About

Cocktails, food, and gardening South of the hill in Bernal Heights, San Francisco.

Q: Who are you?

A: My name is Erik Ellestad and I write this blog.

Q: Is your last name really “Flannestad”?

A: No. Funny story. A million years ago, probably before you were born, I registered a domain name for myself and my wife, “muzack.com”.  I thought it was kind of funny, as my wife had been using that sort of nom de plum for her radio show at the time.  Sadly, the MUZAK company did not share my amusement and served me with a cease and desist order.  Casting about for a new domain for our family, I remembered that we sometimes referred to ourselves by a combination of our last names.  FLANN-ESTAD.  Fortunately, no large mega corporations had yet claimed that domain or anything similar. Woo! Score!

Q: Why is this blog named, “The Underhill Lounge”?

A: I was trying to think of a name for a Chocolate Bitters and it popped into my head. Then I carried it on when I started the blogspot blog. As near as I can sort out my convoluted instinct at naming, it is a joke/pun. I live South of a large hill in San Francisco called, “Bernal Hill”, so kind of “Under the Hill.” Also a reference to the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings. Bilbo Baggins’ hobbit hole was in Bag End, Underhill. I’m not a huge fantasy fan these days, but they were important books in my adolescence. Lastly, my father was a Funeral Director, (a.k.a. Undertaker,) so kind of a tribute to him.

Q: Are you making these very Savoy cocktails every night?

A: I usually make about 5 Savoy Cocktails a week and post them every other day.  So there is a bit of a temporal disconnect.

Disclosures and Policies

Any substances reviewed or written up on this blog are purchased on my own dime, unless otherwise noted.

Should you choose to send samples or items for review, they will be taken on their own merit and reviewed honestly and forthrightly.

Contact:

Erik Ellestad
706 Anderson Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
email: ellestad(a)gmail.com