Story Tavern

150 S San Fernando Blvd 
Burbank, CA 91502 
818-567-4200 
www.storytavernburbank.com 
twitter.com/storytavern 

Parking: Free parking in back, metered street parking, somewhat nearby free lots 
Days: Tuesday – Sunday
Time: 4:30-7:30pm 
Drink Deals: $2 off all beers and ciders and house wines by the glass 
Food Deals: n/a, my friends, n/a 

Wandering Burbank’s main San Fernando strip, Booze and I happened upon the outside of a very charming bar called Story Tavern. While a historical sign out front notes that the location is named after Henry Story, one of Burbank’s early pioneers (and owner of Story and Sons Hardware Store), the Story Tavern store front is straight out of a story book with stained glass stylings and a carved wooden sign. 

Plenty of Beer!

Alas, it was too early for Happy Hour, so we took a mental snapshot (aka iPhone snapshot) to remember the location. A couple weeks later, Booze, our friend Tracy, and I found ourselves back for the 4:30 to 7:30 Happy Hour, where all draft beers and ciders (and there were plenty to choose from – German, Belgian, English, Irish, and American brews), as well as house wines are $2 off. With the beers running from $6-11 during regular hours, you can expect to pay $4-9 during Happy Hour. The coolest thing about the beer list for me (a non-beer expert) was the availability of 4 cider beers: 

• Wandering Aengus Anthem Cherry Cider 
• Aspall Suffolk English Cider 
• Strongbow Cider 
• Foxbarrell Blackberry Pear Cider 

If you know me and my fruity ways, you’ll have guessed that I ordered the Blackberry Pear deliciousness ($6 during HH, or as Tracy described it – alcoholic fruit punch. True dat. Though Booze is definitely more of a beer connoisseur, she ordered the same cider selection while Tracy went for the well-poured house white wine at $6. 

 

Booze and JB with Foxbarrell Blackberry Pear Ciders ($6 each)

Tracy and her Chardonnay ($6)

While the prices were fair for Happy Hour drink fare, they were not so for food because unfortunately, Story Tavern doesn’t offer any Happy Hour food deals. The interesting food note about Story Tavern is that they are attempting to corner the market on gluten-free bites in the Burbank beer scene (go to Tony’s Dart’s Away for the vegan bites :). Booze and I shared an order of Chips for $5, kettle chips dusted with spices and served with BBQ sauce and Bleu Cheese dressing for dipping. Not too bad a deal, but next time, I hope to take advantage of the interesting gluten-free Roasted Vegetables and Cheesy Polenta ($10), one of the only vegetarian entrée items. 

 

Kettle Chips w/ Dipping Sauces ($5)

The inside of the bar is as cute and cool as the outside. Disneyland-mega fan Tracy noted that it was like a grown-up version of the Storyteller’s Café at the Grand Californian. I can’t vouch for that (my knowledge of Disneyland extends to the fact that Ryan Gosling likes to take all his lady-loves there – really the only thing you need to know about Disneyland), but I did love the hard wood décor and ample restaurant seating. 

Just like Hansel and Gretel's?

There weren’t many other folks there during our visit, but the scene started picking up upon our departure. Alas, we couldn’t stay long – it was a Blue Moon and the $3 Blue Moon Happy Hour at Burbank Bar and Grille beckoned us! 

--JB 

Rating: 3.5 Martinis