From pickled eggs to Korean fried chicken, here are our favorite savory, sweet and salty bar snacks that are fantastic with cold beers. Cheers!
Beef jerky from Long Beach Jerky Co.
Founded in 2013 by Alex Naticchioni and Richie Beckman, the Long Beach Jerky Co. delivers small-batch brisket meats using an heirloom recipe passed down from Naticchioni’s Gramps. (Full disclosure: Beckman is this rag’s art director.) What began as an experimental weekend of jerky making and beer drinking in their tiny Long Beach apartment has turned into a popular craft jerky brand supplied throughout California—including Orange County. Find Naticchioni and Beckman’s wares at your local brewery, and be sure to try Gramps’ time-perfected recipe, in addition to blends such as sweet and spicy teriyaki and zesty buffalo wing. lbjerkyco.com.
Pulled-pork sliders at Big B’s Barbecue
Good things come in threes, and the pulled-pork slider trio is perfection, right down to the pickles served on the side. The owners also own Brian’s Sports Bar next door, so you can head over and get your meal served through a tiny window while catching a game across the way from Cal State Fullerton. 1948 N. Placentia Ave., Fullerton, (714) 528-7427; www.bigbsbbq.com.
Dilis at Irenia
Crunchy, deep-fried anchovies are combined with a bowl of spicy vinegar in this perfectly pungent and salty pulutan (Filipino bar bite). Pair the dilis with an ice-cold San Migs Pale Pilsen, then dip, eat and repeat until those tasty little fish disappear. 400 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, (657) 245-3466; www.ireniarestaurant.com.
Pickled eggs at Hollingshead Deli
Swimming in a chilled brine, these tangy eggs are preserved with cloves, spiced peppercorns and beet juice until they turn a fluorescent pink. Add a double-hopped IPA or a crisp light ale and a bag of potato chips, and you can call it a meal. The beer-pickle combinations are endless with Hollingshead’s unbeatable tap list. 368 S. Main St., Orange, (714) 978-9467; www.hollingsheadsdeli.com.
Korean fried chicken wings at Krave Asian Fusion
Succulent and ridiculously crispy till the last bite—it’s pretty safe to say that Krave offers some of the best KFC (Korean fried chicken) in Orange County. These sweet-and-spicy-glazed wings taste even more fantastic during happy hour, when craft and import beers are only $4. 2819 Main St., Irvine, (949) 379-6075; www.cravekrave.com.
Cynthia Rebolledo covers anything and everything food, culture and spirits.