Bar Brucato may have been built by amaro, but don’t expect red-checked tablecloths and straw-bottomed bottles at the Mission District’s new distillery, tasting room, and restaurant.

For the makers of this line of typically Italian liqueurs, the long road from stockroom to storefront started in the bel paese, but its roots run deep through the Golden State.

Raw concrete walls and wood finishings highlight the bar's spartan design.(David Dines)

Named after the founder of San Francisco’s first farmer’s market, Brucato Amaro has been keeping things bitter in the Bay since 2018, when founders Sierra and James Clark began producing a trio of local, small-batch alternatives to long-established European amari like Nonino and the city’s beloved Fernet-Branca. Seven years later, the enterprise has proven successful enough to merit expansion into a public-facing venue, set to open on April 10th at 275 South Van Ness Avenue.

First meeting in New York City, where Sierra was completing a Ph.D. in the politics and production of American whisky, the two Californians took a detour to Washington, D.C., where James worked in federal finance for the U.S. Treasury under the Obama Administration, before returning to the West Coast. Yet it was on a bocce court near Italy’s Adriatic Coast, where the seed for Brucato Amaro was first planted.

“[The court] was always filled with local old men sipping amaro, playing bocce, and talking about life,” Sierra recalls of their brief residence in Italy. Often stopping for a “snack and a sip,” the Carmel native marveled at amaro’s ability to reflect the local terroir and savored the sense of community she came to associate with it. James, hailing from Oroville, was eager to return to their home state and, considering his wife’s background, saw amaro’s rare potential to help make the most of that transition.

Bar Brucato's new dining room and bar.(David Dines)

Landing in San Francisco and initially operating out of a 400-square-foot facility in SoMa, the Clarks drew inspiration from the hyper-regionalspirit of their Italian counterparts. They infused a neutral grape brandy base with native and characteristic ingredients to paint three distinct California landscapes: Chaparral, which drinks like a rounder, mintier génépi and prominently features yerba santa and California bay laurel to recall the coastal foothills; Woodlands, which leverages elderberry, cocoa, and fig to evoke foggy mornings among the live oaks and is a velvety, earthy sipper to pair with biscotti or use in cocktails; and Orchards, an Aperol-beating bitter which boasts more depth and a hint more spice than the industrial aperitivo, placing dried apricot, walnut, and Meyer lemon center stage to elicit images of springtime picnics in the Central Valley.

Over time, their three offerings have carved out a niche on the top shelf among amaro aficionados, earning hardware from the Bartender Spirit Awards, San Francisco World Spirits Competition, and the USA Spirits Ratings, among others. Now betting the house on Bar Brucato, the Clarks hope their bitter empire can be a springboard to the kind of community spirit they first encountered in Italy.

It won’t be easy. Heck, it hasn’t been easy.

Since the closure of Mission Bay’s Seven Stills three years ago, Brucato's relatively small, 6,000-square-foot space now holds the distinction of being the only operational, public-facing distillery in the city—a lack of competition that comes as little surprise, considering the myriad hurdles unique to producing and serving a spirit that is as drinkable as it is flammable.

Octopus confit and an amaro highball are two tastes of Bar Brucato's California-inspired offerings.(David Dines)

From permitting to plumbing to fire safety protocol, these challenges would be considerable for even the most experienced bar owners, let alone those making their debut. To help them overcome these obstacles—and those to come—the Clarks have surrounded themselves with a motley crew of local industry veterans who have surely seen it all.

Architect Samatha Buckley of Studio BBA (Mamahuhu, Tartine) was charged with revamping the former headquarters of Double Rainbow Ice Cream. The multi-story space straddles the line between utilitarian and organic, mirroring the “nothing to hide” ethos to which the Clarks aspire. Brutalist béton brut walls flaunt stains and sediment from the building’s past, while expansive skylights and front-facing windows flood the zone with natural light, illuminating warm wood furnishings, varigated green glazed tile, and an abundance of foliage.

In the kitchen, executive chef Chris “Chip” King (Merchant Roots, Kin Khao, Maum) designed the menu to honor the memory of John Brucato, with rotating farmer’s market-driven plates and ingredients sourced from San Francisco producers like Flannery Beef. Fresh pastas—an uncommon constant on the menu—come courtesy of Giusto’s flour.

Like the amari, King's dishes blur the line between the Mediterranean and the Pacific, from sunchoke toast with pecorino and saba (a sweet, balsamic-like condiment made from grape must and walnut) to braised octopus confit with Chaparral amaro-tomato glaze and chermoula (a Middle Eastern marinade similar to chimichurri).

Brucato Amaro's Orchard (David Dines)

At the still and behind the bar, distillery director Brandon Conley (formerly of Cleveland Whisky) offers an inventive, amaro-focused cocktail list featuring atypical originals like the deceptively light, herbaceous Friend Place (Chaparral, gin, orgeat, and lime) and the extra-bitter Bully Choop Spritz (Woodlands, Seville orange aperitif, Kirschwasser, lambrusco, and soda), alongside plenty of alternatives for those who aren’t so bitterly inclined.

With Adam Timney (co-founder of Starbelly) on board as director of operations, Bar Brucato promises to have plenty more in store moving forward. Imminent releases include a kumquat-infused triple sec, a London dry-style gin made in the in-house still, and a fourth amaro steeped in artichoke and fenugreek that will nod to Castroville and the surrounding Salinas Valley. Expanded lunch service, distillery tours and tastings, and a calendar of culinary courses also loom on the horizon.

“In today's world [so] many experiences take place virtually," says Sierra. "It is increasingly difficult to find what is true and honest. [With Bar Brucato], we wanted to have a real place where guests can physically see, touch, smell, and taste what we are making.”

// Open Wednesday through Sunday from 4pm to 9pm; 275 South Van Ness Avenue (Mission), barbrucato.com