Safe Maven
Strong Cocktails and Small Plates in the Lower Haight

Nobody tells you your business.

Unless it’s the business of pairing duck sliders with rum cocktails.

Then you’re all ears.

Introducing Maven, a bi-level sanctuary of cocktailing with a ready-made menu that pairs a drink and a beer or wine with each small plate, opening Wednesday in the Lower Haight.

When you’re looking to have a booze-to-food ratio stacked heavily in your favor (like two drinks for every plate), you’ll walk in here, take a stool at the redwood bar, gaze upon the expertly overgrown foliage behind said bar and hone in on a cocktail from the 10-deep list.

The three-columned menu is designed to be paired by row, so if you choose a cocktail from the left column—say the rum/five-spice 5 Spot—you’ll find the suggested food pairing (Chinatown Duck Sliders) next to it. Or if you’d prefer beer or wine with your sliders instead of cocktails, look to the right-hand side of the menu (Maudite red ale goes with those sliders).

If you’re coming with a date (and you should), the upstairs mezzanine will serve as a little hideaway. Here, you’ll slide into a fireside sofa, opt for the simpler bites menu, and go the oysters and bubbly route.

Dating rule #62: When in doubt, find a fireplace.