Martini night at Auberge
Female friendly drinking
By Kit Stolz 04/10/2008
Auberge at Ojai
314 El Paseo
Ojai
(805)646-2288
Drinking is not just for men. But in alcohol consumption as in everything else women have their own ideas on how to do it right.
They are rarely seen in sports bars, for instance, but not because they don’t like sports. A lot of women like games, some including balls, and quite a number of females are good sports about going to all sorts of events with their steady lunkheads. Nor do they draw the line at the noise, the truck ads on the big screens, or the restrooms decorated in the latest in spraypaint.
They’re accustomed to all that, hanging out with their beloveds at home.
No, the real obstacle to going out drinking at male-dominated establishments is not aesthetic, but caloric. As much as these delicate souls might like to quaff some spirits with their true loves while watching a giant leap into the televised night to slam a round ball through a round hoop, they draw the line at slamming down a week’s worth of calories in an evening.
The truth is that most American women are not happy with their bodies, don’t want to put on more weight, and recoil in horror at the prospect of chips dished out with a grain shovel, hamburgers the size of frisbees, and onion rings dripping grease. American men, on the other hand, although on average actually more overweight than women, don’t care as much. Perhaps they’re too busy staring at someone else’s bustline to notice their own beltline.
The solution? Auberge, in Ojai, has a martini night special on Wednesday nights designed to appeal to a female drinker who wants to maintain her figure — and a man who might enjoy her company.
Men get their drink choices as well — the bartender, Andrew, makes a mean and briny dirty martini — but it’s clearly designed to appeal to a finer sensibility.
This makes sense for a destination restaurant that food lovers in Ventura County think mostly for special occasions. The elegant Auberge is a bit pricey for most of us most of the time, but on Wednesday nights, with drinks at half price, and a basic menu with no item priced more than $10, it’s manageable — and fun.
The food is classic Americana given a womanly twist — instead of one monstrous hamburger with a few hundred calories on the side in fries, Auberge offers a plate of three mini-hamburgers, juicy, tasty, with a delicate sampling of chips. This allows the mini-skirted to better enjoy the martinis, which come in a wild variety of colors and tastes. They include a Pink Moment (a sweetish drink infused with an “x-rated liqueur”), as well as a Fallen Apple, a Lemon Drop,and countless other drinks that can only be described as “frou-frou” … and seem designed to get a woman in the mood.
The specials menu has a handful of entrees, none less than $8, none more than $10, with desserts at $7. Highlights include a Portobello mushroom burger, far better prepared than most of this ilk, hearty, perfectly rounded, well-seasoned. The best item on the menu is the croque monsieur, which a European member of our party declared “better than the last one I had in France,” nicely browned, with excellent Black Forest ham and rich cheese. The sides — such as chips and guacamole — are disappointing. But thin slices of bread are freely dispensed, the service is impeccable and fun-loving, and the desserts (including a hot chocolate cake with melted marshmallow) are spectacular.
Give your better half her druthers, the message seems to be, and perhaps she’ll give you yours.
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Get there quick because I'm told Auberge is closing in June!