in the mountains of the famous Piemonte region of Italy, the 1998 Gaja Costa Russi, also offered from Champagne, France is the 1997 Salon Les Mesnil Blanc de Blancs.
Creating The Moon Bar look and feel of comfortable but lush beach city cocktail bar is De JONG & Co. For the interior, De JONG & Co. employed contrast and drama as the timeless navy blue of the exterior is carried through The Moon Bar. Cached in the richness of the elements, walnut, soapstone and satin brass accents lend a density to the environment that is at the same time sophisticated and cozy, with custom plush green velvet furniture in a sea of green and teal encaustic tile, and custom designed shelving to showcase all that The Moon Bar has to offer. The details on its casework draw the eye up to a wall-to-wall ceiling treatment of ornate foliage, as though the ocean of the walls rise up to the forested sea floor. A skylight centers the room, with a single exposed beam cutting through like a ship’s mast, and tasteful brass lighting serve as portholes in this stately ship’s cabin. Funneling into the adjacent Lunetta Dining, the night sky is revealed in the constellation-inspired tiling laid out by the firm’s principal designer Ruth De Jong. Look closely and you can spy the Big Dipper.
Warm in attitude while relaxing in composition, The Moon Bar at Lunetta is a new sultry getaway in Santa Monica where you can sip a handcrafted cocktail by a fireplace, meet up with friends, or unwind with your own thoughts at the bar!
The Moon Bar at Lunetta is open every Tuesday through Friday from 6:30 pm to 11:00 pm, and every Saturday from 5:00 pm to 11:00 pm. For more information or to make reservations, please visit www.LunettaSM.com please call The Moon Bar at Lunetta directly at 310.581.9888.
Voted top 10 food and wine festivals in the world by International Food, Wine and Travel Writer’s Association, Pacific Wine and Food Classic offers an unparalleled gourmet culinary experience completely inspired by summer. More than 60 of the region’s top chefs will create dishes reminiscent of their favorite summer memories offering guests the unique opportunity to sample an array of Southern California’s finest restaurants all in one weekend.
At the time Chef Lunetta was helming his restaurant JiRaffe in Santa Monica. After meeting him at the Westlake Village event and trying his food, we vowed to make it in to his restaurant but sadly never did. Ultimately we heard that he had closed it after a very long run.
Then, in early 2017 by my recollection, the manager of the short-lived and greatly missed Maré Restaurant in Silver Lake tasted us on a Rosé made by a local winemaker who was focusing on Los Angeles County grapes. But I didn’t make the connection, until…
2013 Mystic Hills Vineyard Monterey County Rosé
As it turns out, Guillaume has a brother – Arnaud. And while Karen and I had initially met Guillaume at a wine festival, our introduction to Arnaud was indirectly related to one.
Friday afternoon was the Opening Tasting and the Closing Tasting was held Saturday afternoon. The participants were the same at both, with the opening tasting focusing on older vintages and the closing tasting representing current releases. Wineries could only pour wines that were primarily made up of the 22 Rhône varieties. This was not only a great opportunity to taste an incredible number of fine wines, but to also interact with lots of winemakers.